Buffs Sweep Rockets, Improve to 8-0

BOULDER – The Colorado volleyball team (8-0, 0-0 Big 12) defeated Toledo (6-2, 0-0 MAC) in three sets (25-22, 25-15, 25-15) at the Colorado Events Center on Saturday, Sept. 13. The Buffs have only lost three sets this season, making this the Buffs' second-best start in program history.

In the Buffs' sixth sweep of the 2025 season, CU saw a tight first set against the Rockets. After regrouping and gathering some momentum, Colorado won both sets two and three handily by 10 points each.

"Happy to get out with a win, a 3-0 win, especially with three matches on a weekend, because we've got a quick turnaround to play tomorrow," head coach Jesse Mahoney said. "We struggled in that first set. They served really well, and we gave up a lot of free points. We were able to right the ship there in the second half of that set, and I think we did a really nice job in sets two and three, certainly from a serving standpoint and from a defensive standpoint."

Colorado had more out-killed (34-23), out-assisted (28-22), out-dug (43-30) and out-aced (10-8) Toledo.

KEY PLAYERS:

Jr. PIN Sydney Jordan led the Buffs in blocks with four (two solo) and had nine kills, two aces and eight digs.
Sr. S Rian Finley had 25 aces, four digs, two kills and an ace.
FINLEY ON COMMUNICATION: "This offense, it's got a really good communication base. I really thrive getting feedback from my hitters, because sometimes I don't deliver a perfect set that they're wanting. Having that open communication line with my hitters is my main goal of making sure I can deliver what they need. But I have to give a lot of credit to our serve-receive passers and our defenders. We are passing amazing balls this year, and it's giving me the ability to open up the court and deliver the balls to the hitters that I need to."
Jr. PIN Ana Burilovic led the match with 12 kills, and she also totaled four aces, four digs, one solo block and one assist.
Jr. MB Cayla Payne had six kills and three digs for CU, and So. DS/L Katie Salonga had one ace and one assist.
So. MB Maria Splawska saw one dig and one block for the Buffs, and Jr. DS/L Peyton Neal had 13 digs and one assist.
Jr. PIN Lily Dwinell recorded two kills, and Sr. DS/L Sarah Morton had 10 digs and two aces.
MORTON ON BUILDING MOMENTUM: "It's a lot about energy and grit, and if we win those big momentum plays, that's amazing, that's going to lead into the next point, and the next point, ultimately the set. […]Words of encouragement at the end of the day can go a long way."
Fr. MB Olivia Grenadier saw her second collegiate start for the Buffs, totaling three kills (0e, 5att), hitting .600 and recording two blocks. Fr. S Audrey Asleson also had one block for Colorado.
For the Rockets, Kelsey Smith has 13 digs, and two players saw five blocks each.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

The Buffs went back and forth with the Rockets in set one, with the set seeing six tie scores and three lead changes. CU managed to take the lead off two aces and a kill from Jordan to go up 12-8. Rocket errors kept Colorado in the lead until a Toledo serving run and two Buff attack errors led Mahoney to call a timeout (19-18, Toledo). The Black and Gold tightened up their offense, seeing an ace from Finley and kills from Burilovic and Dwinell. One last Burilovic kill sealed the set for the Buffs, 25-22.
Colorado came out with a fire in set two, finding its footing in the match. Burilovic had three aces in set two alone, with back-to-back ones to bring the Buffs up five (9-4). Kills from Burilovic and Jordan extended the Buffs' heavy lead, forcing Toledo to take both its timeouts (13-5, CU). Error after error plagued the Rockets, and a Morton ace finished the set, 25-15.
The third set echoed the second, as the Buffs took an early lead of more Burilovic and Jordan kills (7-3, CU). The Rockets managed a 5-0 run to tie up the set 8-8, but the Buffs responded with kills from Payne, Burilovic and Jordan (12-9, CU). As Colorado extended its lead off a heavy Burilovic arm, Toledo used both its timeouts, but to no avail. Grenadier helped the Buffs hold their lead with two kills, and Colorado wrapped up its sixth sweep of the season, 25-15.

UP NEXT

The Buffaloes remain at home for the final match of the Buffs Invitational on Sept. 14. Colorado's third match is against Denver, and first serve is set for 2 p.m. MT. The match will be streamed on ESPN+, and fans can follow along via live stats links on CUBuffs.com.
MAHONEY ON IMPROVING AND FACING DENVER: "We want to get better at every opportunity – we can always serve a little bit better. We can always pass a little bit better. We can always defend a little bit better. There [are] not going to be big swings, which is good. We want to continue to build. Denver's played 10 sets here; they're super competitive, they're really physical. They're well coached, and they're a really good challenge for us. We need to take it as such and prepare for it."

MATCH NOTES:

This is the first meeting between Toledo and Colorado, and CU improves to 1-0 in the series with the Rockets all-time.
The Buffaloes got their sixth 3-0 victory of the season and are 6-0 in three-set matches.
Colorado had more kills (34-23), assists (28-22), digs (43-30) and service aces (10-8) than Toledo.

For more information on the Colorado women's volleyball team, a complete schedule and results, please visit CUBuffs.com. Fans of the Buffs can follow the team on Instagram and on Twitter @CUBuffsVB.

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Team Stats

Ana Burilović

Sydney Jordan

Cayla Payne

Olivia Grenadier

Players Mentioned

Audrey Asleson

Lily Dwinell

Rian Finley

Olivia Grenadier

Sydney Jordan

Sarah Morton

Peyton Neal

Cayla Payne

Katie Salonga

Players Mentioned

Audrey Asleson

Lily Dwinell

Rian Finley

Olivia Grenadier

Sydney Jordan

Sarah Morton

Peyton Neal

Cayla Payne

Katie Salonga