Colorado State University Athletics
Thursday, October 5
Boise, Idaho
7:30 PM MT
Colorado State
15-2, 5-0MW
3
at
2
Boise State
11-6, 4-1MW
1
2
3
4
5
F
Colorado State
21
11
25
25
17
3
Boise State
25
25
23
19
15
2
Team Stats
CSU
BS
Kills
62
59
Errors
31
25
Attempts
159
163
Hitting %
.195
.209
Points
80.0
79.0
Assists
60
57
Aces
5
6
Blocks
13.0
14.0
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
17
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
15
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
12
Aces
1
Blocks
7
Kills
10
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Players Mentioned
OH/OPP
/ VolleyballOH
/ VolleyballMB
/ VolleyballMB
/ Volleyball
S
/ VolleyballOH
/ Volleyball
DS
/ Volleyball
DS
/ Volleyball
Recap: Rams Storm Back to Stun Broncos in Mountain West Battle
10/6/2017 12:32:00 AM | Volleyball
BOISE, Idaho – One word to describe Thursday night's Mountain West showdown for first place: Battle. The No. 23 Colorado State volleyball team found itself down 2-0 in the match before storming back to stun Boise State in a five-set thriller in Bronco Gym. With the victory, the Rams sit in first place in the Mountain West standings after improving to 15-2 overall and 5-0 in the conference.
Four different Rams finished with double-digit kills, led by Breana Runnels who had 17. Jasmine Hanna added 15, while middles Kirstie Hillyer and Paulina Hougaard-Jensen floored 12 and 10, respectfully. Hougaard-Jensen also led the team in efficiency, tallying a .571 mark. Katie Oleksak came two assists short of tying her season high as she paced the offense with 57 assists. She also added 12 digs to record her third double-double of the season. Amanda Young led the defense with 20 digs, while McKenna Thornlow had 11 and Sanja Cizmic who matched her career-high had 10. Hillyer controlled the net with seven blocks and Cizmic had five stuffs.
The Rams found themselves trailing in the first set, but clawed back late with a five-point run to come within a point at 21-20 and force Boise State to call a timeout. The Broncos went on to take four of the last five points in the set and win, 25-21.
The second frame was all BSU as there were no lead changes or tie scores. The Broncos charged out to a 9-1 score and never stopped, while holding the Rams to a -.167 hitting mark. Boise State grabbed a 2-0 match lead after a 25-11 second set.
Following the break, the Rams spun the table, earning a 12-8 advantage in the third for their biggest lead of the night so far. CSU led at 20-14 following a Boise State timeout, but the Rams could not coast to the end as the Broncos came back within one at 21-20 to force a timeout. The two teams fought back-and-forth till the end, as Colorado State looked to avoid the sweep. The Rams reached match point first at 24-21 and avoided the shutout with a 25-23 third set finish.
The fourth set was filled with runs on both sides of the court as the Rams led 3-0 early before the Broncos strung four together to take a 4-3 lead. CSU recorded five-straight points a little while later to reclaim the lead at 11-6 – one they wouldn't lose. The Rams led at 20-9 before Boise State tried to steal the set, using a pair of runs to force the Rams to call a timeout at 23-19. CSU would take the final two points to force a fifth set.
The final set – arguably the biggest battle of the match, as there were a match-high seven tie scores and five lead changes. The frame was tied at 5-5 before the jousting started. CSU gained a 9-6 edge, but the match would again get tied up at 11-all. The Rams took three of the next four rallies to reach match point first, but the Broncos wouldn't go down easy. BSU took the next three points to steal match point at 15-14. A service error the next rally tied the match again and left the door open for the Rams to complete the come back. A huge block by Kirstie Hillyer gave Colorado State match point once again and a kill by Breana Runnels finished the match off.
Colorado State will face Utah State on Saturday night at 8 p.m., in Logan Utah.
IN HILBERTS WORDS…
On going down two-sets and battling back…
"It was highly competitive and spirited match from the beginning to the end. It was a good thing for this team to go through and a signature moment for them. I have a lot of respect for my players' abilities and they weathered a lot of storms during this match."
On how close the match was…
"One thing – one pass, set or kill could have been the difference. We had to make critical plays at the end of every set and that is competing; when the whole arena is against you and you have to make plays during those times."
On the blocking in the match…
"It was a big part of the match and Kirstie Hillyer had a great blocking match late. She was involved in a lot of the blocks we had in the fourth and fifth sets and lot of them were on Boise State's main hitter, which was big."
Four different Rams finished with double-digit kills, led by Breana Runnels who had 17. Jasmine Hanna added 15, while middles Kirstie Hillyer and Paulina Hougaard-Jensen floored 12 and 10, respectfully. Hougaard-Jensen also led the team in efficiency, tallying a .571 mark. Katie Oleksak came two assists short of tying her season high as she paced the offense with 57 assists. She also added 12 digs to record her third double-double of the season. Amanda Young led the defense with 20 digs, while McKenna Thornlow had 11 and Sanja Cizmic who matched her career-high had 10. Hillyer controlled the net with seven blocks and Cizmic had five stuffs.
The Rams found themselves trailing in the first set, but clawed back late with a five-point run to come within a point at 21-20 and force Boise State to call a timeout. The Broncos went on to take four of the last five points in the set and win, 25-21.
The second frame was all BSU as there were no lead changes or tie scores. The Broncos charged out to a 9-1 score and never stopped, while holding the Rams to a -.167 hitting mark. Boise State grabbed a 2-0 match lead after a 25-11 second set.
Following the break, the Rams spun the table, earning a 12-8 advantage in the third for their biggest lead of the night so far. CSU led at 20-14 following a Boise State timeout, but the Rams could not coast to the end as the Broncos came back within one at 21-20 to force a timeout. The two teams fought back-and-forth till the end, as Colorado State looked to avoid the sweep. The Rams reached match point first at 24-21 and avoided the shutout with a 25-23 third set finish.
The fourth set was filled with runs on both sides of the court as the Rams led 3-0 early before the Broncos strung four together to take a 4-3 lead. CSU recorded five-straight points a little while later to reclaim the lead at 11-6 – one they wouldn't lose. The Rams led at 20-9 before Boise State tried to steal the set, using a pair of runs to force the Rams to call a timeout at 23-19. CSU would take the final two points to force a fifth set.
The final set – arguably the biggest battle of the match, as there were a match-high seven tie scores and five lead changes. The frame was tied at 5-5 before the jousting started. CSU gained a 9-6 edge, but the match would again get tied up at 11-all. The Rams took three of the next four rallies to reach match point first, but the Broncos wouldn't go down easy. BSU took the next three points to steal match point at 15-14. A service error the next rally tied the match again and left the door open for the Rams to complete the come back. A huge block by Kirstie Hillyer gave Colorado State match point once again and a kill by Breana Runnels finished the match off.
Colorado State will face Utah State on Saturday night at 8 p.m., in Logan Utah.
IN HILBERTS WORDS…
On going down two-sets and battling back…
"It was highly competitive and spirited match from the beginning to the end. It was a good thing for this team to go through and a signature moment for them. I have a lot of respect for my players' abilities and they weathered a lot of storms during this match."
On how close the match was…
"One thing – one pass, set or kill could have been the difference. We had to make critical plays at the end of every set and that is competing; when the whole arena is against you and you have to make plays during those times."
On the blocking in the match…
"It was a big part of the match and Kirstie Hillyer had a great blocking match late. She was involved in a lot of the blocks we had in the fourth and fifth sets and lot of them were on Boise State's main hitter, which was big."
#PointRams
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