BOULDER, Colo. -- After rallying for a 3-1 (24-26, 25-21, 25-22, 25-19) win to open play Saturday against host Colorado, the Northern Arizona volleyball team cruised to a 3-0 (25-16, 25-20, 25-17) sweep of Cornell to go 3-0 for the weekend and win the Omni Hotels Colorado Volleyball Classic.
The Lumberjacks improved to 6-0 on the season and won their second nonconference tournament of the year, extending their impressive nonconference winning streak to 15 matches dating back to last season.
"We passed fabulous all weekend long, so that allowed us to be in our offense the whole time," said NAU head coach Craig Choate. "They should be feeling good, because everybody contributed. They should be happy and confident as a group."
Freshman Janae Vander Ploeg had 11 kills against Cornell after posting career highs of 21 kills and 12 digs for her second consecutive double-double against Colorado. Playing for the first time as a collegian in her home state, Vander Ploeg averaged 3.91 kills and 2.45 digs per set during the tournament while hitting .242. Sophomore Sydney Kemper hit .396 for the tournament and averaged 2.27 kills and 1.18 blocks per set while senior Kelli Dallmann contributed 3.73 kills and 2.82 digs per set to lead NAU to a 3-0 mark in Boulder.
"She was just a rock," Choate said of Vander Ploeg. "She passed well and hit well, and even when the numbers weren't fabulous it was all good. Janae just had a fabulous weekend."
NAU made quick work of Cornell in the first set, building a double-digit lead early at 18-8. Despite being outhit in the opening stanza, the Lumberjacks had a comfortable lead throughout the set en route to a 25-16 win. Action was much closer in the second, as the score evened up at 19-19. The Lumberjacks would pull away late, though, closing on a 6-1 run and consecutive kills by Kemper to take a 2-0 lead.
NAU jumped out to a 7-1 lead in the third set and never looked back. The Big Red climbed to within four points at 20-16, but the Lumberjacks got a kill from Dallmann, capitalized on three Cornell attack errors, and clinched the tournament on a kill by freshman Payton Bock to claim the set 25-17.
NAU outhit Cornell .242-.122. The Lumberjacks have allowed only one team (CSU Bakersfield) to hit above .200 through six matches this season.
In Saturday's opener against Colorado, NAU rallied from a first-set loss to win for the third time in four matches. Vander Ploeg, Dallmann and sophomore Kalee Kirby each tallied double-doubles, with Kirby totaling a career-high 51 assists. Kemper hit .421 with 10 kills and five blocks as NAU outhit Colorado .217 to .188 and had a 67-57 advantage in digs.
A very competitive first set established the tone for the match. A quick 6-1 start for the Buffaloes forced an early NAU timeout, but the Lumberjacks would rally back to even the score at 8-8. Neither team would lead by more than three points for the remainder of the set, with Colorado eventually taking a 24-22 lead. NAU withstood a pair of match points to level the set at 24-24, but a Colorado kill and an NAU attack error gave the home team the opening set.
NAU took control of the second set early, jumping to a 3-0 lead and extending it to a 10-5 advantage. The Buffaloes hit a match-low .104 for the set, and NAU led for the duration, maintaining an advantage as large as seven point and closing on a block by Kemper and Kirby to take the set 25-21.
The third set would return to the back-and-forth pattern of the first, with the teams trading leads before Colorado created some separation with a 17-12 cushion. NAU chipped away at the deficit and eventually evened the score at 21-21 following a 9-4 run. Tied at 22-22, the Lumberjacks got two kills from Vander Ploeg and clinched the set on a Colorado attack error, setting up the win.
