DENVER, Colo. – The Colorado Premier Challenge started with a bang for the Regis University volleyball team (6-0) who took down both No. 20 ranked Texas A&M University – Commerce and No. 1 ranked, and defending NCAA Division II National Champions, University of Tampa in straight-sets on Friday afternoon.
 
Game One | Regis 3, Texas A&M University - Commerce
 
How It Happened:After the Lions had upset No. 1 ranked University of Tampa in five sets earlier in the day, Regis came out and took three-straight sets from TAMUC to earn their fifth-straight win to begin 2019. 
 
In the first set, the Rangers were down by as many as four points in the early going (7-4), but the ladies fought their way back, tying the game at 10 points apiece. A few points later, a kill from senior Nikki Kennedy sparked a five-point run that led to a 17-12 Regis lead. Senior Kelsey Green had back-to-back kills during the run. The Rangers took the first set, 25-19 after posting a .395 hitting percentage. 
 
Set two was a little closer due in large part to a significant drop in hitting percentage for RU who finished with a .184 hitting percentage in the second set. Tied 13-13 midway through the set, two kills from Green followed by a big swing from redshirt-senior Kristen Hornung gave the home side a three-point advantage, 16-13. Regis capitalized on the momentum and rode the second set home, 25-21.
 
The final set of the match was a lopsided affair as far as statistics goes with the Rangers posting a .290 hitting percentage while the Lions finished with a -.034. RU had 16 kills to only five for A&M Commerce. Senior Izzy Gosar and junior Caitlyn Burroway combined to give Regis an 11-6 advantage, but the Lions cut the lead to three a few points later. That did not last long before the Rangers responded to take a 20-14 lead late in the set which forced TAMUC to call a timeout. After the break, A&M Commerce chipped into the lead at 17-21, but RU closed out the game on a 4-2 run to take the match, capped off with a match winning kill from Gosar.
 
Game Notes: Green was the team leader with 15 kills in the match, hitting at a .343 clip. Gosar had 12 kills and two blocks with a .400 attack percentage. Nikki Kennedy was also in double-digit kills with only one error in 17 total attacks, leading the team with a .588 attack percentage and four blocks. Senior Silvia Basso had 38 assists in three sets of work for a season-best 12.667 assists per set average. Freshman Mara LeGrand set a career-night with 10 digs in the match to lead all players.
 
Game Two | Regis 3, Tampa 0
 
How It Happened:After rolling through the No. 20 ranked team, it was on to one of the toughest matchups the team will face all season, that of battling No. 1 ranked University of Tampa. 
 
The first two sets of the match were decided by two points apiece with Regis coming away with the wins. In fact, each team finished the first set with a .250 hitting percentage. The defending national champions came out hot, winning the first three points of the first set. That did not phase the Rangers who battled back to tie the game at five points apiece. From that point on, the two teams traded points until RU opened up a four-point lead at 14-10. Regis came away with a 25-23 set win following a set-winning kill from senior Kelsey Green. 

Another back-and-forth battle ensued in the second set with the Rangers taking a 26-24. However, it was the third set that provided sheer excitement among all of the RU faithful. Regis could not be stopped in the third set. After the Spartans scored their second point of the match, the Rangers scored 10-straight points which stunned the entire Regis Field House. Tampa managed to score their third-straight and another five-point run from the home side took all of the wind out of the Spartans. A fourth Spartan point was scored, and RU went off for five more points leading to a massive 22-4 lead over the No. 1 ranked team in the country, needing only three more points to secure the match. Kills by Hornung, Green and a final blast from Gosar ended the match and sent the Regis to 6-0 on the season and the right to compete for the Colorado Premier Championship tomorrow night. 
 
Game Notes: Green was, once again, the leading attacker for the home side with nine kills in three sets, hitting .316 overall. After an injury to starting setter Silvia Basso, freshman Mara LeGrand stepped up and provided 14 assists, four kills, eight digs and three blocks to fill the role. Nikki Kennedy had seven kills, six blocks, four service aces, and 14 points to lead the team. As a team, the Rangers swung at a .229 clip compared to only .082 for the Spartans. RU also combined for 12 service aces, and seven total blocks in the match. 
 
Up Next for the Rangers:The Regis University volleyball team has earned a spot in the Gold Bracket of the Colorado Premier Challenge which will take place at MSU Denver tomorrow. The team will take on No. 10 ranked Concordia St. Paul at 9 a.m. at MSU Denver. The winner of that game will advance to the championship match at 7 p.m. against the winner of Southwest Minnesota State University and Lewis University who play at 11:30 a.m. at MSU Denver. 
 
Regis athletics would like to extend a big thank you to all of the volunteers who helped run the tournament today. Parents, volunteers and staff all helped make the day come together.