GRAND FORKS, N.D. -- The University of North Dakota volleyball team dropped a 3-0 (25-22, 27-25, 25-17) to Denver on Thursday evening at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center in Grand Forks, N.D. 

UND (12-14, 9-6 Summit League) just couldn't quite get it going on a cold and snowy evening, hitting only .060 while the Pioneers (17-10, 11-5 Summit League) finished with a .252 hitting percentage in the win. 

Ashlyn Olson led the Fighting Hawks with nine kills while Paige Barber finished right behind her with eight kills on 21 swings. Elizabeth Norris notched another 20-assist match to pace the hosts while Peyton Sewell also reached double figures with 10. Korney Carney was the lone NoDak player to finish with 10-plus digs, recording 12. 

The first set saw both teams struggling to grab a lead, with the frame seeing four lead changes and a match-high 14 ties. Denver took a pair of three-point leads in the middle portion of the set, but the Fighting Hawks responded both times with a 3-0 run to even the match at the media timeout. After a Norris kill put the hosts in front, 21-20, Denver answered with five of the next six points to claw out a 25-22 victory in the opening set and a 1-0 lead.

In the second frame, it was the Pioneers who jumped out to a pair of early leads, but UND again showed fight on its home floor with a 9-3 scoring run to turn an 11-7 deficit into a 16-14 lead. The Fighting Hawks kept themselves in front, earning three chances at a set point with a 24-21 lead; however, DU again embarked on a 6-1 run to flip the frame to a 27-25 victory and a 2-0 advantage heading into the intermission. 

Denver was able to close out the match with a 25-17 triumph in the third set to finish off the sweep. 

North Dakota returns to action on Saturday for the final home game of the regular season against Omaha at 11 a.m. from the Betty. 

Postgame Notes

• Thursday's match stopped a streak of five straight matches going the distance for UND
• UND finished with five service aces compared to just one for DU, led by Maddie Lipetzky's two
• Denver led with 10 blocks while UND tallied just six
• DU hit .252 for the match and held the Hawks to .060
• The Hawks were held to just a 52.5 sideout percentage in the match 

How It Happened

• Set 1: DU 25, UND 22
• Set 2: DU 27, UND 25
• Set 3: DU 25, UND 17