Live Stats / Live Video

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- The ninth-ranked Christopher Newport volleyball team will hit the road for its final regular season tournament of the year as the Captains head to the Rocky Mountains for the two-day Pikes Peak Challenge hosted by Colorado College at the Reid Arena beginning on Friday.

CNU will kick off the excursion on Friday evening with a 7 p.m. ET match against UC Santa Cruz before a 9 p.m. ET battle against No. 11 Colorado College. On Saturday, the Captains will cap off the trip with a noon ET showdown with No. 22 Nebraska Wesleyan and a 4 p.m. ET rumble with Wisconsin-Superior.

For those fans unable to make it to the matches, Colorado College will provide live stats and a web stream of all of the action at CCTigers.com. Direct links to both features can be found at the top of this release and on the CNU schedule page.

The Captains enter the tournament with a 17-1 record, including a six-match winning streak. The squad also sits at a perfect 10-0 away from Newport News this season highlighted by championships at the Mary Washington and Juniata / ASICS Invitationals.

Christopher Newport is coming off of a hard-fought five-set victory over Salisbury in its Capital Athletic Conference opener on Tuesday. During the match, Ashley Rock tied the single-match program record with 12 blocks, while Hannah Miller unloaded 19 kills. Maddie McCann and Eliza Fisher also contributed double-digit kill efforts to go along with a career-high 55 assists by Rachel Conway.

Conway, the two-time reigning CAC Player of the Week, currently ranks eighth in the nation with a 10.7 assists-per-set average. A strong defensive player as well, the junior setter also sits second on the team with a 1.87 digs-per-set mark and third with 36 total blocks.

Anchoring the middle of the front line, Miller ranks eighth in the NCAA and first in the CAC with a .393 hitting percentage. She has also pumped 193 kills and tallied 55 blocks. Equally impressive on the offensive end, fellow sophomore Briana Sutton has drilled 190 kills, while McCann has 168. Fisher has made an immediate impact as well, ranking fourth on the team with 131 kills while hitting at a .269 clip.

On the back row, Brooke Moore leads CNU with a 4.03 digs-per-set average. The senior libero recently collected her 1,000th career dig and has also pumped 22 aces this season. Abby McIntyre leads CNU with 33 aces, while Rock sits second with 25.

UC Santa Cruz enters the tournament with a 10-2 record, including an eight-match winning streak. Guided by a high-octane offense, the Banana Slugs lead the nation with a 43.93 attacks-per-set average. Elena Echeverria has been the most potent hitter, roping 125 kills to go along with a team-high 170 digs. Mercedes Dupre-Roger has anchored the front line defense with an average of 1.09 blocks-per-set.

Colorado College has also been strong in 2014, compiling a 17-3 record and a spotless 8-0 mark at home. Abby Holtze has paced the Tigers with a 3.59 kills-per-set average, which leads the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference and ranks among the top-50 nationally. Kristen Liberty and Keli Sherwood also have at least 125 kills apiece, while freshman Sarah Barker is averaging 7.78 assists-per-set. Sophie Merrifield has led the defense with 324 digs.

Also ranked among the top-25 in the most recent AVCA National Poll, Nebraska Wesleyan boasts an 11-3 mark with its three setbacks coming against NAIA programs. Dominant defensively, the Prairie Wolves rank second in the nation with a 2.64 blocks-per-set average. Individually, Alyssa Stanek is the NCAA leader with a 1.64 blocks-per-set mark. On the offensive end, Katelyn Walsh has a team-high 154 kills, while Mackenzie Ashton leads the squad with 20 aces.

Wisconsin-Superior comes into the weekend with a 7-13 record. Stephanie Bandelin has been the Yellow Jackets' top performer with 232 kills, while Keely Deadrock is averaging 9.08 assists-per-set. On the defensive end, Staci Sjostrand has a team-high 37 blocks, and Chelsey Walerius ranks first with a 4.14 digs-per-set average.

Following this week's tournament, Christopher Newport will return home for a 7 p.m. battle with CAC foe Southern Virginia on October 8 at the Freeman Center.

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