COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- The ninth-ranked Christopher Newport volleyball team kicked off its trip to Colorado by splitting a pair of matches on Friday as the Captains upended UC Santa Cruz, 3-0 (25-15, 25-19, 30-28) before falling to No. 11 Colorado College, 3-1 (25-19, 25-15, 20-25, 29-27) on the first day of the Pikes Peak Challenge at Reid Arena.

During the two matches, Eliza Fisher led CNU with 24 kills and six aces. She also posted a sizzling .513 hitting percentage, including an .812 mark with 13 kills in the opener. Hannah Miller also unloaded 23 blasts to go along with 10 blocks, while Briana Sutton chimed in with 22 kills of her own.

Along with the hitters, Rachel Conway averaged 11.7 assists-per-set during the two matches, and Brooke Moore pocketed 33 digs. Ashley Rock contributed seven blocks as well.

With the split, Christopher Newport stands at 18-2 on the season. The Captains' only two setbacks have come against teams ranked in the top-15. With the win, Colorado College is now 19-3, while UC Santa Cruz sits at 10-4.

In the first set against Santa Cruz, the Captains set the tone early with an impressive run. The squad jumped out to a 10-3 lead, highlighted by three kills and a block by Miller and two kills and an ace by Fisher. Although the Banana Slugs were able to regroup and traded rallies with CNU in the middle of the frame, Fisher continued her hot start with three more darts on the way to a 20-12 advantage.

Holding an eight-point edge, Christopher Newport put Santa Cruz away quickly. Rock kicked off the late surge with a block and kill before Conway unleashed an ace, which earned set-point at 24-15. On the very next rally, Sutton added the final punctuation mark as the sophomore took a feed from Conway and drilled a shot that sealed the 25-15 triumph.

Early in the second stanza, the two teams looked evenly-matched and battled to a 6-6 draw before CNU began to inch away. Rock started the mid-set streak with a kill before Fisher and Maddie McCann showed off their defensive chops. The two standouts came through with a pair of diving digs on the far side of the court to keep a rally going before a Slug miscue handed the Captains a 9-6 edge. Later, Christopher Newport gained some breathing room after snatching seven straight points, including three aces by Fisher, to nab a 16-7 advantage.

Although UC Santa Cruz was able to respond and eventually whittled its deficit back down to three, the Captains used another late push to put the set away. Once again, CNU's defense was on full display during the run. Moore chased down a tough attack and made a tremendous out-stretched dig with her back towards the net to keep a rally alive before Conway and Rock teamed up on a block to nail down a 19-15 lead. Rock eventually teamed with McCann on another rejection to stifle the Slugs before McCann went cross-court with a blistering blast that locked up a 25-19 victory.

After securing early leads in the first two sets, the Captains showed off their comeback skills to complete the sweep in the third. Although Miller and McCann both punched a pair of quick kills for CNU, the squad found itself staring at a 10-7 deficit heading into a timeout. The stoppage did little to swing the momentum as the Banana Slugs continued to slither away and stretched their lead to four at 17-13.

With another match still on the horizon, Christopher Newport refused to go to a fourth frame and slowly clawed back into the set. Fisher pounded a kill and ace on back-to-back rallies before McCann connected on two straight blasts to even the score at 17. Although UC Santa Cruz eventually answered and secured set-point at 24-22, the Captains continued their comeback with an incredible defensive stand. Rock and McCann teamed up on back-to-back blocks to tie the stanza at 24. Later, Miller and Conway joined forces on a pair of rejections to grab match-point at 29-28.

Looking to end the marathon set, Miller came through on the offensive end as the sophomore hammered home an overpass to seal the 30-28 win.

During the match, Miller and Fisher both had 13 kills for the Captains. Fisher was especially effective as the freshman hit .812 and also pumped five aces. On the defensive end, Miller and Conway each collected six blocks, while Rock had five. Moore led the way on the back row with 11 digs, while Jessie Kolden and Rachel Close each contributed eight.

With little time to rest and recuperate, CNU returned to the court for the nightcap against Colorado College. Fittingly, in a bout featuring a pair of top-15 teams, the squads traded blows and found themselves knotted at eight despite three kills and a block by Fisher. Shortly thereafter, the Captains strung together three straight winners, including an ace by Moore, to secure a modest 14-12 lead.

Unfortunately, things turned sour after that point. The momentum quickly swung in Colorado's favor as the hosts snatched seven of the next nine rallies to take a 19-16 lead. Although Christopher Newport whistled for a timeout, the Captains could not sustain a run. Miller fired two late kills, but the Tigers picked up a 25-19 victory.

With a one-set lead, the hosts ran out to a huge 8-1 advantage in the second before CNU settled in. Working their way back into the set, the visitors used an impressive defensive run, including two blocks apiece by Rock, Fisher, and Miller, to pull back within one at 13-12. Sadly, despite the surge, Colorado never lost control. Eventually, the Tigers used a devastating stretch at the end of the frame to run away with a 25-15 win.

Refusing to go down quietly, Christopher Newport responded in the third. Fisher got the squad off to a great start with an ace and two quick kills before Sutton chipped in with a pair of darts on the way to an 8-6 edge. Later, Moore stung the Tigers with an ace and Fisher roped back-to-back kills during a seven-point run that gave the visitors a 16-10 lead heading into CC's second timeout of the frame.

Although the Tigers were able to claw their way back into the set momentarily, the Captains continued to hold them at bay. Krista Hughes smashed two straight kills before McCann put an end to the fight. The sophomore drilled Colorado College with a kill to help earn set-point before adding the final blow off a feed from Moore to ice the 25-20 triumph.

Following her strong performance at the end of the third set, McCann got CNU off on the right foot in the fourth with three fast blasts on the way to a 4-0 lead. Unfortunately, the hosts had an answer. Although Sutton found a groove with three kills, including a dart off a CC block attempt, the Tigers found a way to nail down a 16-12 advantage.

Needing to turn the tides, the Captains picked up two kills and a block by Miller to calm the waters. Later, after Colorado answered and grabbed a 22-16 lead, CNU showed incredible heart and kept fighting. Sutton got things rolling with a huge kill before Hughes added one of her own and Conway zipped an ace through the CC defense to retie the frame at 22. From there, an epic back-and-forth affair began.

Trading rallies, the two squads continued to answer one another. Fisher, Conway, and Sutton all chipped in with late kills, but the Tigers had a response to each shot. With the set dragging on, Colorado College finally put an end to the contest as the hosts strung together back-to-back kills to wrap up the 29-27 triumph.

During the contest, Sutton finished with a match-high 16 kills, while Fisher registered 11 to go along with a .304 hitting percentage. Miller also had 10 kills and Conway notched a double-double with 46 assists and 12 digs. Moore was outstanding on the back row as well, contributing 22 digs. Close also had 10 for CNU.

Christopher Newport will return to action tomorrow with another doubleheader. The Captains will open up the final day of the Pikes Peak Challenge with a noon ET bout against No. 22 Nebraska Wesleyan before taking on Wisconsin-Superior in a 4 p.m. ET showdown.

---CNU---