Sometimes, it all just clicks.
Colorado State volleyball looked strong on Thursday against the South Dakota Coyotes, winning 3-0 (25-17, 25-14, 25-19).
USD began the first set keeping pace with CSU, but ultimately the battle-tested Rams were too much. The Rams dominated the flow of the game, notching a hitting percentage of .302 while holding South Dakota to .073.
“I challenged the team before the match to put together a complete match,” head coach Emily Kohan said. “We played a lot of good volleyball in sets and in stretches, but sweeps are hard to come by. You feel really good when you play a complete, flow-state match, and I was really proud that we were able to do that.”
On all sides of the court, the Rams proved to be the better team.
“Our team talked a lot about our unity. We had a lot of players off the bench come in and play really well, and it was just a collective team effort win. So it was a really nice, polished game,” senior middle blocker Eve Wilson said.
Wilson notched seven kills and added a season-high hitting percentage of .600. Her offensive attack was supported by teammate Sofia Zabjek, who recorded a team-high eight kills — and also a season high for herself.
“Our offense was clicking on all five cylinders,” Kohan said. “I thought Sofia Zabjek did really great as an opposite tonight, and the regular four were also vibing, and that makes us really hard to stop come postseason if all five of them are hot.”
The Rams entered the season as the No. 1 team in the Pac-12 coaches poll, and the offense lived up to that expectation Thursday night.
After some close matches with ranked teams like Southern Methodist University and North Carolina, the experience seemed to have paid off.
“Sometimes it’s hard to see the trees through the forest of playing a ranked team,” Kohan said. “(We think) are we good, or what do we need to work on? I am just really proud.”
The tough losses against top-tier teams may have sparked the Rams, starting with Thursday’s sweep.
“I think the loss against UNC we kind of bounced back from that,” sophomore libero Karsyn Fetzer said. “I thought that was really good that we can come back and still perform the best, and tonight we really showed that, and I think everyone contributed. I thought that was a great win.”
That collective effort extended to the Rams’ attack, as a season-high 10 players recorded at least one kill.
“We’re super deep, and we’ve emphasized a lot just being very well-rounded,” Wilson said. “It’s not going to be you stop one kid … because then we’re like, we have another one.”
Depth continues to be a theme of this year’s campaign. With a 2-0 lead entering the third set, Kohan was able to go even deeper into the bench.
“My favorite part of the night was watching our bench celebrate when those players went in and did a really good job,” Kohan said. “We have great chemistry, great team unity and everybody was supporting everyone.”
The Rams now face a quick turnaround as they prepare for a busy weekend with UC Santa Barbara coming to town before an immediate trip to Laramie to face Wyoming.
The efficiency of their win, they believe, will serve well with regard to rest.
“One of the great benefits of playing a deep roster is that we aren’t too toasted for tomorrow,” Kohan said. “Because UCSB is a really good team.”
UCSB and CSU square off at 6 p.m. Friday, Sept. 11, in an Ag Day matchup — an occasion for which the Rams will wear their pumpkin-orange jerseys.
