Aug. 31, 2001

Box Score

EAST LANSING, Mich. - Senior outside hitter Kellie Savage (Arvada, Colo. / Arvada West HS) led all players with 14 kills as the University of Denver volleyball team came back to register a 3-1 (22-30, 30-22, 30-22, 30-21) win over Auburn in the L&L Food Centers / Michigan State Volleyball Classic at Jenison Field House.

Sophomore right-side hitter Olympia Hughes (Casper, Wyo. / Natrona County HS) added 11 kills and a team-high 10 digs for her first double-double of the season, and senior setter Clarice Golesh-Burch (Lakewood, Colo. / Mullen HS) had 43 assists to lead the Pioneers (1-0) to their first season-opening win since 1999.

The Tigers (0-2) took the first game by taking advantage of passing troubles from the Pioneers. As a result, Denver hit -.097 in that first game as Auburn jumped to a 20-7 lead. The Pioneers would make a comeback, yet the Tigers made a final press in winning game one, 30-22.

In the second game, the Pioneers dramatically improved their passing and it showed in the statistics and on the court as Denver raced to an 8-3 lead. Auburn came back and the teams tied the score at 13-all before the Pioneers soon went on an 8-0 run to put the game out of reach and win, 30-22.

The Pioneers' blocking corps started to take over the match midway through the third game, registering 10 of their 13.5 team blocks in the final 1-1/2 games. Denver had 17 kills to Auburn's 10 in the third game, and out-hit the Tigers .256 to .000 in winning the third game by the same 30-22 score.

Denver continued its dominance at the net in the deciding game, winning 30-21 to close out the victory. Sophomore Andrea Baron (West Vancouver, British Columbia / West Vancouver HS), fresh off her bronze medal-winning performance at the Canada Games, led all players with seven blocks.

The match marked the competitive return to the court for sophomore middle blocker Laurie Young (Fort Collins, Colo. / Fort Collins HS), who separated her shoulder 11 months ago, as well as the collegiate debut of freshman outside hitter Kylie Gilmore (South Jordan, Utah / Bingham HS).

"From a mental standpoint, it's always good to get the first win of the season," said head coach Beth Kuwata. "You could say we had significant first-game jitters, we were a little too over-aggressive in how we were playing, but we got better as the match went along. We're developing into a good team, the returners have improved, and the freshmen are getting the experience they need to adjust to the college game."

The Pioneers return to action later this afternoon at 6 p.m. EDT when they face Western Michigan, a 3-2 winner against Dayton earlier today.

DENVER VOLLEYBALLat East Lansing, Mich. (Jenison Field House)DENVER 3, Auburn 1        1   2   3   4DENVER (1-0)    22  30  30  30Auburn (0-2)    30  22  22  21
DENVER: Kills 57 (Ke. Savage 14, Hughes 11, Karas 10), Digs 45 (Hughes 10),Blocks 13.5 (Baron 7), Assists 45 (Golesh 43).AUBURN: Kills 45 (Buckert 9), Digs 40 (Snowden 13, Hastings 11), Blocks 4(Boyd 3), Assists 42 (Keck 39).T: 1:48. A: N/A.