GOLDEN, Colo. -- The Chadron State College volleyball team defeated Colorado School of Mines in five sets Friday, the first victory for CSC over the Orediggers since 2007.
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CSC improves to 5-3 overall and 1-0 in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play with the victory. Colorado Mines falls to 5-4 overall and 0-1 in conference play.
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The last time CSC defeated the Orediggers was in 2007 when the Eagles went 2-0 against Mines.
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Today, the Eagles fell in sets one and two 25-18 and 27-25, before winning the next three sets 25-19, 25-18 and 15-9.
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Chadron State hit .313 as a team in the victory, compared to their opponents attack percentage of .262.
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The Eagles started slow in the match, never leading in sets one and two. While trailing 9-5 in the third set, a
Kally Kirkwood kill gained momentum for CSC. Chadron State slowly chipped away at the lead and took the lead 17-16.
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After the Orediggers tied the set at 17, CSC manufactured an 8-2 scoring run to take the third set.
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Chadron State never trailed in set four to tie the match at two sets a piece.
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In set five, the two teams were tied at five a piece but a
Mayson Fago kill gave CSC the lead for good, helping them earn the match victory.
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Offensively,
Lexi Hurtado had her best match of the season to start conference play. The graduate student from Aurora, Colorado recorded 20 kills with an attack percentage of .386.
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Bella Adams, a sophomore from Pueblo, Colorado, led both teams with an attack percentage of .593 to go along with her 17 kills. Fago, a senior from Evans, Colorado, also finished in double-digit kills with 14.
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Kendyl Kirkwood, a junior from Fleming, Colorado, set a new season high with 51 assists in the victory.
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Defensively, junior
Alondra Hernandez of Provo, Utah and
Rylee Greiman, a graduate student from Windsor, Colorado both finished with double-digit digs. Hernandez finished with 21 while Greiman added 10.
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Maddison Wright, a junior from Rawlings, Wyoming set a new career high with seven total blocks to lead both teams in the victory.
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The Eagles return to action tomorrow at 4 p.m. when they face MSU-Denver, the conferences preseason favorite.
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