Colorado Fights Through Five, Takes Down Arizona

Sunday, September 27

Boulder, Colo.

1 p.m.

Colorado

10-2,1-1Big 12

Arizona

5-7,0-1Big 12

Team	1	2	3	4	5	Final F
Arizona	20	25	25	22	6	2
Colorado	25	20	20	25	15	3

September 27, 2026 | Volleyball

Box Score Donate To Volleyball Post-Match Press Conference Highlights

By: Anna Duffy, Athletic Communications Associate

BOULDER — In a competitive back-and-forth battle, the 21st-ranked Colorado volleyball team toppled Arizona on Sunday afternoon at the CU Events Center.

The Buffaloes won in five sets (25-20, 25-20, 25-20, 25-22, 15-6), moving to 10-2 on the season and 1-1 in Big 12 Conference play. Colorado took the first, fourth and fifth sets to secure its first conference win. Arizona falls to 5-7 on the season and 0-1 in Big 12 competition.

The win came from an all-around team performance, with three Buffs notching double-doubles and seven players recording season or career highs.

During the fourth set, Colorado recorded five aces, three coming from pin attacker Ana Burilovic and two from setter Jenna Ylivainio, marking her career high. The three aces from Burilovic came consecutively to spark a 7-0 run that shifted the momentum after the Buffaloes dropped the two previous sets.

Colorado dominated the fifth set as Burilovic recorded six kills and pin attacker Sydney Jordan had two kills and an ace.

"I was really proud of our team for how we recovered and reset," Head Coach Jesse Mahoney said. "We played some great volleyball, played with a lot of energy. I think we can beat anybody. It's going to be a great, competitive season. Every night is going to be like this."

How It Happened:

Set One: The Buffaloes and Wildcats traded early points, as kills by middle blocker Cayla Payne and Burilovic tied the contest at 4-4.

A block from freshman middle blocker Rakauskaite and Jordan sparked an 8-2 Colorado run. Kills from Burilovic and Payne pushed the Buffs ahead 15-8.

The Wildcats crept back from their deficit, but Jordan kept the Buffs in front with two kills, followed by a third from pin attacker Lily Dwinell, giving CU a 20-16 advantage.

An ace from libero Tinons Munar Galmes followed by two Burilovic kills handed Colorado the first set, 25-20.

Set Two: Colorado got behind early and trailed 11-4 despite kills from Burilovic and Payne that put the Buffs on the board.

Rakauskaite and Burilovic collected additional kills as the CU inched back, but the Wildcats maintained a 15-8 lead. Despite efforts from Ylivainio and Rakauskaite, the Buffaloes continued to trail 21-13 before a late CU rally.

Colorado fought back as a kill by Rakauskaite fueled a 6-2 run, including three consecutive kills from the freshman, Dwinell and Burilovic. However, the Buffaloes dropped the second set, 25-20.

Set Three: Arizona jumped out to a 5-0 lead that was snapped by a Rakauskaite kill to give Colorado its first point of the set.

An ace from Burilovic and kills by Jordan and Dwinell brought the Buffs within reach, trailing 15-9. Burilovic launched an explosive kill — her 14th of the night — before a block from Payne gave Colorado momentum, bringing the score to 19-12 with an Arizona lead.

Colorado crept back with an ace from defensive specialist Avery Bolles before kills from Burilovic and Jordan closed the gap to 22-17, but the Buffs were unable to overcome the Wildcats, dropping the set 25-20.

Set Four: After opening the set with another 5-0 deficit, three consecutive Burilovic aces energized Colorado and cut the deficit to one, 7-6.

A forceful Burilovic kill snapped a 3-0 Arizona run before Colorado put together another run, this one 7-0, highlighted by three kills from Burilovic and two aces from Ylivaino, giving the Buffs a 14-11 lead.

The Buffaloes maintained their momentum with kills by Dwinell and Payne, but the set remained close, CU leading 21-18.

Arizona's two service errors lifted the Buffs to a 23-20 lead. Colorado closed out the set with a block from Dwinell and Rakauskaite and a kill from Burilovic, 25-22.

Set Five: Two kills from Burilovic and an ace by Minor Galmes gave Colorado an early 4-2 lead.

Colorado continued to charge ahead, as two Payne kills and an ace from defensive specialist Katie Salonga gave CU a five-point advantage. A Jordan kill and a block by Rakauskaite and Ylivaino mounted the Buffaloes to a 10-5 lead.

Colorado carried the set with a 4-0 run off a Jordan ace and a Burilovic kill to take the Buffaloes to match point. A final Burilovic kill secured the match, 15-6.

JORDAN ON BOUNCING BACK: "The last two matches in the third set, we were struggling; we kind of rolled over, and we talked about how this is our moment to prove that we can fight back, which I think is what we did. We came together and talked about refusing to lose in the huddle."

KEY PLAYERS:

Burilovic: Recorded 28 kills and four aces for 32.0 points and added 13 digs for a double-double.
Munar Galmes: Had 22 digs and six assists.
Ylivainio: Notched her second double-double by recording 11 digs and 58 assists, her 12th straight match with 20+ assists.
Jordan: Tabbed 11 kills on 32 total attacks and added 13 digs for a double-double of her own.

SEASON OR CAREER-HIGHS:

Jordan recorded her first double-double of the season, tied her season-high in digs (13) and kills (11), while adding a season-high in attacks (32).
Burilovic notched season-high kills (28), attacks (68) and points (32.0).
Ylivainio reached a career-high in assists (58) and service aces (2).
Rakauskaite had career-high attacks (17) and kills (6).
Dwinell reached season-highs in attacks (26) and digs (5).
Defensive specialist Peyton Neal matched her season-high in digs (4).
Payne recorded a season-high in attacks (25) and matched her season-high for digs (2).

MATCH NOTES:

With the win, CU improves to 8-5 when facing Arizona in Boulder.
Colorado outperformed Arizona in the kill, assist, ace and dig columns.
With the first-set win, the Buffs snapped their six-set losing streak.
After splitting the first two sets, Colorado is 4-0 on the season.
Colorado won in five sets for the third time this season.
With her ace, Bolles is tied for second on Colorado's all-time leaderboard during the rally-score era, totaling 105.

UP NEXT: The Buffs hit the road for two Texas showdowns. Colorado faces TCU on Oct. 2 at 5 p.m. in Fort Worth. They take on Baylor on Oct. 4 at 1 p.m. in Waco. Both Big 12 matches will be streamed on ESPN+ and fans can follow along via live stats on 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.