ALAMOSA, Colo. (March 11, 2021) - Colorado State University Pueblo Volleyball lost a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference road match by the score of 3-2 at Adams State University Thursday.

The ThunderWolves (6-3, 4-2 RMAC) had their four-match win streak (all on the road) snapped in the loss. The Grizzlies improved to 1-11 overall and 1-10 in the RMAC. The stat line was even down the line, with the Pack narrowly edging ASU in almost all the major categories. CSU Pueblo had 56 kills and a .213 hitting percentage to Adams State's 53 kills and .208 hitting percentage. The Pack won assists 55-51 and aces 10-5, while the Grizzlies won blocks 9-8 and digs 63-62.
 
Coach Albers Quote
"We got to see both sides of our team tonight," said CSU Pueblo Head Volleyball Coach Austin Albers. "Some good and plenty of bad. Our opponent played us tough and were definitely playing harder and more loose."

"I hope that getting knocked off our own pedestal will allow us to go back to focusing on daily improvement with humility. Every team meets a fork in the road and how we respond after this one will say a lot about us one way or the other."
 
Individual Highlights
Maddy Wisniewski (Sr., Highlands Ranch, Colo.) led the Pack with 13 kills, as she posted a .346 attack percentage. 
 
Payton Stack (Sr., Casper, Wyo.) added 12 kills, 2.5 blocks and five digs. 
 
Jazzy Espinoza (Jr., Cheyenne, Wyo.) totaled 13.5 points with her seven kills, five service aces a block solo and a block assist. She also chipped in four digs.
 
Elaine Thibadeau (Jr., Monument, Colo.), the back-to-back RMAC Defensive Player of the Week, led the team with 19 digs and had three aces.
 
Grace Jansen (So., South Jordan, Utah) led the squad with 23 assists. She also had two aces and three digs. 

Grace Hern (Jr., Omaha, Neb.) chipped in 19 assists and added 14 digs.
 
Summary
CSU Pueblo ran away with the first set 25-12, as the Pack were balanced offensively. 
 
Set two was a back-and-forth battle that saw the Pack ahead 21-18 and close to taking a two set lead. Unfortunately for the road team, Adams State rattled off seven unanswered points to steal the second set 25-21.
 
The Grizzlies used that momentum swing to run away with set three, 25-13. 
 
The ThunderWolves regrouped and jumped out to a 6-2 lead in the fourth set. CSU Pueblo built on the advantage and would secure a 25-15 victory to force the fifth and final set. 
 
The Pack won the first three points of the fifth, but the teams would end up tied 4-4. At 9-9 the ThunderWolves rattled off three straight, capped by an ace by Espinoza. ASU responded with three points of their own and the set was tied 12-12. A Stack kill tied the set for the ninth time, this time at 14-14. A kill by the Grizzlies and then a bad set by the ThunderWolves would close the set 16-14 and the match 3-2 in favor of Adams State. 

Up Next
The Pack now focus on a six-match homestand to close the regular season. The run of home matches starts March 13 with No. 2 Colorado Mesa University at 11 a.m. and Western Colorado University at 5 p.m. A limited amount of fans will be allowed at Massari Arena. 
 
-- PACK --