COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – For the second night in a row, Chadron State volleyball faced a program tied for first in the RMAC standings, and preseason projected RMAC winners UCCS proved their talent with a 25-18, 25-16, 25-22 victory over the Eagles at the Gallogly Events Center on Saturday night.
Chadron State (7-11, 1-7 RMAC) has now lost five in a row while UCCS (12-6, 7-1 RMAC) won their fourth straight.
The Eagles failed to have a player reach double-digit kills or digs, with
Gibson Beckler (eight kills) and
Avery Lacy (nine digs) leading in their respective categories. Chadron State also tallied four blocks as a team, tied for the second-fewest in a single match by CSC this season.
Beckler (eight kills),
Mataya Ward (seven) and
Kally Kirkwood (five) led the way offensively for CSC.
Rayssa Da Silva and
Jillian Donovan each hit .333 to lead the Eagles in hitting percentage. Chadron State's 100 total attack attempts were its fewest in a match in 2026.
UCCS had 43 kills to Chadron State's 30 and hit .293, the second-highest percentage of the season by a CSC opponent against the Eagles. The Mountain Lions also ended points early with 11 service aces while CSC had three (one apiece from
Naomi Starr,
Avery Lacy and
Mataya Ward).
UCCS never trailed in the first set, jumping out to a 3-0 lead. Chadron State tied at once at 7-7 after a Ward kill, Ward ace and UCCS error, but the Mountain Lions scored the next three points after that and also scored the last four points of the set to win 25-18.
In the second, Chadron State won the first point on a
Gibson Beckler kill before UCCS took the lead. With the home team leading 12-9, UCCS extended their advantage with a 4-0 run to make it 16-9. CSC responded with a 4-0 run of its own, including two kills, but the Mountain Lions went on a 6-0 run after to take a 22-13 lead, eventually winning the set 25-16.
In the third, the Eagles led early after a
Sarah Meservey kill,
Sydney Strode solo block and bad UCCS set. The home team took control again, however, with two separate 5-0 runs on the way to a 13-7 lead. The Eagles managed to tie it at 22-22 after a Meservey/Kirkwood block, but UCCS won the final three points to seal it.
Payton Tompkins, who entered with the second-most kills in the RMAC, led the way with 15 for UCCS.
Chadron State has a tight turnaround, with a home match against Black Hills State this upcoming Tuesday, October 13 in the Chicoine Center. Later on in the week, the Eagles travel to Rapid City to battle South Dakota Mines. Both matches are RMAC conference matches.
