University of Northern Colorado Athletics
University of Northern Colorado
7-3,7-3Big Sky
Weber State
8-0,8-0Big Sky
Wildcats outlast Bears in five
2/21/2021 5:33:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
GREELEY, Colo. – Sunday's heavyweight showdown between the Big Sky's top two programs went the full five sets. It was the Wildcats, however, who eked out the win, 3-2 (25-18, 25-13, 18-25, 18-25, 12-15).
Northern Colorado came out ready to fire in the first two sets. The Bears hit .233 in the opening frame behind kills from Rachel Hickman and three from Taylor Muff.
S2 | Rachel Hickman gets the kill!#BearsStrong #BigSkyVB pic.twitter.com/LTfDp92vJy
— UNC Bears Volleyball (@UNC_BearsVB) February 21, 2021
Both Hickman and Muff would go on to finish in doubles with 14 and 16, respectively.
Up front, it was the combination of Hickman, Cece Huhn, Lauren Hinrichs and Kailey Jo Ince who built an impenetrable wall. Huhn dialed up four blocks, Hickman added two, and Ince assisted on five and Hinrichs collected seven block assists to give the Bears 14 total blocks, its largest total of the season.
S2 | ROOFED😤#BearsStrong #BigSkyVB pic.twitter.com/zANfe4HSev
— UNC Bears Volleyball (@UNC_BearsVB) February 21, 2021
Behind the wall, the Bears' back row racked up the digs. Taylor Muff, kyndall Feather, Laura Katarzyski and Michaela Boon all finished in double figures.
Neither offense had much momentum in the third set but an 8-1 run from the Wildcats late gave Weber life in the match.
Weber State refrained from using a single substitution the rest of the way as they stole the fourth set, 25-18, sending the matchup to a decisive fifth set.
The Bears ran out to a quick 3-1 start but the Wildcats countered with mini runs of its own. Two big blocks and a hitting percentage of .333 helped Weber State outrun UNC in the final moments, handing them its second win over UNC in as many days.
S5 | That's how you start the final set!!#BearsStrong #BigSkyVB pic.twitter.com/LjjFUoqw4L
— UNC Bears Volleyball (@UNC_BearsVB) February 21, 2021
Post-match Thoughts
Head Coach, Lynsdey Oates
Laura Katarzynski and Lauren Hinrichs
Game Notes
- Taylor muff tallied her sixth double-double of the season with 16 kills and 16 digs.
- The Bears' 14 blocks were a season-high and the most since recording 14 against Sacramento State in October of 2019.
- Lara Katarzynksi's four assists are a career-high for the junior defensive specialist.
- Rachel Hickman continues to lead the Bears in hitting percentage. The Kansas transfer swung for a .522 Sunday afternoon.
What's Ahead?
Northern Colorado heads back out on the road next week for two matchups against Idaho State. Both matches against the Bengals are slated for 2 p.m. MT.
To stay up to date on all things UNC volleyball, visit UNCBears.com and follow the team on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
