DENVER, Colo. – Metro State University Denver handed the No. 9 ranked Regis University volleyball team their first Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) loss of the season Tuesday, beating Regis in five sets. All of this came just one day after the Rangers moved up to No. 9 in the latest American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Top 25 poll. The result was a disappointing one for RU whocarried a ten-match conference win-streak into the contest. With the loss Regis drops to 18-3 overall and 10-1 in league play – behind Colorado School of Mines for the top spot in the RMAC. The Roadrunners sit just behind the Rangers in the standings with a 13-6 mark and a 10-1 conference record.
How It Happened: RU came frustratingly close to a three-set sweep of MSU Denver, winning the night's first two sets 30-28 and 25-23 before dropping the third 26-24. Though Regis outhit the Roadrunners .209 to .163, the set was won at the service line – where the Rangers missed two serves and MSU Denver notched three aces.
Just two points away from a match win, up 23-21 in the third, Regis missed a serve and then was aced two points later to give the home Roadrunners a 24-23 lead. Though an ensuing
Nikki Kennedy kill knotted the score at 24-24, MSU rattled off back-to-back kills to take the set and extend the match.
In all but one of the night's five sets, just two points separated the winner from the loser. That wasn't the case in the fourth, however, as MSU Denver ended the contest on a 13-6 run that neutralized the match with a 25-17 Roadrunners win. The well-matched offenses battled at the net once again, trading kills and keeping errors to a minimum throughout the entirety of the game. As had been the case in the third, unfortunately, Regis servers committed critical errors at the line – costing the squad precious points they'd need down the stretch.
MSU Denver jumped out to a big lead in the final frame, using a pair of momentum-stealing blocks to go up 5-1. The Rangers battled back, eventually tying the set at 11 with a
Kristina Schell ace. The tension was high from there, as the squads traded leads in a resolute battle for the win. With the standoff's intensity at its peak and the score tied at 16-16, the Roadrunners managed a kill and an ace to seal the night's fate.
Match Notes: Middles
Kristen Hornung and
Nikki Kennedy dominated the net for the Rangers, combining for 30 kills, a .323 kill percentage and 13 blocks. As a team Regis bettered the Roadrunners in terms of offensive efficiency, hitting a .184 clip compared to .171 from MSU. Unfortunately, Metro managed more kills on the night, combining that with a lethal attack from the service line that resulted in a 10-4 ace advantage.
Caitlyn Burroway totaled 23 digs in the loss, while
Silvia Basso amassed 52 assists for the Rangers.
Next Up For The Rangers: Eager to put the loss behind them, Regis will return home for a pair of weekend matches against CSU Pueblo and New Mexico Highlands. RU will take on Pueblo (3-15, 2-8 RMAC) Friday night at 7 pm.
