BOX SCORE

FORT WAYNE, Ind. - Fighting tooth and nail to break multiple set points, the University of Denver volleyball team's rallies fell short in the initial sets against Fort Wayne this afternoon and ended up on the losing end of a straight-set decision on the road at 27-25, 27-25 and 25-8.

"Fort Wayne had a very energized and motivated crowd tonight," said head coach Tom Hogan. "We did not respond well to the environment and we did not make the adjustments needed to be competitive in the match.

"We have less than 24 hours to prepare for our next match, so we need to reset our focus and set our sights on IUPUI."

The Pioneers (9-5, 1-1 SL) were given limited looks in the match, hitting .087 with seven team blocks and three service aces, while the Mastodons (7-9, 3-0 SL) finished with a .265 team mark, 10 team blocks and seven service aces.

Kayla Principato led Denver with eight kills and two service aces, followed by seven kills and six digs from Nola Basey, six kills, a .333 attack rate and three block assists from Ruth Okoye, and rounded out by five kills, a .300 swing percentage and two block assists from Cassie Baird.

Piyusha Boteju and Monique Domme took turns driving the offense with 15 and 13 assists, respectively, while Cassidy Rooke ended the match with 12 digs to anchor DU's back line.

Lauren Hoffmen led the Dons with 12 kills and a .435 rate, aided by nine kills apiece from Nicole Rightnowar and Somer Johnson, driven by Madison Jaqua's 31 assists.

Set One:

Denver forced 14 ties in the opening set, hitting .219 with three team blocks and three service aces, but was outpaced by Fort Wayne with a .385 rate.

Okoye tallied three kills in the set with a .500 clip, to go with two block assists, while Baird, Basey and Principato added two kills apiece.

The Dons opened up the set on a 4-1 run, but DU responded to force a tie at 5-5. The teams went back-and-forth through the remainder of the set as neither side held a lead greater than two points with the Pioneers ahead late, 22-20. Fort Wayne rallied for three quick points before Denver tied it at 23-23 and overcame two set points from the Mastodons, first at 24-23 and again at 25-24, to put the set at 25-25. DU's offense ran out of gas, unfortunately, as the Dons took the first set at 27-25

Set Two:

The Pioneers hit .114 in the set with three team blocks, while Fort Wayne was held to a .100 mark and took the set behind six blocks.

Principato led the offense with four kills and a .273 clip, followed by three kills each from Basey and Baird.

DU never held a lead in the second set after the Mastodons opened up with a 3-1 lead and kept the two-point cushion at 10-8. The Dons extended their lead to 16-11 before a 5-1 Denver run closed the gap to 17-16, leading to an 18-18 tie. Fort Wayne built the lead back up to 22-18 and eventually held a 24-21 lead, but the Pioneers rallied to break all three set points to tie the frame at 24-24. DU broke another set point to tie it at 25-25, but Fort Wayne eventually won out at 27-25.

Set Three:

DU hit -.107 in the final set with one team block, while Fort Wayne closed with a .368 swing percentage and five service aces

Basey and Principato each had two kills in the frame, while Okoye added one of her own.

Fort Wayne opened the set on an 11-1 run and never looked back, taking the match from Denver at 25-8

Up Next:

DU will remain in Indiana for tomorrow's match and will face IUPUI starting at 4 p.m. MT.

Tickets are on sale for Denver's home matches and can be found here.

Fans interested in making a donation to the volleyball program can do so by clicking here. Your contribution will make a direct impact on the success of YOUR Pioneers. Thank you in advance for your unwavering support of our student-athletes and their quest for excellence.

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