Adjectives are running out to describe how well Colorado State’s volleyball team is playing.

The Rams entered Thursday’s match having won 15 of their last 15 sets against their competition. They improved that number to 18 straight after Thursday’s matchup against Gonzaga, sweeping the match 3-0 (25-15, 25-20, 25-18). It was also the team’s sixth straight sweep.

This extends the green and gold’s win streak to 13 games and makes them a perfect 12-0 in conference play.

“I always knew the beginning of the season that we had the potential to be great,” freshman outside hitter Ella Stowell said. “We just really locked in this entire season, and not let any rankings or any outside factors affect us inside every day.”

Stowell had a team-high 13 kills in the win — the same amount she posted in CSU’s earlier season victory against the Bulldogs in Spokane on Oct. 1.

The Rams are undoubtedly the team to beat in the Pac-12. CSU has clinched hosting the first volleyball Pac-12 conference championship that the team is a part of — and the road to the top of the conference will run through Fort Collins.

“Moby Madness is special, it’s an amazing place to play,” Stowell said. “And having our home crowd and being at home for the tournament is just so special. We can’t be more thankful.”

The Rams’ play has drawn national attention. This week’s most recent AVCA poll gave CSU 21 receiving votes for the top 25. This was the fourth most votes of any team not inside the rankings. Colorado, which CSU split its two games against, is the final ranked team at No. 25.

“I think we try not to look at the numbers so much,” senior middle blocker Kekua Richards said. “Of course we want to be noticed and realized — so we’re just keeping our head down and treating every single team with as much respect as we would the next.”

The scoreboards and stat sheets did most of the talking for the Rams Thursday. They held the Bulldogs to a hitting percentage of .234 , while hitting .408 themselves.

“I’ve been on this team for four years, and I’ve never been on a run like this before,” Richards said. “I think it’s really important that we just stay as strong as we possibly can.”

The game was competitive despite CSU’s good play. Early on in the sets, there was lots of back-and-forth play. Some rallies went on for what felt like minutes.

The team in moments like these have made a point to rely on one another. 

“We’ve been all working hard to not just rely on one person,” Richards said. “Everybody gets hot on any given night, so we just want to keep it balanced.”

Richards has put together an impressive individual campaign, and added to that with a 10-kill night recording an astonishing .643 hitting percentage. The team play has been right there in her support — as it was Thursday.

When a team plays dominantly for a stretch of time, some coaches worry that their team may get stagnant. Amidst this run, head coach Emily Kohan has made sure her team continues to have a fire lit under them. 

“I still have big standards in practice,” Kohan said. “I put new goals in front of them, and we ask for new stat improvements — and I have big emotional outbursts in practice.”

Kohan views this success as something to be excited to be a part of, but knows this is just scratching the surface of what her team can do. 

“Everything that has happened is something to be proud of, but it doesn’t matter anymore,” Kohan said. “Our biggest goals are still in front of us: to win a conference championship, then to win the at-large bid in the conference tournament and then to make a run in the postseason.”

She said her team deserves “lots of credit” for having a willingness to practice hard and improve even into November. 

Toward the end of the third set, the Rams held a commanding lead. Kohan did something she usually has not this season: subbed out sophomore libero Karsyn Fetzer and gave sophomore outside hitter Halle Jameson the green jersey.

“In the event that Karsyn were to get injured or have a really off night, I really want us to be prepared for whatever lineup we need to roll out,” Kohan said.

The end of games when leading have been fun for the Rams, as was the case Thursday. Bench players scored, and their teammates erupted with joy.

“What a great culture we have that when someone’s getting subbed out, they’re cheering for the person going in,” Kohan said.

CSU will stay in Fort Collins, where Saturday they will put their undefeated conference record to the test at 12 p.m. against Boise State.