Colorado State University: A Leading Institution in the Centennial State – Great

By: Braidon Norse
 
FORT COLLINS, Colo. – Finding any sort of consistency can sometimes be the difference in a volleyball match, especially in Colorado State’s match against Pacific, where for the first set and a half, neither team could get anything going, hitting way below average and racking up mistakes.
 
In games like that, there’s not necessarily a need for spectacular – just stability. Down the stretch, CSU limited their attack errors while the Tigers accumulated them. The result was a 3-1 victory for the Rams, 26-24, 25-19, 24-26, 25-21.
 
Pacific ended the match with 33 attack errors, nearly double the amount CSU had (17). They also racked up seven more service errors.
 
“It was a battle of two ugly volleyball teams in the beginning, we were not playing very well and they were not playing very well,” head coach Emily Kohan said. “We just needed to be able to run an offense and take some good swings at balls. I feel like we settled in nicely towards the end of it.”
 
The Rams outhit Pacific in the first set .167 to .075, less than ideal for either team but good enough for CSU to take the first set in extras.
 
Set two was where both teams started to polarize in terms of consistency. CSU improved to a solid .348 while Pacific dove down to a match-worst .053 on the way to the largest margin of victory of any set.
 
“That was our message to the team: learning to win ugly is a skill, too,” Kohan said. “While this wasn’t our prettiest performance of the season, it was one where, you know, we beat a good team. And that’s something to take away, we can grind out some ugly wins, too.”
 
For much of the final two sets, it turned into a game of runs. CSU would achieve a 3-0 or 4-0 run, then Pacific would hit back with runs of their own. Pacific won the third set in the same fashion, coming back from a 23-20 deficit to win in extras.
 
While stretches like that can be frustrating, blocker Naeemah Weathers knew from the first half of the match it would be a grind. So on the way to posting a match-high six blocks for the second time this weekend, she played the way she knows best.
 
“My biggest thing is just to be aggressive, be aggressive, be aggressive,” Weathers said. “Shutting down hitters who were making a difference on their offense is something I love to contribute to the team.”
 
After giving up the third set by way of comeback, the consistency had to play a role in the Rams’ mentality, too. It was especially true at the very end of the match, when an overturned call turned into another threat of a Tigers comeback.
 
CSU had a comfortable 24-19 lead for match point when during a long rally, Emery Herman seemed to have made a great diving dig to keep the point alive. They won the point and seemingly won the match, but a challenge by Pacific revealed the ball hit the ground before Herman got to it.
 
Pacific scored two more points and suddenly found momentum again. But just like they had for most of the match, they beat themselves, ending the match on a service error.
 
Kohan said the team is still ‘on this quest’ for the all-around performance she knows her team can produce. Next week might be the time to cash in, as they’ll play two matches back to back against in-state rivals Colorado.
 
“I’m super excited,” Weathers said. “We love playing Boulder, we love the rivalry and we love the way the fans get both here and there. They’re great atmospheres both ways.”
 
Whether or not the team finds a way to fire on all cylinders to the tune Kohan would like, it’s still an exciting prospect to play against their biggest rivals two nights in a row.
 
First is a Thursday, Sept. 14 matchup in Boulder at 7 p.m., followed by a rematch the following day at Moby Arena at the same time.
 
“There’s no win like a Buffs win, you know?” Kohan said. “I think they get equally as pumped as for it and the back-to-back is always an interesting scenario. Beating any team two times in a row is a unique thing, but yeah, we get jacked to play the Buffaloes for sure.”