Buffs Quell Quakers for Fifth-Straight Sweep

IRVINE, Calif. – The Colorado volleyball team (5-0, 0-0 Big 12) defeated Pennsylvania (0-1, 0-0 Ivy League) in three sets (25-15, 25-14, 25-17) at Bren Events Center on Friday, Sept. 5.

This is the first time in program history that the Buffs have won their first five matches without dropping a set. With a new starting line, the Buffs made quick work of the Quakers, downing them in an hour and 28 minutes.

"I'm excited for another sweep," head coach Jesse Mahoney said. "We got the opportunity to get some younger players on the floor. […] That was good – we're going to need some of those players when it counts later in the season. All in all, a good outing."

The Buffaloes out-hit (39-29), out-dug (39-36), out-aced (4-0) and out-blocked (12-2) the Quakers. Colorado held Pennsylvania to .080 hitting in the match, and –0.067 in the second set.

KEY PLAYERS:

Fr. PIN Inés Losada led the match with a career-high 10 kills and a career-high two aces. She also recorded eight digs.
Fr. MB Olivia Grenadier reached a career-high with six kills, hitting 1.000 (0e, 6att). She also recorded one solo block.
Sr. S Rian Finley recorded 28 assists, six digs, three blocks and three kills.
Jr. PIN Sydney Jordan saw four digs, three kills, hitting .600 (0e, 5att), three blocks, one ace and one assist.
Jr. PIN Ana Burilovic recorded eight kills, three digs, two assists and one block.
So. MB Maria Splawska saw four blocks and one kill.
So. PIN Gwen Schiff saw a career-high two kills, hitting .500 (0e, 4att). She also recorded two blocks and one dig.
Jr. MB Cayla Payne led the match with six blocks. She also recorded four kills.
Sr. DS/L Sarah Morton earned 11 digs for the Buffs.
Jr. PIN Lily Dwinell recorded two kills and one dig.
Fr. S Audrey Asleson recorded one block and one assist.
So. DS/L Katie Salonga scored one ace and one dig for Colorado.
Jr. DS/L Peyton Neal saw four digs and Jr. DS/L Avery Bolles recorded one assist.
For the Quakers, Zada Sanger recorded nine kills and three digs.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

The Buffaloes started the match with an early 5-0 run, including back-to-back kills from Grenadier on overcharge (5-2, CU). The Quakers tried to go on a run of their own, but Dwinell shut it down with her first kill of the match (7-5, CU). Kills from Losada and Payne kept the Buffs in the lead (13-8, CU). Coming back from the media timeout, CU continued their streak with kills from Dwinell and Burilovic, causing Pennsylvania to call a timeout of their own (17-11, CU). The Quakers called their second timeout following a Payne-Finley block (21-14, CU). Colorado went on another five-point run, which saw a solo block from Losada (24-14, CU). The Quakers tried to fight back, but the Buffs ended the first set with a 10-point lead, 25-15.
Colorado's start to the second set was slower than the first, going back and forth with the Quakers (5-4, Penn). Three points from Losada made a positive environmental shift for the Buffs and put Colorado in the lead for the rest of the set (8-6, CU). A kill from Schiff, followed by a Splawska-Schiff block caused Pennsylvania to call a timeout (12-7, CU). The Quakers called their second timeout only four points later after a Payne-Jordan block (15-8, CU). A kill from Jordan put the Buffs' score at double that of the Quakers (18-9, CU). After a short run from the Quakers, Colorado ended their suffering with an ace from Salonga to take the second set, 25-14.
The Black and Gold kept the momentum and started the third set with a Splawska-Burilovic block (1-0, CU). A 4-0 run from the Buffaloes caused the Quakers to call a timeout (8-2, CU). A short run from UPenn was ended by a Losada kill (11-6, CU). After a minute-long rally, ended by a heavenly kill from Finley, the Quakers called a timeout (19-11, CU). A Splawska-Asleson block put the Buffaloes within two points of the match win (23-13, CU). A final service error from Pennsylvania saw the end of the third set and a fifth-straight sweep for Colorado (25-17, CU).

UP NEXT

The Buffaloes wrap up the Anteater Classic with one last match against host school UC Irvine on Saturday, Sept. 6. First serve is set for 6 p.m. MT. The match will be streamed on ESPN+, and fans can follow along via live stats links on CUBuffs.com.
MAHONEY ON IRVINE: "We went five with them last year, they're really well coached. A good ball control team, they've had a really nice start to their season, especially offensively. We'll watch them tonight live, a little film tomorrow, and we should be ready."

MATCH NOTES:

This is the second time this season the Buffs have played a team for the first time and pulled out the win. CU is 1-0 against UPenn all-time.
The Buffaloes got their fifth 3-0 victory of the season and are 5-0 in three-set matches.
This is the first time in program history that the Buffs have won their first five matches without dropping a set. CU went 5-0 to start the 2019 season as well, but dropped one set.
Colorado had more kills (39-29), assists (33-23), blocks (12-2) and service aces (4-0) than Pennsylvania.
This is the Buffs' second match this season with double-digit team blocks.

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

Inés Losada

Ana Burilović

Olivia Grenadier

Cayla Payne

Players Mentioned

Audrey Asleson

Avery Bolles

Lily Dwinell

Rian Finley

Olivia Grenadier

Sydney Jordan

Sarah Morton

Peyton Neal

Cayla Payne

Katie Salonga

Gwen Schiff

Players Mentioned

Audrey Asleson

Avery Bolles

Lily Dwinell

Rian Finley

Olivia Grenadier

Sydney Jordan

Sarah Morton

Peyton Neal

Cayla Payne

Katie Salonga

Gwen Schiff