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Women's Volleyball Sweeps UTEP In Tournament Opener
Sept. 12, 2008
SPOKANE, Wash. - The Gonzaga University women's volleyball squad rebounded from its heartbreaking loss to Washington State University earlier this week by defeating UTEP easily in the Bulldogs first match of the Gonzaga Volleyball Tournament Friday evening. The Zags, who were playing in their first home match of the season, swept the Miners 3-0 (25-18, 25-17, 25-20) to improve their record to 3-6. The loss dropped UTEP to 2-6 on the season. Gonzaga dominated all aspects of the contest. The Bulldogs held a huge 41-28 advantage in kills and an impressive 50-36 edge in digs. The Zags also held the advantage in blocks, 11-7.5. The Bulldogs were led again by Elaina Renius. The middle blocker registered her eighth double-digit kill performance of the season, finishing with a match-high 13. Renius also had five digs, two solo blocks and three block assists. The 6-4 senior is averaging nearly six blocks per contest. Freshman Denise Van de Mortel dished out 32 assists as Gonzaga had its second-best hitting night of the year, registering a .312 attacking clip. Van de Mortel also had eight digs, three blocks assists and one solo block on the night. Also adding an offensive and defensive spark for GU was sophomore Caitlin Cozad who closed out the match with 10 kills and a team-high .471 hitting percentage, along with four block assists and one solo block. UTEP's offense revolved around both Catherine Chavez and Amy Sanders. Chavez had a team-high 11 kills in the match, while Sanders added 10. The two Miners combined for 73 of UTEP's 116 total attack attempts. The Bulldogs will close out the Gonzaga Volleyball Tournament will two matches tomorrow. The Zags will face San Diego State University at 1 p.m. and then Weber State University, who defeated SDSU 3-2 in the opening match of the tournament, at 7 p.m.
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