Colorado State University Athletics
Colorado State
9-3, 2-0MW
Boise State
8-6, 0-2MW
Rams rally to beat Boise State, 3-2
9/26/2015 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Season Stats 
FORT COLLINS, Colo. – The 19th-ranked Colorado State volleyball team fought off Boise State on Saturday, winning a five-set thriller at Moby Arena, 3-2.
The match was incredibly tight throughout, with a total of 41 tied scores and 16 lead changes.
After Boise State (8-6, 0-2 MW) took the opening set 25-19, the two teams totaled 43 kills in an extended second set. Both teams boasted exceptional hitting percentages in the second frame, with CSU (9-3, 2-0 MW) converting kills at a .465 clip in the period. After facing a Broncos set point, CSU rallied back and wound up tying the match with a 28-26 second-set victory, capped off by a kill from senior Crystal Young.
The Broncos would take the third set out of the intermission, 25-22, taking a 2-1 match lead over the Rams. Needing a win in the fourth set, the Rams’ defense took over, holding the strong Broncos offense to just .158 hitting in the period. CSU benefitted from three-straight blocks to take a 10-7 lead, and Boise State would not catch up the rest of the set. CSU would clinch the set with a 25-21 win, forcing the decisive fifth set.
The Rams trailed 11-10 in the fifth set, but CSU would score five of the final six points, including a pair of kills from Adrianna Culbert.
IN THEIR WORDS…
“We won a game hitting .465 and the other team hitting .452, and it was a two-point game. That second set was insane and you’re just going to have to out-kill Boise State. They’re very good offensively, we did a pretty decent job on (Sierra) Nobley, but their two middles really hurt us. (Sabryn) Roberts hurt us because we schemed away from her. In other words, we were putting other priorities; they saw it and she ended up being better than we thought. Really the story to me is (Maddy) O’Donnell and (Kaitlyn) Oliver. The next time we play them we will have to be better on those two kids. That being said, this was a gutsy win for my team. We needed it, we need to know how we can perform in a situation like this and I’m very pleased with the competitiveness. We will get better because we played this match.” – CSU Head Coach Tom Hilbert
“We knew that they were going to be a really competitive team. We went in knowing that it was going to be a really good match and we didn’t lose heart.” – Junior Acacia Andrews on Boise State and rallying back
“Because we are still learning who we are as a team, I think it really shows who we can define ourselves as playing an end game, playing against great teams, battling point for point, and at the end winning. Just competing hard it shows us that we can do that as a team if we work together and it’s awesome.” – Senior Adrianna Culbert
STAT OF THE GAME…
4 – Adrianna Culbert tallied her fourth triple-double of 2015, finishing with 13 kills, 30 assists and 10 digs. Culbert set a Mountain West single-season triple-double record and tied the all-time CSU record for career triple-doubles, tying Angela Knopf.
NOTES…
• Adrianna Culbert set a career-high with 30 assists. She also added three blocks (one solo) and finished with a .393 hitting percentage, with just two errors on 28 attempts.
• Crystal Young finished with a double-double, tallying a team-best 32 assists and 13 digs. She also had two kills, including the clinching point in the second set.
• Alex Reid led the team with 21 kills. The 21 kills are a career-best for Reid, including her three seasons at Long Beach State.
• Acacia Andrews continued her efficient attacking, tallying eight kills with no errors for a .471 hitting percentage. Andrews also had a team-high eight blocks, one shy of her career-high.
• Jasmine Hanna had a season-high 12 kills and had no errors, registering a .444 hitting percentage, also a season-best.
• CSU finished with a .326 hitting percentage, its second-best of the season.
NEXT UP:
CSU will travel to Nevada (Thursday, 7:30 p.m. MT) and San Diego State (Saturday, 3 p.m. MT) for its first road matches on the Mountain West schedule.
