Last season, it only took a day for the Fort Lewis College volleyball team to be swept. This year, it took nearly two months.
The Skyhawks volleyball team had one of their toughest tests of the season at home on Thursday and couldn’t stop the University of Colorado Colorado Springs, resulting in a 3-0 (17-25, 24-26, 16-25) loss to the Mountain Lions.
UCCS showed why it’s at the top of the RMAC standings. The Mountain Lions have four players 6-foot-2-inches or taller and they frustrated FLC with their height and length around the net. The Skyhawks don’t have a player taller than 6-foot-1-inches.
The Mountain Lions’ setter and defense stayed composed when the Skyhawks tried to attack. FLC looked like it had the best of UCCS in Set 2, but UCCS’ composure and length around the net helped them come from behind and finish Set 2 on a 4-0 run to keep the momentum in the match.
“Our fight was off and on,” FLC head coach Justin Wong said. “This is the first time we got swept all season and the team knew that instantly. So we talked a lot about playing through the match, playing hard and playing for each other.”
FLC dropped to 14-6 overall. Luckily for the Skyhawks, the game was part of a power pod so it didn’t count as a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference game. Therefore, FLC stayed at 8-2 in the RMAC.
It was a balanced effort on offense for FLC with six players finishing between five and seven kills. Junior outside hitter Jordan DeJesus and freshman middle blocker Caroline Munson each had seven kills. Sophomore setter Addie Garn led the Skyhawks with 17 assists and freshman defensive specialist Alyx Daugherty led the team with 16 digs.
The Skyhawks were without one of their best and most important players. Senior middle blocker Ella Butler was not in uniform due to a coach’s decision, according to Wong.
UCCS improved to 19-2 overall and remained at 9-1 in the RMAC. Kinley Gomez led UCCS with 12 kills, Maylen Mitrovich led the team with 32 assists and 14 digs.
In Set 1, UCCS quickly separated and led 7-2. The Mountain Lions’ blocking was fantastic early and gave their hitters good opportunities for kills later in the point.
FLC cut the lead to 11-9. UCCS didn’t have as much success blocking and freshman outside hitter Cambria Freymuth did a good job on the left side, killing and tooling. Without Butler, Munson was strong in the middle with some powerful kills right down the middle of UCCS’ defense.
The Mountain Lions took advantage of some attack errors by FLC to rebuild their lead to 17-12. The Skyhawks couldn’t get any closer as they struggled to attack against the lanky UCCS blockers. The Mountain Lions had a lot of success around the net late in the first set so it was fitting that a block gave UCCS a 25-17 Set 1 win.
“In the beginning, we definitely got blocked a lot,” Wong said. “I think it shocked us that the ball was going back so often.”
The Mountain Lions’ length continued to be a huge asset around the net in Set 2, as their spikes were almost straight down. FLC put some points together with some savvy serving and a strong DeJesus kill from the right side.
FLC took its first lead in Set 2, 11-10, thanks to back-to-back excellent blocks by senior middle blocker Ivy Schoditsch. Senior defensive specialist Chloe Ruhl was super active on the back row, keeping points alive with some diving digs.
“We have three other good middles,” Wong said. “I’ve really wanted to see them with different setters; that part I really enjoyed. Ivy stepped in and had a great defensive effort.”
UCCS struggled with some attack errors and FLC took advantage with its biggest lead of the match at 17-14.
The Mountain Lions didn’t go away and retook the lead, 25-24. There were some fantastic, long points late in the set with diving digs and powerful attack attempts. UCCS stayed composed and finished the set with a kill from the middle for the 26-24 Set 2 win.
“That loss was definitely on us,” Wong said. “We were running low on subs and people had to play positions they weren't normally used to … We just kind of panicked a little bit, even though we do stuff like that a lot.”
FLC had a lot of success with tip and dump shots early in Set 3, which led to a 7-6 lead. UCCS started to separate in the middle of the set. The Mountain Lions showed their versatility with a powerful kill, a precise ace and a quality block to lead 16-12.
UCCS didn’t look back as the Skyhawks struggled to put together good attacks and avoid the Mountain Lions’ blockers. A tip shot into the far left corner gave UCCS a 25-16 Set 3 win.
FLC has the chance to bounce back with another power pod game at home against Colorado School of Mines on Saturday at 3 p.m.
Wong said getting swept was a wake-up call and he hopes to see his team’s effort and attitude flip.
bkelly@durangoherald.com
