October 25, 2006
Texas A&M?â„¢s Sarah Ammerman had a career-high 20 kills and Mary Batis added 18, but it wasn?â„¢t enough as the Aggies fell to Colorado, 25-30, 30-20, 30-28, 22-30, 15-6, in front of 1,148 at G. Rollie White Coliseum.
With the loss, A&M falls to 10-10 overall and 3-9 in the Big 12 Conference. Colorado extends its winning streak to three, its longest in Big 12 play, and improves to 12-7 and 8-4 despite being out-hit, .220 to .207, and out-blocked, 12.0 to 11.5 in the match.
?I do think we have a lot of talent and we are better than what we showed tonight,? A&M coach Laurie Corbelli said. ?When I have seen this group play well, I expect that more often than it is happening. That is where my disappointment is. We didn?â„¢t even measure up to our average, in Game 5 especially.?
After splitting the first two games, the Aggies appeared to have the momentum as they built a 27-22 lead in Game 3. The Buffaloes refused to back down and rallied for five consecutive points to tie the score for the first time since 7-7. Ammerman ended the run with a kill to put the Aggies ahead, 28-27, but Amber Sutherland came back with three consecutive kills to clinch the 30-28 come-from-behind victory for the Buffs.
In Game 4, A&M scored four straight points to open a 6-4 lead. The Aggies never trailed the remainder of the game. A&M rode a four-point run to build its biggest lead at 26-17. Although Colorado got back within 28-22, the Aggies refused to let this game slip away. A&M came out of a timeout and got kills by Batis and Kelsey Bryant to win the game, 30-22, and force a fifth and deciding game.
Colorado immediately seized the momentum in Game 5, quickly jumping out to an insurmountable 7-1 lead as the Aggies committed costly errors. The Buffs hit .500 in the 15-6 win, while A&M struggled and was held to a -.083 hitting efficiency in the final frame.
?We just had some unfortunate things happen early that just shook the team up a little bit,? Corbelli said. ?I didn?â„¢t think that they gave us a tough ball to deal with. I thought that we had a major letdown. It either comes from trying too hard, being a little too nervous, all the little things that are just not going to help. The errors just added to the frustration.
?There are so many freshmen on the floor, and for them to hang with this kind of a team for that long was commendable.?
In addition to kills, Batis and Ammerman, both freshmen, reached double figures in digs with 19 and 17, respectively. Freshman libero Zanny Castillo added 11 digs, and freshman setter Jola Kelner, who was making only the second start of her career, posted a career-high 53 assists.
Kelly Stanton led A&M in blocks with six, and Christi Hahn added five blocks while also pitching in 11 kills.
Sutherland led Colorado with 20 kills and also added 14 digs. Mallori Gibson posted 16 kills, and Lauren Schaefer also reached double-digit kills with 12. Kristen Karlik led the Buffs in digs with 20, and Callie Webster pitched in 17.
The Aggies hit the road Saturday to take on the 20th-ranked Oklahoma Sooners in Norman. Match time is at 7 p.m. at McCasland Field House.
Short Box
Colorado def. Texas A&M 25-30, 30-20, 30-28, 22-30,15-6
Colorado (12-7, 8-4 Big 12) (Kills-aces-blocks) - Sutherland, Amber 20-21; Gibson, Mallori 16-1-2; Schaefer, Lauren 12-0-4; Buth, Alex 6-4-3; Bossow, Lara 6-0-4; Zimmerman, Austin 6-0-3; Nu'u, Ashley 4-0-5; Karlik, Kristen 0-2-0; Totals 70-9-11.5. (Assists) - Nu'u, Ashley 58. (Dig leaders) - Karlik, Kristen 20; Webster, Callie 17; Sutherland, Amber 14; Buth, Alex 9; Gibson, Mallori 9.
Texas A&M (10-10, 3-9 Big 12) (Kills-aces-blocks) - Ammerman, Sarah 20-4-2; Batis, Mary 18-0-4; Hahn, Christi 11-2-5; Stanton, Kelly 9-0-6; Bryant, Kelsey 6-0-3; Kelner, Jola 1-1-4; Castillo, Zanny 0-1-0; Totals 65-8-13.0. (Assists) - Kelner, Jola 53. (Dig leaders) - Batis, Mary 19; Ammerman, Sarah 17; Castillo, Zanny 11; Kelner, Jola 8.
Site: College Station, TX (G. Rollie White Col.)
Date: Oct 25, 2006 Attend: 1148 Time: 2:15
Referees: Michael Blalock, Carlos Rodriguez