Despite three straight losses for Notre Dame volleyball, there was substantial optimism heading into its Colorado road trip. Two of these three losses came from tight, five-set matches to the likes of Villanova and Illinois. Salima Rockwell and her crew headed to Fort Collins, Colorado, where they faced off against Colorado State and East Texas A&M.
Following a four-set win against East Texas A&M the night prior, the Rams welcomed the Irish to Moby Arena. Close to 8,000 fans packed the arena Friday night for what looked to be an exciting matchup. However, the Rams and their home crowd were immediately silenced with six straight Irish points, resulting in a Colorado State timeout. Three of these first six points in set one were finished off by Sydney Helmers kills. The 6-foot-4 junior transfer from the University of Texas showed up in a big way against the Rams, totaling 11 kills, a season high for the junior. Colorado State never seemed to be in the first set as the Irish instilled constant pressure. An eight-to-one run by Notre Dame in the middle of the set increased the deficit to 10 for the Rams. A patented block by sophomore middle blocker Anna Bjork secured the first set for the Irish as they took it 25-12.
Set two was very much a back-and-forth affair with neither team gaining a margin of more than two until 19 points in. However, another mid-set run by Notre Dame saw Colorado State head coach Emily Kohan take a timeout as the Irish led 21-14. Bjork won the set again for the Irish — this time with a kill — and Notre Dame took a 2-0 set lead. The Irish maintained a balanced attack in set two with middle blocker Grace Langer, Bjork and outside hitter Gaerte all contributing four kills. The Irish have and will continue to lean on their sophomore class this season. Langer, Bjork and Gaerte headline the 2028 graduating class and all boast significant NCAA experience, despite just being sophomores. The three of them totaled a combined 28 kills on Friday night.
In set three, Colorado State’s urgency was apparent as it forced Coach Rockwell to take two timeouts midway through the set, and the Irish saw themselves dug in a hole. Colorado State found itself serving for the set at 24-22 before three straight Irish points, including an ace from freshman libero Maya Evans that put them back in contention for a sweep. Both teams went back and forth before a trademark Gaerte kill secured the sweep for the Irish. She totaled 14 kills on the night.
Following a sweep of the Rams on Friday, the Irish took the floor on Saturday afternoon looking to do the same against East Texas A&M. Going into the matchup against the Irish, the Lions had yet to win a match this year (0-7). The first set was very tight with no team taking a convincing lead. Despite the thin margins, the Irish were able to come away with a first-set win with a very balanced attack. At least seven Irish players had at least one kill in the opening set win.
The second set was very tight, with the Irish leading by only two in the latter stages of the set. Notre Dame senior libero Maisie Alexander served out the last two points of the set, including a set-sealing ace to increase the Notre Dame set lead to two. In the set, Gaerte posted six kills while Langer boasted four kills. The third set saw the Irish race out to a 9-2 lead, which led to an East Texas A&M timeout. The Irish maintained a comfortable lead for the entirety of the set and secured the sweep with a 25-19 third-set victory. The aforementioned Gaerte and Langer contributed 12 and seven kills, respectively. Senior outside hitter Avery Ross added 11 kills. Additionally, senior outside hitter Lucy Trump logged six service aces, a season high for any player thus far.
It was a successful trip for the Irish as they didn’t drop a set during their time in Fort Collins, Colorado. Salima Rockwell and the Irish return home to South Bend and will get some much-needed rest before seeing the Michigan Wolverines twice over the weekend, with the first match occurring in South Bend on Friday night.
