Over the weekend, the CU volleyball team fell to both Oregon State University and the University of Oregon on the road.
At the Gill Coliseum in Corvallis, Oregon on Friday, the Buffs pushed Oregon State to four sets but could not pull out a win (25-13, 25-14, 19-25, 25-14).
The Beavers outhit the Buffs .309 to .130 and recorded 51 total kills compared to CU’s 36.
Junior libero Elysse Richardson passes the ball while freshman defensive specialist Chelsey Keoho looks on against Utah Sept. 20. This past weekend the Buffs fell to Oregon and Oregon State. (CU Independent File/Tyler Gallardo)
Oregon State started the first set strong, going up 13-11 and adding a 7-0 run to bring the score to 20-11. The Beavers kept at it, recording a .520 hitting percentage and taking the set 25-13, while the Buffs struggled to hit .161.
The Beavers started with the lead again in the second set and never let it go, building the gap to 23-10 before the Buffs could put together a 4-0 run. After a forced OSU timeout, the Beavers added two straight points to win the second set 25-14.
The Buffs rallied in the third set, building an early 9-6 lead and then widening the gap to 13-8. While Oregon State closed the gap to within one at 15-14, the Buffs held onto their momentum and were able to win the set 25-19. Colorado outhit OSU .226 to .029 in the set.
Colorado faltered in the fourth set, allowing OSU to build a 16-6 lead. The Buffs tried to come back after a timeout, but the Beavers could not be stopped, winning the set 25-14 and taking the match victory. The Beavers hit .344 in the final set and held the Buffs to -.103.
Freshman Alexis Austin led the Buffs in kills on Friday with 14 overall, while junior Nikki Lindow added 10. Camille Saxton of OSU was the match leader in kills, with 17 overall.
On Saturday, the Buffs fell in three sets to the No. 2 Oregon Ducks at the Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene, Ore., (25-11, 25-19, 25-16).
Lindow led the Buffs with five kills and seven blocks. Having just one error on ten swings, Lindow’s hitting percentage was an impressive .400. Austin also tallied four kills, and sophomore Neira Ortiz Ruiz added three for the Buffs. Sophomore Ana Pantovic contributed four block assists.
The Ducks had 39 kills compared to the Buffs’ 17. As a team, Oregon hit .256 and held CU to just .025. Oregon’s Alaina Bergsma led the Ducks with a total of 12 kills.
In the first set, the Ducks got a early 16-3 lead. The Buffs then gained some momentum with a 4-1 run to make the score 17-7, but the Ducks answered back with a 5-1 run to bring the score to 22-8. The gap proved too large for the lady Buffs, as they fell 25-11. Oregon held Colorado at a .100 hitting percentage for the first set.
The Ducks got an early 13-6 lead in the second set. After a timeout was called, the lady Buffs closed the margin, making it 17-12. The Buffs fought hard, but ultimately lost the set 25-19, hitting just .120.
In the third set, Oregon gained a 6-1 lead. The Buffs rallied back with a 5-2 run to cut the lead to two (8-6). The Ducks then went on a 6-0 run (14-7) and ended up winning the final set 25-16.
After the weekend losses, CU’s record falls to 11-5 overall and 1-3 in the Pac-12.
The Buffs now return home to the Coors Events Center for a four-match homestand. CU hosts Washington State University on Oct. 5 at 6:30 p.m. and the University of Washington on Oct. 7 at 3 p.m.
Contact CU Independent Sports Editor Caryn Maconi at Caryn.maconi@colorado.edu and Staff Writer Jessica Malknecht at Jessica.malknecht@colorado.edu.
