LAKEWOOD,CO- Playing in front of a loud and boisterous crowd in their home opener, volleyball took on the South Central Region's number three team in Angelo State on Tuesday. The Cougars came out firing, taking the first two sets before holding on for a thrilling five set victory in an impressive early statement. 

HOW IT HAPPENED- The two teams played very evenly through the first half of the initial set, battling to a 12-12 tie. The Rambelles took a 15-13 lead but then the Cougars made their move. Led by consecutive kills from Lilly Woods and Savannah Overson, Colorado Christian capped a six point run that gave them a 22-17 lead. They took the set 25-19 on a kill from Abby Newell as the home crowd went wild.

The Cougars got right to work in set two as Libby Goodman put down back-to-back thunderous slams. A pair of kills from Overson and Woods had Colorado Christian up 17-13, but Angelo State refused to go down easily. The Rambelles rallied back to tie it at 22, but the Cougars settled down to take three of the next four points for the 25-23 set win.

Once again Colorado Christian led early to start set three, but this time it was Angelo State who settled in and took control of the set. Several mini runs had them up 19-11 and they closed the set to force a fourth set 25-18. 

Looking to close out the match, the Cougars jumped ahead 10-8 on the heels of an Izzy Jones kill. The Rambelles showed composure once again, fighting through the noise of the crowd to pull ahead late 22-18. Overson stopped the momentum with a kill but Angelo State forced a fifth set with a 25-19 victory.

It is imperative to start fast in a fifth set that only goes to 15 points, and Colorado Christian did just that. An early ace from Newell and a kill from Goodman had the hosts up 4-0 quickly. They continued to pour it on, as Renee Phillips put one down for a 7-1 lead. 10-8 was the closest the Rambelles would get, as an inspired effort from the Cougars was finished by a Newell kill to claim a thriller 15-9 as the home crowd stormed the court in jubilation. 

 

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:

• Libby Goodman paced all attackers in the match with a 19 kill performance

• Izzy Jones continued her stellar play by dishing out 53 assists on the night

• Libero Madelyn Long made clutch defensive plays all night, tallying 16 digs along with four assists 

UP NEXT- The Cougars will now head to Washington for a four game tournament, beginning on September 2 at 12 p.m. against Saint Martin's University. They will begin RMAC play on September 7 at Adams State with first serve slated for 7 p.m.