Kaitlind Bestgen

Class:
Freshman
Height:
5-10
Hometown:
Fort Collins, Colo.
High School:
Rocky Mountain

Chose to not return for her senior season in 2015.

2014 (JUNIOR): Led CSU with 40 service aces, the most by a Ram since 2004... Her 0.35 aces-per-set average, including 0.39 during league play, ranked second in the Mountain West... Had 11 multi-ace matches, including four of the team's final eight contests... Had a season-most four aces in two contests... Against Air Force (11/13), she served 22 times, scoring 16 points... In the season opener against VCU (8/30), had three aces during an 8-0 run during Set 1, turning a 14-14 tie into a 22-14 lead... Her fourth ace of the match came during an 8-0 Set-2 run, giving the Rams a 9-2 lead... Averaged 1.65 digs per set, which ranked fifth on the team... Had double figures for digs four times, including a season-most 12 at No. 18 Arizona State (9/19)... Had three aces against Boise State (10/23), capping a three-match stretch in which she had eight aces in a nine-set period... Also during that run, she totaled three aces in a straight-sets win at New Mexico (10/17) - including back-to-back during a 7-0 run to give CSU its first lead of the second set - and two at Air Force (10/18), in which she served a season-most 11 times in a row during a run that helped CSU jump out to a 14-1 Set-1 lead... Also added 10 digs in that match... Served during an 8-0 CSU run during the first set at Boise State (9/27), turning a one-point lead into a 21-13 advantage, including two service aces... Trailing 5-4 in Set 2 at UTEP (9/13), sparked a 6-0 run... Recorded 10 digs in a three-set win over Denver (9/9)... Leading 13-12 in the first set, CSU took a six-point lead behind five-straight serves from Bestgen... Played in all 34 matches, including one start.

2013 (SOPHOMORE): Saw action in 80 sets (23 matches), ranking second on the team for service aces (22, 0.28 per set) and fifth for digs (1.64 per set)... Her 0.28 aces-per-set average was tied for eighth in the Mountain West... Earned seven starts, transforming from purely a server in 2012 to a defensive player, as well... Started seven matches... In a win vs. Virginia (Sept. 6), tallied five service aces, including four during a 7-0 CSU run... It marked just the third time since 2009 that a Ram has recorded five or more service aces... Less than a month later, at Air Force (Sept. 26), she again had four aces during a 7-0 run... Totaled 10 or more digs on three occasions, including a career-most 16 at UNLV (Oct. 17).

2012 (FRESHMAN): Was used sparingly as a server throughout the year, appearing in 13 matches and 28 sets... Tallied four service aces, including a career-high two against New Mexico in the final match of the regular season (Nov. 23)... The pair of aces came on back-to-back serves and swung the momentum in the Rams' favor to help CSU claim the Mountain West title.

2011 (REDSHIRT): Sat out the 2011 season, using a redshirt.

HIGH SCHOOL: A local product of Rocky Mountain High School in Fort Collins, Colo. ... Graduated in 2011... Was a three-year letterwinner in volleyball... First-team all-conference and honorable mention all-state selections as a senior... As team captain, led the Lobos to a conference championship her senior year... Played club volleyball for NORCO.

PERSONAL: Born Aug. 12, 1993, in Fort Collins, Colo. ... Parents, Kevin Bestgen and Heidi Tillquist, both graduated from CSU... Has one brother, Kyle... Majoring in health & exercise science with a minor in business administration.