DENVER, Colo. – True freshman Vanessa Washington recorded ten kills at .563, North Dakota volleyball claimed the opening set 25-22, but Denver controlled the remainder of the match, using several runs through the middle portions of the action, to top the Hawks in four sets on Saturday afternoon from inside Hamilton Gymnasium. The loss drops UND to 9-15 overall and 2-11 in Summit League action with three regular season matches remaining.
 
It was front line defense early and it was service line success late for North Dakota in the opening set. The Hawks registered five blocks in the first 22 points of the frame as the effort kept the visitors at pace with the Pioneers who led 12-10 midway through the first set. DU stayed in front and carried a 19-15 advantage before the Hawks used a trio of aces on a 6-2 run to even the frame at 21. Sophomore Lauren Perugini delivered back-to-back point-scoring serves as the 17^th and 18^th UND points, while sophomore Teagan Timperley's ace tied the match. Moments later, Perugini and Washington, who had combined on several defensive stops in the set's early going, turned to the attack as both terminated to give the Hawks the 25-22 victory.
 
The Hawks moved as close as 8-6 in set two, before the Pioneers rode a .484 attack clip (18-4-33) along with two aces and two blocks to win the second frame by seven points. UND's attack effort dipped slightly in set two (.259 to .226). DU used an 8-3 run to lead 16-9 in the first of two sets that the host would win 25-18.
 
Hawks opened up set three with a 4-0 response, before DU scored the next five points to take the lead nine points in. With the action even at 8-8, the two sides traded points down through a 12-12 tie, before UND used a kill by junior Katy Riviere and a combo block by Vanessa Imoh and Jarolin de los Santos Lugo to take a 14-12 lead. The Pioneers used runs of 5-0 and 6-0 run to pull away in set three.
 
The final frame was back-and-forth again in the early going with the Hawks building a small 3-0 lead, Denver answering to tie the set at 4-4 and then grabbing a 9-5 lead. UND responded and pulled within 9-8 of the deficit, but the Pioneers again manufactured a mid-set run doubling up the Hawks 10-5 to lead 19-13 before closing out the match on a 6-2 advantage.
 
The Hawks return to Grand Forks for its final two home matches this season. UND welcomes Kansas City into the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center on Thursday, November 11. It will be Military Appreciation Night inside BESC. First serve is set for 7 p.m. The Roos knocked off North Dakota in four sets in Kansas City on September 28. The action can be seen on the Summit League Network and live stats will be available at FightingHawks.com.
 
Postgame Notes

• Five Hawks recorded five or more kills with Washington recording ten for her third match this season with double-figure kills. She hit .563, which is a career-best effort in matches with ten or more attempts. She added three blocks
• Katy Riviere followed with nine kills at .296. She added three assists and three digs. Jarolin Santos Lugo added seven kills and Vanessa Imoh chipped in with six. Lauren Perugini recorded five with five block assists and three aces
• UND recorded ten blocks in the loss. It is the seventh match this season with double-digit denials.
• Santos Lugo led UND with seven block assists: her fourth match this season with seven or more. She finds herself just four blocks and one point-scoring serve away from becoming the first player in UND's DI era to register 100 blocks and 30 aces in a single season
• The Hawks reached eight aces in a match for the sixth time this season
• Izzie McCormick led the Hawks with ten digs
• Hornyak recorded eight digs and is now 48 digs away from 1,000 for her career
• Hornyak added an ace to open scoring in set four. That point-scoring serve is the 80^th of her career and makes her just the fourth DI Hawk to reach 80 aces in a single season.
• With 17 assists on the afternoon, Norris moved 30 helpers away from reaching 2K for her career
• UND's set one win marks the 12th time that the Hawks have claimed the first frame this season

How It Happened
 
Set 1: UND, 25-22
Set 2: DU, 25-18
Set 3: DU, 25-18
Set 4: DU, 25-15
 
For more information on North Dakota volleyball, visit FightingHawks.com or follow on social media @UNDvolleyball.