No. 23 Colorado had the kind of night that showed both what it can do and what still needs tightening up.
The Buffaloes grabbed the first set and pushed No. 11 Arizona State deep into the fourth, but the Sun Devils finished stronger and handed Colorado a 25-23, 19-25, 18-25, 25-27 loss Friday night at Desert Financial Arena in Tempe, Ariz.
The result dropped Colorado to 10-4 overall and 2-3 in Big 12 play. Arizona State moved to 12-3 and 3-1 in conference action.
There was still a milestone worth celebrating in the middle of the loss. Defensive specialist Peyton Neal picked up her 1,000th career dig on her third dig of the match. Setter Jenna Ylivainio also turned in a huge all-around effort, finishing with a career-high eight blocks and her fifth double-double of the season on 28 assists and 12 digs.
"We did enough tonight on the serving and defensive side to give ourselves an opportunity to win this match," Head Coach Jesse Mahoney said. "Our side out game struggled. We had enough in-system looks, but couldn't put the ball away at a high enough rate."
Colorado started fast and looked sharp in the opener. Kills from Ines Losada, Ana Burilovic and Lily Dwinell helped the Buffs keep pace early, and a block from Cayla Payne and Dwinell tied things at six. Avery Bolles sparked Colorado from the service line, Burilovic added another kill, and Payne and Losada combined on a block to put the Buffs ahead 12-9.
The lead held as Maria Splawska added a block and Losada served up an ace for a 16-13 edge. With Losada back at the line, Colorado rattled off four straight points to stretch the margin to six. Arizona State answered with a 3-0 burst, but Burilovic stopped it with a kill, and Colorado stayed in front 22-18 before Burilovic finished off the set with her fifth kill of the frame.
Arizona State answered in the second set. Colorado opened with a 4-0 run, with Payne scoring three of those points on two blocks and a kill, but the Sun Devils quickly responded with a 5-0 run. Splawska then put down a kill to bring the Buffs level at six.
The set stayed tight, and Colorado reclaimed a 14-11 lead behind a block from Ylivainio and Payne plus a Burilovic kill. But Arizona State flipped the set again with a 7-0 run.
Burilovic kept Colorado alive with another kill as the Buffs trailed 19-15, then Colorado mounted a 3-0 push capped by a Losada kill to get within one. The Sun Devils, though, closed with a final 6-0 run to take control of the match.
Colorado showed more fight in the third. After falling behind early, the Buffs moved ahead 6-4 on blocks from Losada and Splawska and kills from Dwinell and Splawska.
Arizona State then seized momentum with a 4-0 run and built a seven-point lead. Burilovic answered late with back-to-back kills, but the Sun Devils held that cushion the rest of the way.
The fourth set gave Colorado one last chance to extend the match, and it nearly did. Ylivainio helped settle the group with three quick assists to tie the set at five.
After Arizona State nudged ahead, Dwinell and Splawska delivered kills to keep Colorado within one at 11-10. A long rally ended with a block from Payne and Ylivainio that pulled the Buffs closer, and Payne added another kill to make it 17-14.
Ylivainio then slipped into the front row for a tip kill, and a block from Splawska and Dwinell kept Colorado within one. Dwinell tied the set at 22 with a kill, and a Burilovic-Payne block evened it again at 24. Arizona State, though, had the final answer and closed out the match.
Burilovic led Colorado with 15 kills, six digs, two blocks and an ace. Dwinell added 10 kills and two blocks while hitting .280.
Payne finished with 10 blocks and four kills. Neal had six digs to go with the career milestone.
Colorado and Arizona State matched each other with five aces and 15 blocks apiece. The loss also extended Colorado’s slide against the Sun Devils to six straight matches.
And when the Buffs win the first set, they are now 10-1 on the season. Dwinell was especially efficient in the opener, posting zero errors and hitting .667.
In Other News...
No. 24 Colorado Puts Its Home Streak On The Line Against Kansas
Colorados 3-0 win over Baylor did more than keep the Buffs rolling. It pushed the No. 24 team into the program record book with a new mark for consecutive home wins, and it also preserved a perfect 8-0 home record heading into an Oct. 11 visit from Kansas. The Buffs have been especially tough to break down in Boulder, stacking up eight shutouts already, with freshman goalkeeper Brooke Goerish collecting her fifth solo shutout in the process.
Kansas arrives with plenty of momentum of its own, having posted three shutout wins in its last four games and leaning on midfielder Jillian Gregorski to drive the attack. For Colorado, the challenge is as much about maintaining the standard it has built at home as it is about handling a Jayhawks side that has recently made life difficult for opponents. The matchup has all the ingredients of a test between a team protecting a streak and another trying to spoil it. [Read more 🡒]
Colorados Bye Week Could Expose Problems Deion Sanders Must Fix
With Colorado on a bye, Deion Sanders gets a rare chance to step back and study the road ahead instead of worrying about the next snap. The Buffaloes are expected to keep a close eye on Utah, Oklahoma State and Kansas State, using the week off to gather a better feel for the opponents waiting in the weeks ahead. It is the kind of pause that can be valuable for a team still sorting out its own identity on both sides of the ball.
What makes this stretch especially useful is that each of those upcoming opponents offers a different kind of test, from offensive tempo to defensive pressure to the little details that can swing a game plan. Colorados staff is looking for clues on where the Buffaloes need to tighten things up, particularly in how they handle matchups on offense and contain them on defense. The bye week may be quiet on the schedule, but for Sanders it is also a chance to spot the problems that will matter most once play resumes. [Read more 🡒]
Colorados QB Reset Is Raising A Bigger Concern For Buffs Fans
Colorados offense is in the middle of a reset, and Julian Lewis is at the center of it. Brennan Marions Go-Go system asks the quarterback to be part of the ground game as much as the passing game, which is why Lewiss fit has drawn so much attention. The issue is not simply about one player trying to learn a new scheme. It is about whether the Buffaloes have the right structure in place to make the system work at all.
Lewis has been trying to adapt, but the broader concern for Colorado fans is that the offense keeps exposing the same limitations. If the quarterback position is not supplying the run threat Marion needs, the entire design starts to lose its edge. And with coaching decisions and team performance already under the microscope, the Buffs are left weighing whether this is a short-term adjustment or a deeper problem that still needs a fix. [Read more 🡒]