Colorado State University Athletics
Thursday, November 21
Fort Collins, CO
6:00 PM
Colorado State
17-10,13-4Mountain West
3
vs
0
Nevada
12-16,5-11Mountain West
1
2
3
F
Nevada
13
20
17
0
Colorado St.
25
25
25
3
Rams Clinch Mountain West Championship with Win over Nevada
11/21/2024 9:07:00 PM | Volleyball
Colorado State to fight for outright title Saturday
FORT COLLINS - The Colorado State volleyball team swept Nevada Thursday night, with a record-setting performance by Malaya Jones, resulting in Colorado State volleyball's 23rd program Mountain West Championship and Emily Kohan's first championship as head coach of the Rams.
After Thursday night, the Rams have become the Mountain West regular season champions for the first time in three years. The match showcased Malaya Jones, who led the team with 18 kills on the night, breaking her own single season kills school-record finishing the night with 477 on the year and counting.Â
"I knew we had to secure [the championship] no matter what so I was going to do everything I possibly could to make sure that happened for my team," Jones said. "I thought it was a very combined effort from everybody tonight and I just knew we had to handle business. I believed in myself and I knew I could do it so then it showed on the court."
Jones delivers consistently for the Rams in the front row, and continues to prove it in the records she breaks, but it doesn't stop there.
"She is one of the conference's and country's best attackers," Kohan said. "She's also really weaponized that arm from the service line too, and those were the two big things we talked about in the off-season being a full six-rotation player, and she's done just that and she just keeps getting better."
Kohan took over the Rams last season, inheriting the program from long-term head coach Tom Hilbert after being an associate head coach for five season. Thursday she clinched her first Mountain West Championship as a head coach.
"I will get emotional this week too. This is the senior class that believed and stayed when the coaching transition happened and came back for their fifth years. I can't say enough about how much they mean to me and this is one that will not be forgotten," Kohan said.
The win not only clinches at least a share of the Mountain West Regular Season title for the Rams, it also guarantees them a top two seed in next week's Mountain West Championship Tournament. Colorado State will automatically advance to the semi-finals with a first round bye, starting its tournament next Friday instead of Wednesday.
"I'm super proud anytime we win a conference championship, but I think there's some anxiety that's relieved, I'm like okay we did this maybe we can just play free and they can really enjoy the moment of playing the last time in Moby Arena for those five seniors," Kohan said.Â
The three set match with Nevada was all about getting back on track after last week's two game slide on the road and the Rams were able to do just that. Hitting at a .440 team efficiency and totaling 13 blocks on defense propelled the Rams past Nevada for the second time this season.
"It definitely lifted a weight off of our shoulders," senior Naeemah Weathers said. "We were super excited to play tonight to make sure we took care of business and sort of enjoy the emotions of senior night and the rest of the season without worrying about the bye or the tournament or any of that stuff so taking care of business was super special."
Saturday is set to be senior day in Moby Arena where the Rams will honor five graduating seniors including Weathers, Emery Herman, Karina Leber, Kennedy Stanford and Kate Yoshimoto. With five of the seven players in Colorado State's starting lineup graduating this school year, this championship helps solidify the legacy they will leave not only at CSU, but especially Moby Arena.
"It's super special. Even thinking about Saturday and the fact that it is going to be our last time playing in Moby, it's super emotional and I've been here my entire career, so I haven't known anything besides Colroado State and Moby Madness. To be able to clinch a share of the championship tonight and then hopefully outright on Saturday, is something that I am super proud to be able to say I have done in my career," Weathers said.
After a dominant win over the Wolf Pack, the Rams will look forward to a match up with last year's Mountain West Regular Season Champions Utah State on Saturday where a win would earn them the regular season title and No. 1 seed in the tournament outright.Â
First serve is set for 12 p.m. in Moby Arena with fans encouraged to arrive early for senior day and stick around post-game for a championship celebration.
Â
After Thursday night, the Rams have become the Mountain West regular season champions for the first time in three years. The match showcased Malaya Jones, who led the team with 18 kills on the night, breaking her own single season kills school-record finishing the night with 477 on the year and counting.Â
"I knew we had to secure [the championship] no matter what so I was going to do everything I possibly could to make sure that happened for my team," Jones said. "I thought it was a very combined effort from everybody tonight and I just knew we had to handle business. I believed in myself and I knew I could do it so then it showed on the court."
Jones delivers consistently for the Rams in the front row, and continues to prove it in the records she breaks, but it doesn't stop there.
"She is one of the conference's and country's best attackers," Kohan said. "She's also really weaponized that arm from the service line too, and those were the two big things we talked about in the off-season being a full six-rotation player, and she's done just that and she just keeps getting better."
Kohan took over the Rams last season, inheriting the program from long-term head coach Tom Hilbert after being an associate head coach for five season. Thursday she clinched her first Mountain West Championship as a head coach.
"I will get emotional this week too. This is the senior class that believed and stayed when the coaching transition happened and came back for their fifth years. I can't say enough about how much they mean to me and this is one that will not be forgotten," Kohan said.
The win not only clinches at least a share of the Mountain West Regular Season title for the Rams, it also guarantees them a top two seed in next week's Mountain West Championship Tournament. Colorado State will automatically advance to the semi-finals with a first round bye, starting its tournament next Friday instead of Wednesday.
"I'm super proud anytime we win a conference championship, but I think there's some anxiety that's relieved, I'm like okay we did this maybe we can just play free and they can really enjoy the moment of playing the last time in Moby Arena for those five seniors," Kohan said.Â
The three set match with Nevada was all about getting back on track after last week's two game slide on the road and the Rams were able to do just that. Hitting at a .440 team efficiency and totaling 13 blocks on defense propelled the Rams past Nevada for the second time this season.
"It definitely lifted a weight off of our shoulders," senior Naeemah Weathers said. "We were super excited to play tonight to make sure we took care of business and sort of enjoy the emotions of senior night and the rest of the season without worrying about the bye or the tournament or any of that stuff so taking care of business was super special."
Saturday is set to be senior day in Moby Arena where the Rams will honor five graduating seniors including Weathers, Emery Herman, Karina Leber, Kennedy Stanford and Kate Yoshimoto. With five of the seven players in Colorado State's starting lineup graduating this school year, this championship helps solidify the legacy they will leave not only at CSU, but especially Moby Arena.
"It's super special. Even thinking about Saturday and the fact that it is going to be our last time playing in Moby, it's super emotional and I've been here my entire career, so I haven't known anything besides Colroado State and Moby Madness. To be able to clinch a share of the championship tonight and then hopefully outright on Saturday, is something that I am super proud to be able to say I have done in my career," Weathers said.
After a dominant win over the Wolf Pack, the Rams will look forward to a match up with last year's Mountain West Regular Season Champions Utah State on Saturday where a win would earn them the regular season title and No. 1 seed in the tournament outright.Â
First serve is set for 12 p.m. in Moby Arena with fans encouraged to arrive early for senior day and stick around post-game for a championship celebration.
Â
Team Stats
Nevada
CSU
Kills
30
45
Errors
18
8
Attempts
98
84
Hitting %
.122
.440
Points
34.0
57.5
Assists
28
42
Aces
0
6
Blocks
4
6.5
Game Leaders
Kills
18
Aces
3
Blocks
1
Kills
8
Aces
0
Blocks
4
Kills
6
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
6
Aces
1
Blocks
0
Players Mentioned
S
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L/DS
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