Sometimes stats don’t tell the whole story in volleyball, but they did for most of No. 24 Colorado’s 3-1 (25-23, 26-28, 25-18, 25-22) victory over the Arizona Wildcats at McKale Center on Wednesday evening.
The stats show two teams that were very close in production. Arizona had one more kill than Colorado. Colorado had one more block than Arizona. Both teams had nine service errors, but the Wildcats had three more aces than the Buffaloes. The Wildcats also had four more digs.
The biggest difference
came down to hitting errors. Neither team was very efficient in the first two sets, but Colorado settled down in the final two. The Wildcats wrapped up with 32 attacking errors compared to 19 for the Buffaloes. UA had double-digit hitting errors in both of the opening sets.
Arizona’s best hitting percentage came in the final set, when the team hit .227. CU bottomed out at .049 in the second before rebounding to .387 in the third and .326 in the fourth.
Arizona head coach Rita Stubbs has talked about the “my bad” reactions to missed assignments in the past. She is not fond of them, and she saw too many of those reactions against the Buffaloes.
“We didn’t follow the scouting report,” Stubbs said. “We miss an assignment, and we get close, and then we make an error. Then, ‘it was my fault.’ Just poor coachability, which is very unfortunate to say.”
The biggest disappointment was the fact that Arizona let a prime opportunity slip by. The Buffaloes are a very good team that have far exceeded expectations this year, yet the Wildcats had them within their sights and couldn’t close the deal. Now, they have a short turnaround before facing another ranked team.
“The message is that we let an opportunity get past us because of everyone taking their turn having a ‘my bad’ situation,” Stubbs said. “But the reality is, we got to let it go, be ready to come back on Friday, because we get another opportunity. But at the end of the day, we had moments of things being good, but it just wasn’t continuous. It was okay, then it’s like, someone is relaxed, and then they forget, and then it’s like, ‘oh, my fault.’ …In my opinion, when people make errors in those situations, it’s because their emotions are not where they need to be. They’re focused on things that they shouldn’t be.”
The inability to keep things going early in sets was a concern.
“We picked up a little bit in the end of the third and then the fourth, but it’s too late, and that’s why we need to have a stronger offensive start right off the bat,” said senior opposite Ana Heath.
The first set couldn’t have been tighter. Both teams had 13 kills and 12 assists. Arizona led 21-18 in digs, but Colorado led 3-2 in blocks. The Wildcats were ahead 2-0 in service aces, but the Buffaloes outhit them .195 to .047.
It all came down to a few crucial mistakes at the end, which would be the story for most of the evening. Arizona led 21-18, but a service error followed by a hitting error cut the lead to one. A kill and a block by Colorado put the Buffs up by one point, then another Arizona error doubled that lead. The Wildcats tied it as 23, but CU took the final two points to go up by a set.
Set two was much the same. Both teams continued to struggle with efficiency, but Arizona was scrappy on defense. It followed the 21 digs in the first set with 19 more in the second while outhitting CU .143 to .049.
It was still a nailbiter. Once again, Arizona went up 21-18 only to have Colorado come back to tie it at 23. It took the Wildcats four set points to even the match in extra points.
Much of the Wildcats’ success in the second set came down to Stubbs’ decision to sub in Heath. The coach started the match with an extra “little,” putting defensive specialist Haven Wray in the lineup instead of an opposite. When Wray rotated to the front row, junior Britt Carlson came in. With Arizona’s other pins struggling to score, Heath’s number got called.
“When I go in, it’s typically to score,” Heath said. “So Rita was like, I put you into score, do your job, kind of thing. And then also, just picking good spots on blocking…but being aggressive from the offensive standpoint…is kind of my overall job.”
The effort of Heath and setter Avery Scoggins were bright spots for Stubbs. They were especially important because of the difficulty Jordan Wilson was having scoring.
“I was pleased with Ana going in and…offensively doing some things, and Avery being able to take some pressure off for Jordan, who was struggling to find a groove there,” Stubbs said. “And so she was able to get the ball to Ana, which was good.”
Up Next for Arizona Volleyball
No. 16 Baylor Bears (9-5, 4-2 Big 12) @ Arizona Wildcats (8-6, 2-2 Big 12)
When: Friday, Oct. 10 at 6 p.m. MST
Where: McKale Center in Tucson, Ariz.
Streaming: ESPN+
Stats: Arizona Live Stats
Wilson and Carlie Cisneros ended tied with 13 kills to lead the team. Both hit under .100.
Wilson had a double-double with 10 digs to go with her kills. She also had two aces in what was a fairly effective serving night for her. She ended with a team-high 15 points.
Cisneros added seven digs and an ace. She contributed 14 points.
Scoggins had a double-double with 45 assists and 15 digs. She also had a kill and three total blocks for 2.5 points.
The only Wildcats to hit over .300 were middle blockers Sydnie Vanek and Journey Tucker. Vanek did not start the match. Like Heath, she came in to give the team a boost and was able to provide it. She was fourth on the team with seven kills on a team-high .400 hitting percentage. She also added three total blocks, including one solo, for nine points.
Tucker tied fellow starting middle Adrianna Bridges with six kills, but she did it on a more efficient .364 hitting. She added two digs and tied Vanek and Scoggins with three total blocks. Like Vanek, Tucker had one solo block.
Arizona needs to rise to the occasion on Friday when No. 16 Baylor comes to town. The Wildcats are still trying to get their first win against a ranked team this season. Last year, they had two. Stubbs is more worried about whether they do the things they talk about, though.
“Rankings really doesn’t mean a lot to us,” she said. “At the end of the day, we got to control our side of the court, and then we can worry about what others do. But we know that they’re going to run balls through the middle of the court, and that’s where their strength is. And the outside hitters have some pretty strong tendencies. And in my mind, it is how coachable we are. We need to be able to do those things, and you got one day to be able to digest it and do it.”
Arizona is now 8-6 on the season and 2-2 in Big 12 play. Colorado improves to 14-2 overall and 5-0 in conference. Baylor will come to Tucson with a 9-5 overall and 4-2 league record after being swept by Arizona State on Wednesday.
