Eagles go 1-1 at Durango

Playing six sets Saturday, The Eagles took three sets against Fort Lewis College in their first game in Durango, Colorado. Following their win, Chadron faced Colorado Christian University a couple of hours later, losing to the Cougars. 

Chadron State has a record of 4-9, 3-8 in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference placing them 12th. 

“When we’re on the bus for 12 hours, it’s a little bit harder to be able to get off and be ready to play,” Head Volleyball Coach Jennifer Stadler said. 

In the first game against Fort Lewis College, Lexi Hurtado, sophomore of Aurora, Colorado, earned the most kills with 11 of 25 total attacks. Hurtado also earned points with two ace serves, and defensively, dug eight attacks. 

Rhiannon Nez, freshman of Rapid City, South Dakota, was second for the Eagles in kills with 10. She also earned a block assist and a dig. 

Breshawna Kelly, junior of Casper, Wyoming, earned 22 sets for kills while receiving nine digs on defense. Kincaid Strain, junior of Elk River, Minnesota, set up 12 kills for other teammates while contributing three digs. 

Olivia Moten-Schell, freshman of Billings, Montana, solo blocked two attacks while killing five of her 15 attacks. Amelia Berg, junior of Fort Collins, Colorado, assisted with two blocks and solo blocked once. Berg attacked 22 times, earning seven kills. 

Karli Noble, senior of Cheyenne, Wyoming, continued the volley for the Eagles with 20 digs and gaining a point with an ace serve. 

The team moved into its next game a few hours later at 2 p.m., finishing their Saturday games with a loss against Colorado Christian University in three sets. 

Hurtado returned to the second game with the most kills for the Eagles with nine. She dug seven times, assisted with a block, and even earned two sets. 

“Lex (Hurtado) has been doing a really good job of being one of our go-to hitters every match,” Stadler said. “She’s a smart hitter. She’s got a lot of different shots in her tool kit. She does a really good job for us offensively, match to match.” 

Leading the second game in blocks was Chandler Hageman, senior of Chadron, with one assist and two solo blocks. Hageman attacked six times, earning two kills. 

Moten-Schell attacked 25, killing six of those and assisted with a block. Nez assisted with two blocks, dug two attacks, and killed two of her 12 attacks. 

Setting up the volleyball for attacks, Kelly earned 14 sets and dug nine attacks. 

Strain set nine times and earned two kills of two attacks. She attack-received four times. Noble even earned a set during the game and led defensively with 10 digs. 

The Eagles will travel to Rapid City, South Dakota, to play against the Hardrockers for their last regular season game.

“We saw some really good things this past weekend that we did really well,” Stadler said. “If we can just concentrate on fixing our errors this week in practice, then I think we can be competitive with them this weekend.”