A Familiar Opponent and Records Ready to be Broken

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vs Nevada

Something old and something new beat the zooming blue.

On Saturday at Moby Arena, Colorado State took on recurring opponent Air Force, achieving another sweep over the Falcons.

Among the four career-high records ready to be broken by veteran Colorado State players, new additions displayed their own record-breaking nature -- Jazen Debina, three kills; Maria Brun, 11 kills; and Kekua Richards with six kills. All of these players, who are new to the Moby court, displayed what CSU wants in November as it falls deeper into conference play.

"It's super awesome," Richards said. "And, honestly, it's really emotional for me because the middles in front of me, (Naeemah Weathers) and (Karina Leber), seeing them cheering me on and just being there is awesome."

Richards, a 6-foot-7 middle blocker, broke her kill and block season records with six kills and four blocks. Her close friend Maria Brun made her own mark by tallying more kills than star-hitter Malaya Jones.

A team filled with hope of what's to come is built on the back of first and second years who step up to the plate after veterans such as Weathers and Kennedy Stanford leave. As of right now, they wait patiently to fill the empty spots on the court.

"It's always a sign of a great program that you keep developing the young kids for when it's their turn," CSU coach Emily Kohan said. "Tonight was one of their turns. But when those fifth-years graduate, I think it's fun to see Kekua go in there. She's a very talented player and she probably could play in a lot of other places, but she's developing well."

However, not only did new players showcase their skills, but veterans did as well. Kate Yoshimoto surpassed 1,000 career digs, Leber achieved 1,000 career kills and Emery Herman was one assist away from 5,000 career assists.

Synergy amongst those who have played together for years was obvious and kept most of the players oblivious to their four-digit career numbers.

"I honestly didn't even know I was close," Yoshimoto said. "I'm glad I didn't know because I think it just kept me locked in the game. But it's definitely a big accomplishment for me and I'm very proud that I made it."

Staying locked-in led to a sweep by the Rams adding to their streak now sitting at three after beating Las Vegas and New Mexico the past week.

Wins like these set up the Rams, in Kohan's mind, for the most important part of the volleyball season, November.

"We talked about wanting to play our best volleyball in November," Kohan said. "And (we're) looking to keep dialing in on some little things. I'm happy to get San Diego State back next week with the taste of revenge still pretty fresh."

With newer players gaining more trust and becoming more comfortable in the college volleyball setting, Kohan looks to use their passion to her advantage.

More equipped players mean more options from the bench if injuries arise, or performance is low.

"Our team, on any night, you want to get different people going," Kohan said. "You want to give different young players opportunities and there's going to be a world where Malaya Jones graduates and we're going to have other people step up. Malaya is big giver on our team too. She's excited when Jazen comes in. (I'm) always looking for the next person ready, because you never know when it's somebody else's turn to shine."

Experience coupled with passionate first years reaching for a starting position culminates in a roster full of choices.

Including the development of CSU's defense in past seasons takes a team more focused on offensive prowess and transforms it into a team that value's its defense to the end.

"We've always been a good offensive team," Yoshimoto said. "But this season, we highlighted a lot on defense, and we wanted to be the best both offensively and defensively. So, we put a lot of work into that in practice. I think it's really important, you can't hit without the defender."

With November volleyball one match away, they take their old and new to higher levels than before.

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