Falcons Drop Five-Set Heartbreaker to Colorado State

USAF ACADEMY, Colo. -- Despite the first 20-kill match in four years from senior Joi Harvey, the Air Force volleyball team dropped a tough five-setter to Colorado State this evening (Oct. 12) at Cadet East Gym. The teams split the first four sets 25-22, 18-25, 20-25, 25-19 before the Rams took a controversial 20-18 finish in the fifth.

With 20 kills on .444 hitting, Harvey became the first Falcon since Denise Ssozi (2019) to tally a 20-kill match, as she led five Falcons to double-digit scoring. Sophomore Ashley Bible and junior Ella Tschuor each tallied 13 kills, while senior Aaryn Scires and junior Mac Russ both added 10 – as the group of five combined for 66 of the team's 68 kills. Senior Caroline Reinkensmeyer, the scorer of the remaining two kills, recorded the first 60-assist match of her career (61) and her 20th career double-double with 10 digs. Sophomore Jordan Suan picked up 18 digs, while Tschuor accounted for half of the team's four aces and Russ rounded out the stat leaders with six blocks (two solo, four assisted).

Air Force jumped out to a fast 7-4 lead in the opening frame, highlighted by three points from Russ (kill, solo block, assisted block with Scires), while Tschuor held off run by the Rams to tie the set at nine. A kill and ace from Reinkensmeyer, as well as Harvey's first kill of the night, pushed the Falcons lead back to three (13-10), while back-to-back strikes from Scires pushed the Falcons' advantage to four (16-12). Harvey (kill) and Scires (solo block) added scores at the end of the set, while a kill from Scires secured Air Force's 25-22 victory.

Harvey and Bible scored the first two points of the second, but the Rams quickly responded to double-up the Falcons by a 6-3 score. Colorado State continued to hold a lead, despite seven of the Falcons' next eight scores coming from CSU errors. Bible teamed up with Russ for a block, before adding a pair of kills, but Colorado State evened the match with a 25-18 victory.

Reinkensmeyer earned the Falcons' first point of the third set (1-1), while kills from Tschuor, Harvey (two) and Russ helped the Falcons take a 7-6 lead. Despite a strike from Scires that tied the set at nine, Colorado State pushed its advantage to five at the 16-11 mark. The Falcons pulled within two (16-14), as Bible successfully defeated a triple block and served up an ace on the ensuing play, but the Rams closed on a 4-1 run to take the match lead with a 25-20 win.

The Falcons took an early 4-1 lead to start the fourth, backed by a pair of kills of Tschuor and two points from Harvey (kill, block with Scires). Back-to-back kills from Bible gave Air Force a 6-2 advantage, but the Rams pulled within one three plays later. Scires and Russ added scores, but Colorado State tied the set at nine and took the lead on the next play. A solo stop from Russ tied the set 10, while Tschuor provided an equalizing score at 12 and served eight-straight balls during a run that turned a 14-all tie into a 20-14 Air Force lead. The junior recorded two aces during the run, while Harvey accounted for four kills and a block (with Bible). CSU scored the next three points, but kills from Harvey, Bible and Russ gave Air Force the 25-19 win and tied the match at two sets apiece.

The deciding set was a back-and-forth affair that included 17 ties. Tschuor, Harvey and Russ put down kills to give the Falcons a 4-3 lead, as the teams traded the first eight points. A kill from Bible, a block from Reinkensmeyer and kills from Russ and Tschuor had the Falcons switching sides with an 8-7 lead. The Falcons pushed their lead to 10-8 off back-to-back points from Harvey (kill, block with Scires). The teams continued to trade points, before the Rams eventually took a 20-18 final.

Air Force closes out the first half of the season against its home-and-home opponents on Saturday (Oct 14) morning when it hosts Wyoming at 11:00 a.m. (MT).

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