Buffs Return Home To Close First Half Of Conference Play
BOULDER – Colorado women's volleyball finishes out the first half of Pac-12 play this weekend with matches against Arizona Friday at 6 p.m. and against Arizona State Sunday at noon.
Colorado (12-5, 3-5 Pac-12) is seeking a .500 start to the conference sitting eighth in the conference and face the ninth and 10th-ranked teams in the conference in Arizona (11-8, 3-5 Pac-12) and Arizona State (9-10, 2-6 Pac-12), respectfully.
The Buffs took down Cal in a sweep last weekend behind a career night for Maya Tabron with 13 kills hitting .310 with six blocks. Colorado hit .240 in the match and had 13 total blocks. The team then went to No.-18 Stanford where they fell in three sets and were held to a .149 hitting percentage. Jahara Campbell had a strong performance against the Cardinal with eight kills hitting .381 without an error.
Tabron has a team-best 175 kills this season averaging just under three kills per set. Jill Schneggenburger is second on the team with 123 kills while Meegan Hart is two behind at 121 with a .322 hitting percentage. Jenna Ewert is averaging 9.77 assists per set and is second on the team in digs with 145.
On the defensive side, Brynna DeLuzio has reclaimed her top spot in the Pac-12 with 4.67 digs per set. She has 280 digs thus far and is tied for a team-best 14 aces. Both Hart and Alexia Kuehl are top-10 in the conference in blocks per set as Hart has 69 total blocks and Kuehl has 57.
Colorado will give out 250 Pride mugs Friday for their annual Pride Night match, followed by 200 clear backpacks for the first 200 kids at the match. Tickets are available for both here.
SCOUTING THE WILDCATS
Arizona has had a roller-coaster season, winning its first three matches in sweeps before having three straight five-set matches with only one loss. The team then went to face top-ranked Texas, stealing a set against the Longhorns on their court. They then fell in another five-setter against Notre Dame.
Finishing nonconference and moving to conference play, Arizona won six straight matches including four sweeps. They have since lost five straight including being swept three times against Stanford, Washington State and UCLA. Their final four matches were all at home with losses to the Washington and LA schools.
The Wildcats are hitting .220 as a team and allowing opponents to hit .197. They have a two-headed attack with Jaelyn Hodge averaging 3.8 kills per set while Sofia Maldonado Diaz is averaging 3.4. Maldonado Diaz and setter Emery Herman are also dangerous at the service line with 26 and 22 service aces this season, respectfully.
Defensively, Arizona shares the backrow responsibilities with five athletes with 100 or more digs. Up front, Merie Weidt and Zyonna Fellows each have more than 55 blocks while six athletes have 26 or more blocks.
SCOUTING THE SUN DEVILS
Arizona State also has had an up-and-down season. The team lost a five-set match at home against now-ranked No.2 Louisville. They started 3-3 before heading to Lincoln to take on Nebraska where they were swept. They finished the non-conference schedule with four straight wins before losing to UNLV at home in five.
They started conference season with a five-set loss to their in-state rivals before taking Oregon to five at home in a loss. They also took a set off of Stanford and took Washington and USC to five at home in losses before upsetting UCLA at home in five. This is only their fourth time away from home this season.
The Sun Devils are hitting .218 this season and allowing opponents to hit .232. The largest discrepancy in stats is the team only recording 1.7 blocks per set while being blocked 2.3 times per set. Iman Isanovic is the leader of the team with 4.11 kills per set, 21 aces, 160 digs and 27 blocks which are all top-four for the team. Marta Levinska is second on the team with 3.26 kills per set and leads the team with 25 aces. Claire Jeter is the biggest threat at the net with 72 blocks this season.