Volleyball Opens Season With Split In Colorado

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The University of Wisconsin-Platteville volleyball team (1-1) split in a pair of contests to open the season on Friday evening, falling 3-2 to Hardin-Simmons (1-1) before picking up a 3-1 win over Colorado College (0-2) in the nightcap from Reid Arena in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

The opening set against Hardin-Simmons went the way of the Pioneers by a commanding score of 25-13, including a 12-4 stretch to close it out. But the Cowgirls bounced back, winning the next two sets by scores of 25-18 and 25-21 to take the match lead. UW-Platteville answered in the fourth set behind a 10-2 run to claim a 25-19 victory and send the match to a fifth set. The Pioneers scored the first four points in the decisive fifth set, but Hardin-Simmons evened the score at nine. The Cowgirls capped the match with a 6-1 run to collect the 15-10 victory.

Junior Emma Carlson tallied a match-high 18 kills for the Pioneers, while senior Claudia Johnson added 13 of her own while posting a .310 hitting percentage. Carlson posted the double-double with 12 digs, with sophomore Bri Gartner recorded a team-high 23 digs. As a team, UW-Platteville totaled nine blocks against Hardin-Simmons, led by a solo block and three block assists by sophomore Kierney McDonald and junior Madelyn Cooley. Senior Sam Rossetti finished with 31 assists and seven digs for the Pioneers.

Against Colorado College, UW-Platteville overcame a late 8-0 Tigers run in the first set to pick up a 27-25 win. With the Tigers holding a 24-22 lead, the Pioneers got a kill from Johnson and back-to-back service aces by Gartner to take the lead before ultimately winning the set. Colorado College coasted to a 25-13 set two win, but UW-Platteville responded with 25-22 and 25-21 wins in sets three and four to collect its first victory of the 2023 season. The Pioneers posted a .419 hitting percentage in set four, with 15 kills against just two errors, to help secure the win.

Johnson finished with 12 kills while Carlson was close behind with 11 of her own. UW-Platteville reached double digits in service aces in the match, led by four from Gartner and three more from junior Shea Lauria. The Pioneers totaled nine blocks for the second straight match, highlighted by five block assists by senior Camryn Johnston. Gartner led the team with 15 digs, and Rossetti finished with a team-high 32 assists.

The Pioneers wrap up the trip west tomorrow afternoon when they face Wartburg at 3 p.m. at Colorado College.