Colorado College 3, @UDallasVball 0 | #UDCrusaders 3, Centenary (LA) 0
IRVING, Texas - The University of Dallas volleyball team (6-6, 0-1 SCAC) battled fiercely in a 3-0 loss versus No. 10 Colorado College (12-2, 1-0 SCAC) in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) Divisional No. 1 tournament on Saturday.
Momentum shifted in favor for the host school, as they blasted past Centenary in the late afternoon contest, 3-0.
Match 1: Colorado College too much for Dallas, 3-0:
After dropping the opening set, 25-20, the Lady Crusaders rallied in the middle frame, until CC pulled away late in a 25-21 result. In the deciding set, the Tigers posted a 25-18 score to secure the sweep in the conference opener.
Colorado jumped out to an 8-4 advantage in the first frame, but a 5-1 run by the navy and white would knot things early. The host school would exchange points the next several possessions until the top-ten ranked opponent broke away once they led 14-13.
Dallas were never ahead in the second set, but did put a scare on the Tigers late. Trailing by as many as seven (14-7), the Lady Crusaders poised a comeback, eventually tying things at 19 apiece. Regardless, the home squad would be topped in the closing sequences.
The navy and white did gain an 11-10 lead in the final round, keeping Colorado College at bay until a 7-0 spurt later helped secure the match for the road team.
Senior middle-blocker Emily Caples (Walnut Creek, Calif.) and sophomore outside hitter Mairin Guilfoyle (Roanoke, Va.) paced the offense with double figures in kills. The duo combined for 21 with Caples notching 11 and Guilfoyle with 10.
Sophomore libero Jessie Koster (Sherwood, Ore.) posted team-high, 17 digs, while senior setter C.J. Broadbent (Goodyear, Ariz.) collected 21 assists.
Dallas was excellent maintaining rallies, combining for 59 assists, while its opponents outdid them slightly with 64.
A trio of players nearly rose to double-digits including: Guilfoyle pulling nine, junior right side hitter Cat Dowgwillo (St. Louis, Mo.) and freshman defensive specialist Diana Hassink (Tulsa, Okla.) with eight each.
Match 2: Dallas breezes swiftly past Centenary, 3-0:
An outstanding offensive performance excelled the University of Dallas volleyball team (7-6, 1-1 SCAC) to a 3-0 sweep over Centenary College of Louisiana (2-10, 0-2 SCAC) in the second contest of the SCAC Divisional Saturday afternoon.
A season-high, .398 kill percentage aided the Lady Crusaders, who have won seven of the last nine. The navy and white held the Ladies to 15 kills as they won three consecutive sets (25-7, 25-14, and 25-10).
Centenary gripped to a narrow deficit in the early stages of the opening set, but the home team compiled a 17-1 stretch to draw a first round win.
Dallas allowed the maroon and white to display its largest output in the next frame, but were in control again never allowing the gap to narrow less than five after pushing a 10-5 score to as large as 12 (23-12).
In the final set, the Lady Crusaders pounced with the first six unanswered points, not giving Centenary much chance to nip at the deficit. A double-digit advantage was notched when UD produced a 15-5 result, and from there never relinquished anything less than that en route led to its first league victory.
Caples led the offense with 11 kills, marking the senior's fourth-straight contest to notch double-digits. Freshman outside hitter Mary Scholz (Fallon, Nev.) joined her in the category with 10.
Junior middle-blocker Jaime Birzer (Ottawa, Kan.) and Birzer added eight a piece, as the navy and white accumulated 44 kills in the match.
Broadbent dished out 34 assists, while Koster finished with 11 digs in the triumph.
Next Opponent:
Dallas concludes the SCAC Divisional No. 1 on Sunday with a 1 p.m. tip versus Austin College.