THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. - No. 19
Colorado College began its 17th consecutive NCAA Division III
Volleyball Championship appearance with 3-1 win over No. 20 Pacific
Lutheran University on Friday afternoon on the campus of Cal
Lutheran University. Interactive Bracket | Regional Website | Box
Score | Postgame Interview
With the victory, the Tigers improved to 30-8 on the season,
which marks the fifth time in the last six seasons that CC has hit
the 30-win mark.
Sophomore Abbe Holtze, a first-team AVCA
West Region selection, led the Tigers with 21 kills on a .360
hitting percentage with just three errors in 50 attempts. She also
added 17 digs to mark her 22nd double-double of the
season.
The Tigers powered through the first set beating the Lutes,
25-18, but Pacific Lutheran came back in the second set to tie the
match with a close 27-25 win.
Midway through the third set with CC holding a 12-10 lead,
sophomore Rebecca Watson set Holtze up to earn
her 500th kill of the season. The outside hitter entered the match
with 485 kills and now has 506 kills this season to be only the
second player in program history to earn 500 or more kills in a
single season. Katharine Hauschka set the single-season record in
2004 with 537 kills.
The Tigers went on to win the third set, 25-23.
CC's offense dominated in the fourth set putting down 18
kills on a .364 hitting percentage with just two errors in 44
attempts to earn a 25-19 win in the final set to take the victory.
Junior Courtney Birkett had a solid
performance for the Tigers picking up her eighth double-double of
the season by tying her career-high 22 digs and adding 13
kills.
Senior Kristen Libertywas also a force at
the net with 12 kills and a team-high six blocks.
Junior Sophie Merrifield led the back row with 27
digs, while Watson orchestrated the offense with 33 assists.
Colorado College will face Claremont-Mudd-Scripps on
Saturday at 3:30 p.m. PT in the NCAA Regional Semifinal match while
fellow SCAC memeber Trinity Universit ywill take on California
Lutheran in the other matchup.