Jordan Mullen put down a match-high 17 kills to lead the Colorado College volleyball team to a 25-13, 25-16, 25-16 thrashing of Whitworth University in a first-round match of the 2019 NCAA Division III Volleyball Championship on Friday afternoon.
 
The eighth-ranked Tigers will face Berry College in the regional semifinal at 2:30 p.m. ET Saturday. The Vikings advanced with a 25-15, 25-19, 25-13 victory over Maryville College in the second match of the day.
 
Mullen hit a season-high .640, with just one misfire on 25 attempts. The senior outside hitter recorded seven kills in the first set when CC set the tone for the match by exploding to a 13-3 lead.
 
Sophomore middle hitter Georgia Mullins finished with eight kills on an error-free 17 swings, good for a .471 clip, while senior middle hitter Marguerite Spaethling hit .462 with six kills on 13 attempts without an error.
 
Lizzy Counts led the Tigers with a .714 hitting percentage, putting away five kills on an error-free seven attempts. The senior setter also dished out 32 assists while conducting the attack that posted a season-best .477 hitting percentage. Colorado College also matched its season low with just five attacking errors.
 
Junior setter Isabelle Aragon-Menzel paced the Tigers with match-high 10 digs, while Spaethling had a hand in two of team's three blocked shots.
 
Spaethling also served up three of the team's five aces.
 
In the second set, the Pirates trailed just 11-10 after a kill by Emiko Kahler, but CC took control with a 9-2 surge.
 
Whitworth led by two early in the third set and were within a point at 15-14 following another kill from Kahler. However, the Tigers ran off seven straight points and went on to close out their 25th sweep of the season.
 
Colorado College improved to 31-4 overall, while the Pirates finished the season with a 20-7 mark.
 
Colorado College Standouts
Ann Gurolnick finished with eight digs.
Laney Swan hit .375 with three kills on eight swings without an error.
 
Whitworth Standouts
Emiko Kahler led the Pirates with 10 kills.
Kiana Vandaele recorded a team-high eight digs.