Buffaloes Capture Pac-12/Big Ten Challenge Title

BOULDER — Colorado women’s volleyball swept Iowa in the match (25-20, 25-16, 25-21) here Sunday afternoon to finish the Pac-12/Big Ten Challenge without dropping a single set.
 
The Buffaloes (5-0) were dominant offensively hitting .306 and defensively holding Iowa (2-3) to .142 and moved to 5-0 all-time against the Hawkeyes.
 
CU had three players who racked up more kills than Iowa’s leading scorer. Lexi Hadrych led all players in kills with 13 while hitting .435, while Maya Tabron had 11 kills and Meegan Hart had eight. Hart finished with an impressive hitting percentage of .538, her fourth match already hitting greater than .500.
 
Alexia Kuehl and Taylor Simpson both had good showings for the Buffs. Kuehl was a defensive force and was involved in every single one of the team’s seven blocks. Simpson made a big impact in Colorado’s win with three kills, one service ace, five digs and 33 assists. Simpson averaged more than 12 assists per set in the tournament.
 
The Buffs finished 2-0 in the challenge, taking the title based on sets lost compared to No.14 Washington who also went 2-0. Hadrych was named the tournament MVP and was joined by Hart and Simpson on the All-Tournament team.
 
Katie Lougeay averaged 5.67 digs per set in the sweep with a team-high 17 digs and also had two of the team’s seven service aces.
The Buffs will be traveling to Fayetteville, Arkansas later in the week to compete in the Arkansas Invitational.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:
SET ONE: Iowa trailed 6-4 before putting together a three-point scoring run to take a 7-6 lead. The Buffs responded quickly with a three-point scoring run of their own to take the lead again at 9-7. An unsuccessful challenge from Iowa gave Colorado a 13-11 advantage. Lougeay’s service ace forced a Hawkeyes timeout while CU led 16-12. Following a 5-0 scoring run, the Buffs held an 18-12 lead. Tabron picked up her sixth kill to give Colorado set point. CU took the set 25-20 after Hadrych’s fifth kill while hitting .625. The Buffs outhit Iowa .424 to .229 in the set.
 
SET TWO: Both teams found themselves in a close set as they traded points all the way to a 7-7 tie. Colorado led by three at 13-10 following an Iowa attack error. CU held a consistent three-point lead to 17-14 before Kuehl and Tabron combined for a block to extend the lead to four…