GOLDEN, Colo. -- No. 22 Washburn opened its season with six straight set victories en route to sweeps over Colorado Christian and South Dakota Mines in day one of the Oredigger Volleyball Classic.The Ichabods will take on Davenport and Valdosta State on Saturday in the final day of the tournament.
With the first win of the day, head coach Chris Herron reached career victory number 700 at the Division II level, becoming the seventh active DII coach to reach that mark.
Match 1: Washburn 3, Colorado Christian 0
Washburn began the day with a three-set affair, dispatching of the Cougars 25-20, 25-19 and 25-18 in the final set.
After starting the match down 3-0 the Ichabods would eventually take a 6-5 lead on an ace by Sydney Conner. They held onto that lead the rest of the way, using a 4-0 burst in the middle of the set to create separation. Alex Dvorak led Washburn with five kills in the 25-20 opening frame.
Colorado Christian took an early lead again in the second set. They remained in front until three straight kills by Ichabod hitters put them in front 12-11. Both teams traded the lead back-and-forth through the middle of the set. A 5-0 run by Washburn capped off on a kill by Austin Broadie provided a 25-19 victory and 2-0 match lead.
The Cougars led 4-2 early in the third set before a 9-0 Ichabod rally, the longest for either team on the day, took control of the set. A 5-0 run that included two kills by Brynne Topolski pushed the lead to double figures at 16-6. Washburn would finish out the match by holding Colorado Christian to just a .04 hitting percentage in the third set to win 25-18.
For the match Washburn out-hit the Cougars .211 to .86 while each team managed 33 kills. Colorado Christian managed more assists, 32-30, while the Ichabods shined defensively leading 52-43 in digs and 12-4 in blocks.
Alex Dvorak had eight kills and hit .533 on offense while making five blocks on the defensive side. Corinna McMullen registered a double-double with 15 assists and 11 digs while Taylor Rottinghaus scooped 12 digs.
Connelly Kilgore led the Cougars with 11 kills and Krista Traynor had 32 assists.
Match 2: Washburn 3, South Dakota Mines 0
Washburn finished with its most lopsided set of the day as they took down South Dakota Mines in three sets, 25-19, 25-21 and 25-7 to wrap up the day.
It was a slow start in set one for the Ichabods as they fell behind 9-3. A block from Dvorak and Brynne Topolski sparked a 10-1 run that put them in front 13-10. The Hardrockers were able to battle back, going in front 17-16, but a late 7-1 burst pushed Washburn to 25 points on another block by Topolski and Dvorak.
Next set it was Washburn that jumped out in front, leading 8-0 with five points coming on the defensive side. Back-to-back kills by Broadie in the middle of the set extended the lead to 17-9 as the Ichabod offense churned to a tune of a .447 hitting percentage in the set. A kill by Bella Limback ended the set at 25-21.
After leading just 5-3 early on in the third set Washburn took South Dakota Mines apart with a 10-0 run. Half the points in the streak came as a result of defensive pressure by the Ichabods, as they held the Hardrockers to a –138 hitting percentage as a team in the third set. The offense never got going as Washburn cruised to a 25-7 win capped off by back-to-back kills by Sydney Buscher to end the match.
It was a lopsided hitting effort with the Ichabods leading .385 to .082 along with a 44-29 advantage in kills. Assists also went big to Washburn, 43-27, with a 39-34 edge in digs and 7-2 margin in blocks.
Keilah Rivers and Brynne Topolski each led the way with nine kills, a career high for Rivers who also tied a team-high with nine digs. Shannon Frakes set a new career best with 19 assists while serving a pair of aces.
