SALT LAKE CITY - Freshman middle blocker Kim Turner led all attackers with 11 kills as the 18th-ranked University of Utah volleyball team scored a 3-0 (15-3, 15-9, 15-6) win over Denver in non-conference action at Crimson Court in Salt Lake City. With the loss, Denver finishes its 2000 season with a 19-14 record, while the Utes conclude their regular season at 22-8 and await word on their NCAA Tournament bid.
Sophomore outside hitter Julie Crockett (Colorado Springs, Colo. / Doherty HS) led the Pioneers with seven kills, while Junior setter Clarice Golesh (Lakewood, Colo. / Mullen HS) and freshman OH Jenn Karas (Granby, Colo. / Middle Park HS) each had seven digs. Freshman MB Andrea Baron (West Vancouver, British Columbia / West Vancover Secondary) had five blocks to tie for match-high honors. Utah peppered Denver with 16 kills from seven different attackers in the first game and hit .286 as a team on their way to the 15-3 win. The Pioneers were able to briefly stall the Utes with nine side-outs and a point to make it 11-3, but Denver's .000 first-game hitting percentage was too much to overcome.
The second game was a much closer affair, with the Utes clinging to a 4-2 lead for much of the start of the game. Utah pulled ahead to a 10-4 lead, but the Pioneers scored three straight points on a pair of blocks and poor Utah ball handling. Utah would pull away down the stretch with the help of some Denver attacking errors and finished off the 15-9 game with a pair of kills from freshman standout Kim Turner.
The Pioneers scored the first three points of the third game to post their first lead of the afternoon. Over the next 15 plays, the teams would trade leads twice and forge a pair of ties at 3- and 5-all. Utah jumped ahead at 7-5 and the Pioneers answered with a point at 7-6, but the Utes would score the final eight points of the match.
"Playing a ranked team like Utah at this point in the season makes it a lot easier to see the things we need to work on in the offseason," said head coach Beth Kuwata. "But this has been a very good year for us, considering the injuries we had. I would have had a tough time seeing us finishing 19-14 and winning the West Division in the Sun Belt when we lost Laurie Young and Sarah Kaye to injuries, but the best thing that came from those situations is that our freshmen got a lot of experience this year."
The Pioneers conclude their season with a host of season and career school records posted by the team. Kellie Savage's 481 kills in 2000 were the fourth-highest in school history, and her average of 3.79 kills per game was third-best. Golesh finished third all-time with her 1,363 assists this season, and her 10.73 assists per game were fourth-highest for a season. Finally, Golesh and freshman middle blocker Olympia Hughes (Casper, Wyo. / Natrona County HS) both registered excellent hitting percentages in 2000. Golesh's .323 hitting efficiency is the second-best in school history only behind sophomore MB Laurie Young's (Fort Collins, Colo. / Fort Collins HS) .364 of a year ago, while Hughes' .270 mark is now No. 6 on the charts.
Individuals weren't the only climbers of the records book; as a team, Denver shattered a school record with its 591 block assists in 2000, a full 85 more than the previous record of 506 set in 1984.
The team has much to look forward to for the 2001 season, as the Pioneers lose just one player senior outside hitter Sarah Kaye (Aurora, Colo. / Smoky Hill HS) as they return 10 players and welcome four newcomers.
DENVER VOLLEYBALLat Salt Lake City, Utah (Crimson Court)No. 18 Utah 3, DENVER 0 1 2 3DENVER (19-14) 3 9 6No. 18 Utah (22-7) 15 15 15
DENVER: Kills 28 (Julie Crockett 7); Digs 36 (Clarice Golesh 7, Jenn Karas 7); Blocks 8.0 (Andrea Baron 5); Assists 23 (Golesh 18).
UTAH: Kills 45 (Kim Turner 11); Digs 49 (Alisa Geddes 11); Blocks 11.0 (Turner 5); Assists 40 (Lucie Turkova 29).
T: 1:18. A: 502.
