Colorado State University Athletics
Colorado State
BYU
Volleyball sweeps BYU
10/18/2007 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Oct. 18, 2007
FORT COLLINS, Colo. - In a classic rivalry match up the No. 21 Colorado State volleyball team, with the support of 3,932 fans, swept the BYU Cougars (30-27, 31-29, 30-28) in Moby Arena Thursday night. The fiery Tonya Mokelki had 12 kills with a season high .478 hitting percentage as the Rams remained unbeaten at home.
In the first game the Rams (14-4, 8-1 MWC) and BYU battled to a 6-6 tie in the first rotation. The serve of Katelin Batten started things for CSU as she served two solid serves for an 8-6 Ram advantage. The Cougars (13-6, 5-4 MWC) returned fire with a three-point run which ended with a Mekana Barnes kill in the middle. The teams traded points with the Rams grinding out a 15-14 lead at the media timeout. The Rams were able to use a block to get the 23-21 advantage and a BYU timeout. The Rams extended the lead to four points on a huge rally in which setter Ashley Fornstrom had three digs and ended with a kill by Danielle Minch. BYU got the side out but found the block of Mokelki and Tessa Nelson was serious as they earned the 27-23 lead. The Rams finished on a Jaime Strauss kill 30-27.
The Cougars zeroed in on hitters Strauss and Barnes, attempting a triple block to stop them. It was unsuccessful as Barnes hit .667 with five kills and Strauss added four kills. The Rams held BYU to just .082 hitting.
Jacque Davisson opened Game 2 with an ace. BYU changed the momentum and took a 5-2 lead on a combination of Ram errors and Cougar kills. Strauss ended the run with a dump behind the block. Strauss went back to serve and CSU rattled off a five-point run to tie the game. The Cougars were able to turn on a run of their own, rattling off four straight to get a 16-12 advantage. BYU kept the four-point lead until the Rams used tough play at the net to cut the lead to two-points, 20-18. Strauss used back-to-back kills to cut the lead to one-point 21-20, forcing a BYU timeout. After a BYU side out, Barnes hit a shot on the slide from the right for a kill. The teams traded points and put Fornstrom behind the service line. Tessa Nelson sent the ball deep for the Ram point. A long serve gave the Cougars back the ball but Mokelki's kill put Strauss behind the line. The Rams tied the score with a kill by Nelson making it a new game at 25. Minch put the Rams up one, giving them their first lead of the game. CSU and the Cougars traded points but it ended with a Ram one-point game point. The Cougars got a cross court shot to tie the game at 29. Barnes killed a ball through a triple block for the second CSU game point. The Rams won Game 2 on an error by BYU.
Barnes upped her total to 11 kills on .350 hitting. The Rams hit .279 while holding the Cougars to .209. CSU continued to hold the blocking lead 9-6.
The third game opened with a battle of the tip and the teams kept things close. Neither team gained more than a single point advantage and they tied the game 18 times as they got to the 18th point. After a BYU score, Minch sent a pair of kills to the deep corners and Mokelki, who was hitting .524 at the time, slammed the ball cross court for a two-point lead and a BYU timeout. The 7-11 block gave the Rams a three-point lead. BYU cut the lead to one after a controversial call and a kill. The Rams back-to-back blocks by Fornstrom and Barnes made the score 25-22. The Rams extended on the lead, getting to 29-26. The Cougars got within one point before a BYU serve went long, giving the Rams the victory.
Colorado State put four players in double figures led by Barnes with 13. The Rams finished with 13 blocks led by Mokelki and Nelson with six each.
CSU will host Utah Saturday night at 7 p.m. before traveling to San Diego State and UNLV next week.
