DENVER - Fighting Leatherneck volleyball fell to the Denver Pioneers, 3-0, in the first meeting between the two teams Sunday (Oct. 20) at Hamilton Gymnasium in Denver.

"We lost a bit of focus this weekend and struggled to regain it, said head coach April Hall. "We had some moments of sheer brilliance but couldn't overcome the adversity in the end. Although we were down a key player in Sam (Fournier), I felt as though we put forth a very strong squad. We will work on the fine tuning needed after this weekend and look to bring home a big win in front of our fans in Macomb this weekend." 

Denver opened action in the match with a 25-13 first set victory before earning a 25-9 win in the second set to take a 2-0 lead. The Pioneers used momentum to win the third set, 25-19, and earn the match victory.

Heather Smith led the Leathernecks with seven kills in the match. Mallory Gibson posted five kills, while Ann Miller added four kills for the Purple & Gold.

Sarah Fetter assisted on 20 Leatherneck kills, moving her career assist total up to 2,934. The senior is now seven assists away from moving into sole possession of fourth-place on the career assist list.

Western falls to 9-13 overall and 3-4 in league play, while the Pioneers improve to 12-8 overall and 6-1 in conference play.

"On a different note, please come out to our breast cancer awareness walk-a-thon at Veteran's park on Friday, October 25 where a $5 donation gets you a t-shirt and the opportunity to walk and help raise awareness for breast cancer. Our match on Saturday will be our Dig Pink event, so wear your pink to help support the cause," concluded Hall.

Western will be back in action this Saturday (Oct. 26), as they play host to the Omaha Mavericks. The match is slated to begin at 3 p.m. inside Western Hall.