@UNCBearsVB Battles Vandals Close, Comes Up Short in Fifth Set

Friday, November 23

Greeley, Colo.

7 pm

University of Northern Colorado

15-13

Idaho

23-9

Northern Colorado

Idaho

Photo by: Woody Myers

11/23/2018 11:55:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

Northern Colorado bowed out of the Big Sky Tournament after falling to the No. 2 seed Idaho

By: Matthew Kushar, UNCBears.com

Northern Colorado volleyball did not want to end its time in the Big Sky tournament or its season. They battled hard all Friday night but dropped the semi-final match against No. 2 Idaho, 3-2 [21-15, 25-17, 23-25, 25-18].

"It didn't fall our way," head coach Lyndsey Oates said. "I loved how hard we played and the passion we brought. We followed the game plan really well. We just couldn't get over that hump in the fifth set."

The Bears serving was effective on Friday night, scoring 10 aces to only six errors. Kortney Lockey matched her career-high with four against the Vandals, while Kyndall Feather also matched her career high with three.

"When we got a gap, I thought it was really based on our serving," Oates added. "We served really tough tonight. From the service line, it set us up to take the lead. When we couldn't keep service pressure on them, it gave them an open door."

UNC's offense was also humming, scoring 66 kills to complement the strong serving night. Five Bears were in double-digits for kills, with Taylor Muff scoring a career and match high 20 kills, while hitting .176. Jadyn McCartney matched her career-high with 15 kills, while Lauren Hinrichs and Brittany Lawrence added 14 and 11 kills respectively from the middle.

"I think we peaked at the right time," outside hitter Kortney Lockey said. "This tournament is the best that we have played as a team. We came in as a sixth seed and I think we definitely showed everyone that's not what we were. That was the best team win and everyone contributed and bought into their roles. It sucks what the outcome we wanted, but how we played on our side of the net it's hard to be disappointed."

"All of our hitters were scoring and our defense was insane," Muff added. "Taylor Els had some amazing digs. Kayla [Uyemura] stepping into her position and Kyndall [Feather] from the service line. All the aspects of our game were put together tonight, but it wasn't the outcome we wanted. I didn't have any hesitation and I just went for it."

The first set was a back-and-forth battle with 10 ties and eight lead changes. Idaho showed its strength in the first, hitting .300 with 16 kills to take the set 25-21. The Bears offense was able to score 14 kills, but hit only .200 in the set.

The second set was a 180-turn in the match, as UNC hit .342 with 15 kills to only a pair of errors. Idaho was limited to a .212 attack percentage and 11 kills. The Bears evened up the match at one with a 25-17 win. Muff had four kills to lead the Bears in the set.

In the third set, both teams were able to score with UNC recording 15 kills and Idaho having 16. The Bears had the lead at 18-15, but a 5-1 run from the Vandals gave them the lead. UNC managed to pull Idaho back at 24-23, but the Vandals would score the set clinching point next and take a 2-1 lead in the match.

The Bears rallied in the fourth set with a 25-18 win to tie the match up at two apiece. UNC hit .268 in the set with 16 kills. Muff drove the offense with seven kills and McCartney added four.

Now in the fifth set, UNC raced out to a 4-2 lead with back-to-back aces from Kortney Lockey. A 4-0 run from Idaho put the Vandals in front 6-4. The Bears battled back and tied the set at eight with kills from Muff and Lockey. Idaho took the lead back on kills from Nikki Ball and Sarah Sharp. UNC pulled with one at 11-10 thanks to a kill from McCartney and an ace from Taylor Els. The Vandals would close out the set with a 5-0 run and won the match 3-2.

Northern Colorado hit .223 in the match, while Idaho finished with a .274 attack percentage.

Game Notes

UNC recorded 83 digs had four players in double-digits. Kortney Lockey tied her career-best with 22 against the Vandals. For the second time this season, UNC had two players with 20+ digs in a match, as Taylor Els had 23 on Friday night. Els has now recorded 20+ digs in eight consecutive matches and double-digits in 52 consecutive matches.
Taylor Muff's career high 20 kills also helped her record her 10^th double-double of the season, adding 14 digs.
Daisy Schultz earned her sixth double-double of the season with 54 assists and 10 digs.
UNC recorded 10+ service aces for the third time this season.

To stay up to date with Northern Colorado volleyball visit UNCBears.com and visit Twitter with @UNCBearsVB.