Falcons Dominate Nevada for Program-Record Eighth MW Win

USAF ACADEMY, Colo. -- During a dominating sweep of Nevada on Thursday (Nov. 9) night, the Air Force volleyball team captured its eighth victory of the Mountain West season – a win that set a new Academy Record for conference victories in a single year at the Division I level. The Falcons improved to 16-10 overall (8-7 MW) during the 25-19, 25-17, 25-21 sweep of the Wolfpack at Cadet East Gym.

With its eighth win of the conference season, the Falcons bettered the previous mark of seven that the program had accomplished five times – including four with head coach Keith Barnett on the sidelines.

Junior Ella Tschuor and senior Joi Harvey led the Falcons with 12 kills apiece, while freshman Annamaria Ramos added 11 – a tally the matched her career high, as the trio combined for 35 of the team's 51 kills. Harvey and junior Mac Russ each had a hand on three blocks, while Tschuor and senior Caroline Reinkensmeyer both posted a pair of service aces. Reinkensmeyer tallied 37 assists – 16 more than Nevada's team total, as the Falcons out-killed the Wolfpack 51-23 and out-hit the visitors by nearly 200 points (260-071). Sophomore Jordan Suan rounded out the Falcons' list of statistical leaders with 11 digs, while freshman Sophia Dasilva added a career-high 10.

Harvey earned the first point of the match, while two points from Tschuor (serve aces, block with Harvey) and a strike from senior Aaryn Scires helped Air Force take a quick 4-1 lead. Air Force stretched its lead to five (9-4) following a 4-1 run that included a pair of kills from Russ, but Nevada cut into that margin and eventually tied the set at 14. Harvey broke the tie with a kill and added two more scores (kill, block with Ramos) that quickly pushed the Falcons' advantage to four (18-14). Kills from Scires and Ramos put the Falcons at 20 (20-15), while kills from Ramos, Tschuor and senior Savannah Neal secured the 25-19 win.

Tschuor put down the opening point of the second set, but the Falcons found themselves playing catch-up in the early minutes, before an ace from Dasilva tied the set at six. The Wolfpack again took a two-point advantage at the 11-9 mark, before Reinkensmeyer embarked on a personal 4-0 run to give the lead back to Air Force (13-11), tallying two kills and a pair of aces during the run. Two kills from Tschuor sent Air Force into the media timeout with a 15-12 lead. Ramos added the next two Air Force points, before assisting on another Reinkensmeyer kill at the 18-14 mark. Air Force scored four of the next five, including back-to-back strike from Ramos, to take a 22-25 advantage, while Reinkensmeyer added the final two points (kill, block with Russ) to take the set by a 25-17 advantage.

The Falcons again struck first in the third set, as Scires put down the set-opening kill and teamed up with Harvey for a block that gave Air Force an early 4-1 lead. Nevada tied the set at six, before a kill from Ramos and two scores from Tschuor (kill, block with Russ) pushed the Falcons' advantage back to four (10-6). Air Force continued to stretch their lead, as an ace from Suan extended it to five (12-7) and kills from Harvey pushed it to six (13-7, 14-8), but the Wolfpack scored four-straight to pull within two (14-12). Harvey stopped the run with a kill and added another at the 16-13 mark. Russ and Ramos helped the Falcons take a 21-15 lead, while two kills from Tschuor and a match-ending strike from Harvey secured the 25-21 victory for Air Force – securing a season-sweep of the Wolfpack and its program-record eighth Mountain West win

Air Force closes out the home portion of the 2023 season on Saturday (Nov. 11), when they host Fresno State at 12:30 p.m. (MT).

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