SAN ANGELO, TX- Colorado Christian traveled south to Texas to take part in the NCAA South Central Regional with an opening round matchup against the host Angelo State on Friday. Making their second appearance in program history at the regional tournament and first since 2012, the Cougars battled a talented Belles squad to the very end as they saw their historic season come to a close in a 3-0 loss.
The energy was palpable inside the Junell Center-Stephens Arena as the two teams got ready to kick off the final match of the day in San Angelo.
Izzy Jones got things started with an immediate block, and
Lilly Woods slammed home a kill for a quick 2-0 lead. A small run from the Belles did not deter CCU as
Megan McNitt and
Suzanna Conner put down kills before a solo block from
Renee Phillips made it 9-8. ASU clung to a 1-2 point lead throughout a large part of the set, but a pivotal four-point run gave them the advantage they needed as the set neared its' close.
Abby Newell notched a kill to put her team within two at 24-22, but the Belles closed the set out 25-22 to take the early 1-0 lead.
Phillips and Woods got off to a hot start in set two as they gave their team a 4-2 lead with some strong kills out of the middle, and Woods stayed on fire with another kill as the teams stood tied at 6-6. Scoring 6 of 7 points in a stretch midway through the set, ASU managed to grab a 16-9 lead. Trailing 21-14, CCU showed great fight as
Alissa Gregory-Obiedo put down a kill to spark a five-point run that made the set close with just two points separating the teams. Despite kills from Newell and Woods, the hosts managed to claim the set 25-22 in another great battle.
The Belles got off to a strong start in set three and never looked back as they remained in control the majority of the set. Newell and Woods continued to be a force for their team with a pair of early kills, a block from Jones and Woods and a nice kill from Jones tightened the gap to 14-10. Conner and Woods registered another block, and Gregory-Obiedo tacked on consecutive kills to make it just 19-16, and Newell put one down to keep her team in the match at 23-20. Unfortunately, the Belles managed to secure the final two points and claim the sweep to advance to the next round of the regional tournament.
Newell and Phillips paced the offense with nine kills apiece followed by Woods with six. Jones had a stellar night with 29 assists and 11 digs while
Shelby Hernandez picked up 15 digs from her libero position. Phillips tallied three blocks while Woods and Jones each had two.
The Cougars finished a historic 2024 season with an overall record of 19-11, the most wins under Head Coach
Bobby Blanken. The team reached new heights as they downed two teams ranked higher than them at the RMAC Tournament to qualify for the tournament final for the first time in program history. CCU then qualified for the NCAA Regional Tournament for the second time in program history with the last being 12 years ago in 2012. This Colorado Christian team set the standard very high and have much to be proud of as they look back on a tremendous 2024 season of volleyball.
