No. 23 Colorado Reverse Sweeps Kansas State

Sunday, October 11

Boulder, Colo.

1 p.m.

Colorado

12-4,3-3Big 12

Kansas State

9-5,1-5Big 12

Team	1	2	3	4	5	Final F
Kansas St.	25	28	22	22	10	2
Colorado	21	26	25	25	15	3

October 11, 2026 | Volleyball

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By: Peighton Lemp, Athletic Communications Student Assistant

BOULDER — No. 23 Colorado Volleyball reverse-swept Kansas State for a Sunday afternoon win at the CU Events Center.

Colorado fell in the first two sets before taking the final three (25-21, 28-26, 25-22, 25-22, 15-10). With the win, CU advances to 12-4 on the season and 3-3 in the Big 12. Kansas State falls to 9-5 and 2-4 in Big 12.

Early in the third set, middle blocker Cayla Payne recorded her second block of the match, bringing her career total to 400.

Pin attacker Ines Losada tallied her fifth ace of the game during the fourth set, tying both her career and season high.

"I felt like offensively we did enough most of the day to win the match, and it was sets three, four and five when we started to slow them down offensively," Head Coach Jesse Mahoney said. "It was nice for us to show some grit after being down 0-2."

HOW IT HAPPENED:

Set One: Kansas State 25, Colorado 21

The Wildcats kept pace with the Buffaloes early, but kills by pin attacker Ana Burilovic, pin attacker Lily Dwinell and setter Jenna Ylivainio gave CU a 6-4 edge.

KSU used a 5-0 run to take their first lead of the set, but Losada snapped the streak with a kill, then a service ace, to bring the Buffs within two. However, the Wildcats held a two-point lead at the media timeout, 15-13.

Colorado battled out of the break to tie the set, 18-18, with a powerful kill and back-to-back emphatic aces from Losada.

Despite a 2-0 run with libero Tinons Munar Galmes at the service line, Kansas State closed out the first set with a 3-0 run of their own.

Set Two: Kansas State 28, Colorado 26

Middle blocker Maria Splawska led the charge for the Buffaloes, with two kills and a block assist early on. Colorado climbed to a 5-2 lead, with a solo block from Burilovic.

The set remained tightly contested, as the Wildcats crept within one point. However, kills by Burilovic and Dwinell followed by a block assist from Splawska and Dwinell forced a Kansas State timeout with a four point deficit.

After the media timeout, the Buffaloes scored four of their last six, with kills from Burilovic, Payne, and Ylivainio, to take a 15-11 lead.

Kansas State went on a 4-0 run to tie up the set, 19-19, before a vicious Burilovic kill. The two went back and forth, taking the set to extra points on the back of Burilovic and Dwinell's efforts. Ultimately, the Wildcats took set two.

Set Three: Colorado 25, Kansas State 22

The Wildcats and Buffaloes stayed close to start, but back-to-back kills from Burilovic and Payne gave CU an early 8-5 lead.

Colorado and Kansas State traded 12 straight points, including kills by Splawska, Dwinell and Payne. KSU went on a 4-0 run, but the Buffaloes responded with a 3-0 run of their own. A Payne kill gave CU a 15-13 lead into the media timeout.

The battle continued as Kansas State tied up the set, 18-18, despite efforts from Burilovic and Payne.

Losada fired off an ace followed by a Burilovic kill to force a Kansas State timeout and take a 21-18 advantage. Back-to-back Burilovic kills secured the third set for Colorado.

Set Four: Colorado 25, Kansas State 22

Colorado responded to an early 5-0 Kansas State surge with a 4-1 run of their own. Two strong kills by Burilovic, back-to-back aces from defensive specialist Avery Bolles and a block by Payne tied up the set, 7-7.

With Losada behind the service line, CU went on a 4-0 run fueled by two Losada aces and a powerful kill from Burilovic. The Buffs extended the lead into the media timeout with a kill by Dwinell, 15-13.

Colorado went on a 6-2 run, including a block-assist by Payne and Ylivainio and a kill by Losada, to take a 22-17 lead.

The Wildcats tried to fight back with a 3-0 run, but the Buffaloes won the set with a block-assist from Ylivainio and Payne.

Set Five: Colorado 15, Kansas State 10

The Buffaloes kept pace with the Wildcats, falling behind 5-4 despite efforts by Burilovic and Payne. A back-to-back electric kill and solo block from Losada sent the Buffs into the media timeout on a 3-0 run.

Payne's monstrous kill kept the crowd in it, extending Colorado's lead to 8-6. Colorado kept the momentum as a block assist by Dwinell and Splawska forced a Kansas State timeout.

Colorado took a 5-1 run with three back-to-back block assists by Splawska, Dwinell, Payne and Burilovic to bring Colorado to match point. Burilovic's kill ultimately secured the set for CU.

BURILOVIC ON THE FANS: "I feel like we see more and more people each game, so I'm really happy that the turnout is great. We get to know the fans a little bit, and the kids are watching and telling us all these great things, like all the girls want to play volleyball. I think it's really good to see that."

KEY PLAYERS:

Burilovic: Recorded 25 kills and five digs.
Ylivainio: Tallied her 16th-straight game with double-digit assists with 46. She also had five digs and three kills.
Payne: Totaled nine blocks and 10 kills.
Losada: Tied both her career-high and season-high aces with five alongside 11 kills.
Munar Galmes: Recorded 17 digs, her 11th time recording double-digit digs.

MATCH NOTES

Today's match marked Colorado's first win after trailing 2-0 since Oct. 2, 2025 against UCF.
The match was tied up 23 times across all five sets.
Colorado had a season-high eight aces across all sets.
The Buffaloes have not lost a fifth set the 2026 season.
CU and Kansas State have competed for a total of 51 games since 1986. Today's win marks Colorado's 17th victory over the Wildcats.

UP NEXT: Colorado volleyball will head back on the road to face Iowa State on Oct. 15 at 5:30 p.m. in Ames, Iowa. The match will be streamed on ESPN+ and fans can follow along via live stats available at cubuffs.com. For more information on the Colorado volleyball team, please visit cubuffs.com/vb. Fans of the Buffs can follow @cubuffsvb on Instagram, X, Facebook and TikTok.