PUEBLO, Colo. – Colorado State University Pueblo Volleyball turned in an efficient performance Tuesday evening as the ThunderWolves rolled to a straight-set victory over Regis University in a Regional Pod match inside Massari Arena.
Tuesday's match was part of the RMAC's Regional Pod schedule, with every team in the league competing in a regional contest. Despite facing fellow RMAC member Regis, the match did not count toward the conference standings.
CSU Pueblo defeated the Rangers 25-15, 25-18 and 25-11 to improve to 7-7 overall, while remaining 3-1 in official RMAC play. Regis fell to 1-13 overall.
The ThunderWolves controlled the match on both sides of the net, finishing with 34 kills and just nine attacking errors on 92 attempts for a .272 hitting percentage. The Pack defense held Regis to a .033 hitting percentage, as the Rangers committed 27 attacking errors.
Senior Lilly Zwart paced CSU Pueblo offensively with a match-high 10 kills while hitting .320. Brianna Pino added seven kills on a .294 hitting percentage and recorded two solo blocks, while senior Finja Schul finished with six kills and hit .308.
Andi Nothdurft continued her strong play in the middle with five kills on 10 swings for a .300 hitting percentage while adding four block assists. Grace Helzer was nearly flawless offensively, recording three kills on seven attacks without an error to hit .429. Helzer also contributed a solo block and four block assists.
Freshman Madison Gardner directed the Pack offense with a team-high 12 assists and provided a match-high three service aces. CSU Pueblo finished with six aces on the night, while Gardner also added six digs.
Defensively, Kacee Garcia and Chinaru Pao each recorded eight digs, while Nicole Monge added seven. CSU Pueblo totaled 47 digs and kept Regis from establishing much offensive rhythm throughout the night.
Pack Sets the Tone Early
CSU Pueblo came out firing in the opening set, putting down 14 kills with just three errors on 35 attacks for a .314 hitting percentage. The ThunderWolves steadily pulled away from the Rangers before finishing off a 25-15 opening-set victory.
Regis produced its most competitive effort of the night in the second frame, but the Pack maintained control and took the set 25-18 to move within one set of the sweep.
The ThunderWolves saved their cleanest offensive volleyball for the third.
CSU Pueblo committed zero attacking errors in the final frame, recording nine kills on 24 swings for a match-best .375 hitting percentage. On the other side, Regis committed 11 attacking errors and hit -.024 as the Pack dominated the third set, 25-11, to finish off the sweep.
The Pack finished the night with six service aces, 47 digs and 10 total blocks while holding Regis to 31 kills.
Up Next
CSU Pueblo now turns its attention back to RMAC play as the ThunderWolves head north on Interstate 25 for a rivalry matchup against UCCS. The Pack and Mountain Lions will square off Saturday at 3 p.m. in Colorado Springs in the latest installment of the I-25 Rivalry.
