MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. - The University of Denver volleyball team (1-2) split on the final day of the Golden Gopher Invite hosted by the University of Minnesota in the Sports Pavilion. The Pioneers opened the day dropping a 3-0 (25-19, 25-16, 25-18) decision to Marquette, and then rebounded to take a 3-1 (20-25, 25-17, 25-17, 25-21) win over Stony Brook.

Freshman Alex Turgeon (Cherry Hills Village, Colo.) led the Pioneers for the day with 18 kills, while freshman Brea Muhle (Columbus, Neb.) and junior Alyssa Bonelli (Superior, Colo.) added 16 and 15 kills, respectively. Setter Julia Cawthra (Lakewood, Colo.) finished the day with 33 assists, while splitting time with senior Kresson Vreeman (Raymond, Minn.) who finished with 24 assists.

Defensively, libero Kacie Wikierak (Crystal Lake, Ill.) finished with 32 digs, while Vreeman and sophomore Lyndi Johnson (Flower Mound, Texas) both tallied 22 digs. At the net, Muhle led the way with nine blocks, while Turgeon finished with five.

"We overcame a lot this weekend," said head coach Beth Kuwata. "There were plenty of opportunities for our team to just give up, but they pulled together and continued to fight, getting the much-needed win over Stony Brook. I couldn't be more excited with the performance that we got out of our freshmen Alex and Brea because they stepped in and played like veterans."

Following the conclusion of the Invite's final match, the Golden Gopher All-Tournament team was announced with Vreeman representing the Pioneers.

The Pioneers return to action on Friday, Sept. 3 as they travel to Queens, N.Y. to take part in the St. Johns Tournament. Denver opens against Columbia at 2 p.m. MT and then faces St. Francis at 5 p.m.

- PIONEERS -