UNC Volleyball Falls to #23 Colorado in Five-Set Thriller

Sunday, September 6

Boulder, Colo.

3 p.m. MT

University of Northern Colorado

1-4,0-0Big Sky

Colorado

6-0,0-0Big 12

Team	1	2	3	4	5	Final F
Northern Colo.	25	20	25	9	6	2
Colorado	15	25	16	25	15	3

UNC Athletics

9/6/2026 5:22:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

By: Elian Soto, Assistant Director of Strategic Communications

BOULDER, Colo. – Northern Colorado Volleyball battled nationally ranked Colorado through five sets Sunday afternoon, taking the Buffaloes to the wire before ultimately falling 3-2 (15-25, 25-20, 16-25, 25-9, 15-6) inside the CU Events Center.

The Bears came out firing, controlling the opening set from start to finish. UNC hit .379 as a team in the first frame, recording 17 kills while limiting Colorado to just five kills and a -.040 hitting percentage. Northern Colorado carried the momentum into the third set as well, hitting .423 to take a 2-1 lead.

Colorado responded in the fourth set, using a strong offensive performance to even the match and force a decisive fifth set. The Buffaloes carried that momentum into the final frame, securing the five-set victory.

Alayna Tessena led the Bears offensively with 12 kills while adding two service aces and seven digs. Gillian Walton followed with 11 kills, while Leila Ballard recorded nine kills and three assists. Nerea Alvarez Jorge helped orchestrate the UNC offense with 35 assists, five kills, an ace and nine digs. Maddie Rink added six kills and a team-high seven block assists, while Summer Snead finished with eight kills.

Defensively, Bella LePore paced the Bears with 10 digs, while Alvarez-Jorge added nine and Tessena recorded seven. As a team, UNC finished with 51 kills, four service aces and 18 total blocks. The Bears opened the match with a dominant first set, jumping out to an early advantage before closing the frame 25-15. Colorado answered in the second, but UNC regained control in the third behind its best offensive set of the afternoon.

UP NEXT: The Bears will continue their road stretch as they travel to Murfreesboro, Tennessee, to compete in the Middle Tennessee Classic, hosted by Middle Tennessee. UNC will open tournament play against Murray State on Friday, September 11, at 9 a.m. MT.

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