DENVER – Led by a 14-kill, five-block performance by junior Faimie Kingsley (Brooklyn, N.Y.) the University of Denver volleyball team (9-12, 6-3 SBC) swept the Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks (9-9, 3-5 SBC) on Sunday afternoon in Hamilton Gymnasium. The Pioneers won 25-16, 25-14 and 25-20.

“I thought we played really well in sets one and two, but we did the most learning in set three,” said head coach Beth Kuwata. “Our passers [Lyndi and Kate] did a great job of distributing the ball and that provided us with good offensive rhythm throughout the match. I am so proud of the way they battled back in set three because we’ve been in similar situations this season where the end result has not gone our way.”

 

 

Along with Kingsley’s performance, senior Alyssa Bonelli (Superior, Colo.) finished with nine kills and a team-high .600 hitting percentage to go along with four blocks. Redshirt senior setter Julia Cawthra (Lakewood, Colo.) led the way with 35 assists, while sophomore Colleen King (Steamboat Springs, Colo.) led the team with 11 digs, while also finishing with four kills and three blocks.

Also contributing defensively were freshman Kate Acker (Waukesha, Wis.) and junior Lyndi Johnson (Flower Mound, Texas) with 10 digs a piece.

After taking sets one and two in convincing fashion, the Pioneers struggled to regain the momentum after the intermission as the Warhawks led by as much as four points midway through the set. With the Warhawks holding onto a comfortable 18-14 lead, the Pioneers mounted a comeback sparked by a solo block by Bonelli to eventually tie the set 19-19, forcing ULM to call a timeout.

Coming out of the break, the Pioneers grabbed the next point off a block from redshirt freshman Cassie Ronda (Chandler, Ariz.) and Kingsley. The Warhawks grabbed the next point to tie the set at 20 all, but Kingsley secured four of the final five points for the Pioneers off two kills and two blocks to seal the win.

Up next, the Pioneers travel to Troy, Ala., to take on the Troy Trojans on Friday, Oct. 21 at 6 p.m. MT. Denver continues its Alabama trip on Saturday against South Alabama in Mobile at 6 p.m. MT.

Visit DenverPioneers.com for the most comprehensive coverage of Denver volleyball, as well as all of DU’s 17 athletic programs.

 

-PIONEERS-