Volleyball Clashes With Colorado State

BOX SCORE (PDF)

FORT COLLINS, Colo. – For the second time in its past three matches, the University of New Orleans faced off against a team that competed in the 2015 NCAA Tournament in Colorado State. Against a tough opponent in the loud Moby Arena, the Privateers fell 0-3 (25-15, 25-14, 25-14).

In the opening two sets UNO (3-9) fell behind early and could not catch up with the Rams (5-4). In the final set, the Privateers came out strong and kept the frame close until a late rally by the hosts ended the contest.

With a predominately young roster it can be difficult to get mentally prepared to compete day in and day out," head coach Millicent Van Norden said. "The fluidity of our offense and defense was better, but we couldn't stop the powerful and balanced attack from Colorado State."

Freshman Jordan Yauch (Biological Sciences) paced the offense with nine kills, with fellow freshman Sarah Thomas (Accounting & Financing) quarterbacking the attack with 21 assists. Sophomore Blessing Dunn (Business Management) had a balanced outing with eight kills and a team-high six digs.

New Orleans had its best frame in the third set, ending the set with a team-best 11 kills. UNO held the early lead at 5-3 before a 4-0 run by the Rams gave them the lead 7-5. The Privateers ended the rally with a kill and managed to knot up the score at 8-all before back-to-back points by CSU recreated the two-point advantage. UNO kept the frame within reach, until a late 6-0 run by the Rams put the Privateers behind 21-12. CSU scored the final three points to end the match.

"In the third set we added Brianna Vega to the lineup," Van Norden added. "She earned five of the 11 kills in the set."

Colorado State's offense, ranking 43^rd in Division 1 for hitting percentage, came out firing in the opening set hitting .583 to muscle out a 25-15 victory. The Rams scored the first five points of the set to create the lead. UNO scored back-to-back points to end the match-opening run, but an equal response by the Rams extended the deficit to six at 7-3 and the Privateers couldn't bring it to within four for the rest of set.

In similar fashion to the previous stanza, CSU opened up with a 4-0 start to yet again create the early lead. The Privateers tried to mount a comeback with a three-point rally to bring the deficit within five at 11-6, but back-to-back tallies from CSU extended the separation to 13-7. UNO had one more 3-0 in the frame, making it 19-12 before Colorado State made it a nine-point set at 21-12.

UNO concludes play in the Omni Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 17, at 12 p.m. when they take on No. 18 Colorado in Boulder, Colorado. The Privateers' first home match is slated for Thursday, Sept. 22, when the Privateers play host to Houston Baptist in the Human Performance Center. First serve for the contest is slated for 7 p.m. and admission is free.