The women’s volleyball team hosted a spring tournament last weekend, where they won the first match.
Cowgirl Volleyball hosted a spring tournament and coaches’ clinic on Saturday, winning the first of four games and splitting the final three.
The Cowgirls approached the tournament as an exhibition, a chance to learn from each other while trying new things.
“We wanted to work on some setter-middle connections, and some back row attacks,” said Wyoming head coach Chad Callihan. “Just some things we’re typically not great at we’re trying to make a bigger part of our game, and that was an area of focus for us today. We grew in some areas today, but its spring and we’re not so caught up on wins and losses; we’re more concerned with our development.”
UW hosted Eastern Wyoming, the University of Northern Colorado, Regis University and the Colorado School of Mines.
In the first games, the Cowgirls faced Eastern Wyoming and swiftly took both sets. Alongside the Cowgirls, UNC played the School of Mines and left the court with a win.
Wyoming then faced UNC in a split round. After dropping the first set, the Cowgirls found a way to win in the second frame.
The game was neck and neck until the Cowgirls pulled away halfway into play. Freshmen libero Courtney Chacon and junior middle blocker/right-side hitter Erin Kirby blocked a hit from UNC, drawing the point 13-20 to pull away. The Cowgirls cruised to victory after that.
For game three, Eastern Wyoming faced the School of Mines. The Mines took both sets in an upset win.
UW went head-to-head with the Regis Rangers next, taking the first set 25-22, and dropping the second 22-25. The game went back and forth, exchanging leads multiple times before there was any clear winner. A series of errors made by Regis allowed Wyoming to eventually escape with a win.
Wyoming rested as the Mines played Regis. Regis took the win, while UNC triumphed over Eastern Wyoming.
The final games were between UNC and Regis, and UW and School of Mines. UNC and Regis shared a split as did UW and the School of Mines.
The final drive by Wyoming was made in the second set of their final game. The last match saw the largest number of lead turnovers than any other game in the tournament. The Mines tied the game at 24-24, but the Cowgirls pulled ahead and won the set to end the tournament.
“I learned a lot,” said sophomore outside hitter Kayla Henderson. “I think today for everyone was a chance to learn about yourself and to develop. We’re focusing on the grind, and just to stay up even when we aren’t playing our best.”
Spring volleyball will see two more tournaments from the Cowgirls, the next on April 12th at Northern Colorado.
