ST. GEORGE, UT – The 2019 campaign started with a four-match in two-day stretch for the Colorado Christian volleyball team.
During their morning session at the Dixie State Classic, the Cougars posted a hard fought five-set win against Northwest Nazarene but lost their nightcap against St. Cloud State.
Colorado Christian 3, Northwest Nazarene 2 (21-25, 25-17, 26-24, 21-25, 15-9)
A host of players contributed to the marathon win as four different players had at least 10 kills while two players set personal career highs for their respective positions.
Ashley Drye had a team high 16 kills while Cali Bahnsen racked-up 14. The duo of Katie Henry and Jacey Johnson each put together 13-kill efforts to aid in the winning cause. Henry notched a team best .393 hitting percentage from her middle hitter spot.
In her first career start at setter, Maddie Burns showed veteran savvy. She registered 61 assists in directing the Cougar offense. She also had eight digs and four kills.
Along the backline Mariela Gonzalez continued to show why she is one of the best liberos in the conference by recording a career high 35 digs. Also along the back row defensive specialists Christina Tucker (18) and Kaira Smith (10) posted double figure dig performances.
During the critical final set, the Cougars put together a .538 hitting percentage to pull away from the Nighthawks. Colorado Christian scored eight of the matches final 11 points.
St. Cloud State 3, Colorado Christian (31-29, 25-22, 25-15)
The Huskies used a nail biter opening set win to help propel them to the sweep.
During that closely played first frame, the Cougars had six set points but couldn't convert their opportunities. St. Cloud State rallied from a 20-23 deficit to tie the stanza at 24-24 before winning the set on their second set-point chance.
In the second frame the Hukies raced out to a 7-1 lead but a feisty Colorado Christian squad fought back to tie the set at 8-8. Unfortunately that was as close as the Cougars would get. St. Cloud State kept the Cougars at arm's length the remainder of the set. The third set saw the Huskies hold an 11-4 edge and never let their lead drop beneath a seven-point advantage.
For the second straight match Ashley Drye lead the offense. The sophomore posted a 10-kill effort on 21 attempts. Maddie Burns directed the offense to the tune of a 31-assist performance while Mariela Gonzalez notched 15 digs in the back row.
UP NEXT: Colorado Christian plays two more Saturday with an 11 a.m. contest against Stanislaus State starting the day before concluding with a 3 p.m. contest versus Simon Fraser.
