DENVER – The Regis University volleyball team (5-3) ended up in the silver bracket of the Colorado Premier Challenge on day two where they matched up with the No. 5 ranked Lewis University Flyers (5-3) in their first match of the day. Regis then moved on to face the Rockhurst University Hawks (4-4) in their second match in the silver bracket. 
 
GAME ONE | Regis 3, No. 5 Lewis University 1
 
How it Happened: The day started off with a first set win for Regis as they posted a .209 hitting percentage out of the gates, while also holding Lewis to a .120 hitting percentage on the defensive side. Despite losing 3-1 in the blocks category in the opening set, the Rangers once again showed their ability to grit it out. Trailing by as many as six points, 8-2, through the first 10 points of the set, RU fired back to take their first lead at 16-15 following a kill from senior Rachel Siurek. The score was tied 18-18 when Regis put together three-consecutive points which included a service error from junior Nadine Burbrink.
 
The Regis offense posted a final hitting percentage of .043 while ASU produced a .317 hitting percentage. One of the craziest stats of the match is that the Belles recorded 15 total blocks as a team while the Rangers finished with four. Junior Nadine Burbrink had a great game as she tallied a team-high eight kills (.313 H%) a service ace, and three total blocks. Junior Mara LeGrand posted another double-double with 29 assists and a team-best 12 digs in the match. The Rangers ended the set on a 4-0 run to earn a 25-20 first set win.
 
Set two was similar to the first as the Flyers jumped out to an early lead, but RU once again bounced back later in the set. Regis extended a 9-8 lead into a 15-10 lead after junior setter Mara LeGrand got in on the offense with a kill. The gap was closed to one-point, 15-16, but a counterattack from the Rangers put them back in front by five, 23-18, needing only two points for the win. RU converted on their 24-21 set point with a huge kill from sophomore Halle Theis.
 
Fifth-ranked Lewis got their first set win in the third set (25-22), preventing Regis from earning a straight-set win. However, the match would end in a very competitive fourth set that the Rangers won 27-25. Both teams had 15 kills in the fourth set alone, but RU outhit the Flyers .143 to .098 to set them apart in the set.
 
Game Notes: Regis finished the match with a .183 hitting percentage which was .027 points higher than Lewis who hit .156 for the match. Siurek led all Rangers with 17 kills in the match, hitting a season-best .375. She also had three block assists and two digs.  Theis added 11 kills and Burbrink also had double-digit kills (10) to help the offense. Sophomore Maddy Mallory had nine kills and led the team with five blocks. LeGrand shattered her previous career-high of 19 digs with an astonishing 30 digs to go along with 40 assists (10.0 per set). Junior Haley Kennedy earned 19 digs and graduate student Caitlyn Burroway registered 18 digs as the team combined for 102 digs through four sets. They also had 10 total blocks to the Flyers' nine.
 
GAME TWO | Regis 3, vs. Rockhurst University 0
 
How it Happened: Regis earned their second win of the day as they beat the Rockhurst University Hawks in straight-sets in the final match of the Colorado Premier Challenge for the Rangers.
 
RU dominated the match from start to finish. In the opening set, Regis fell behind 1-0 after the first point but they never trailed again in the set on their way to a 25-17 win. In the second set, the Rangers did not trail at all, opening a 12-4 lead before extending their lead to 10 points when the score reached 18-8.  Rockhurst stormed back with a 5-0 run late in the match, but by that time the lead was insurmountable, and RU took a two-set lead with their 25-18 wire-to-wire second set victory.
 
In the final set of the tournament for Regis, they fell behind 4-6 in the early going. However, consecutive kills from Theis, Burbrink and Burroway helped reclaim the lead 8-6. The Hawks clawed their way back into the match late, tying the set at 15 points. A few points later with an 18-17 lead, the Rangers scored four unanswered points to get a little more comfortable, inching closer to the sweep. A point from Rockhurst ended the run, but it was not enough to stop RU from completing the three-set sweep. Regis won set three on an attack error from the Hawks, 25-19.
 
Game Notes: After only four kills in the first game of the day, Burroway responded by leading all players in the match with 14 kills against Rockhurst. She hit .235 and collected eight digs and two service aces as well. Siurek (.250 H%) and Theis (.167 H%) each had nine kills apiece. LeGrand tallied 36 assists (12.0 per set) in this one with 13 digs, two kills and a block. Kennedy led the team with 16 kills and had two service aces of her own. Hitting percentages for the teams tilted in favor of the Rangers, .203 - .055.
 
Up Next for the Rangers: The Regis University volleyball team will now jump into Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) action, kicking off things with a visit to the Colorado School of Mines Orediggers on Thursday, September 16 in Golden, Colorado at 7 p.m. The next night, the team will travel to Colorado Springs to take on the Mountain Lions of the University of Colorado – Colorado Springs also at 7 p.m.