Tulsa
13-7, 2-6
Memphis
9-11, 1-7
Tulsa Volleyball Drops Four-Set Match at Memphis
10/16/2016 3:06:00 PM | Volleyball
MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The University of Tulsa Volleyball team dropped their fifth straight match on Sunday afternoon as they fell on the road to Memphis, 3-1. Tulsa came out of the gate slow defensively in the first two sets, tallying just 26 digs as they went down 2-0 heading into the break before recording 33 in the final two sets as they extended the match to four sets.
The Hurricane compiled just a .091 attacking percentage through the first two sets while Memphis recorded a .377 percentage in the opening frames before the Tulsa defense brought that number down to .270 for the match with strong defensive play in the final two sets.
Tulsa was out-hit in the first set as the Tigers hit an effective .393, taking the set 25-13 by way of a 15-4 run to end the frame. The Hurricane took their only lead of the set at 2-1, eventually falling behind by three before pulling within one at 10-9 on an Erica Bohannon kill. Memphis went on to outscore Tulsa 8-1 after the Bohannon finish, grabbing an 18-10 lead before finishing out the set.
Two early Bohannon in the second helped TU gain a 5-2 before eventually going ahead 6-3. Three straight Memphis scores tied the match at 6-6 and again at 7-7 prior to the Tigers taking an 8-7 lead on a Kelsey Walter kill. The home team would put together another three point run to go up 13-9. A Bohannon kill after a Memphis error brought the Hurricane with two, but it was the closest they would come to tying the set as the Tigers came away with a 25-17 win.
The Hurricane regained the lead in the early moments of the third set after coming out of the break, taking a 8-5 by way of a pair of Memphis errors and an Emily Thorson kill. TU extended their lead back to three after a Rachel Moore kill and service ace prior to the Tigers tying it up at 10-10. Jaime Rahilly pitched in two kills to help extend the Tulsa lead to 16-11 before Memphis pulled within one on four straight scores that eventually forced a TU timeout. Rebecca Reeve converted on a kill after the timeout to go up two prior to the set becoming deadlocked at 17-17. With the set tied at 19-19, Trinity Alualu and Thorson combined for two kills that sparked a 6-3 run to end the set as TU sent the match to a fourth set with a 25-22 win.
Tulsa fell behind 7-4 to start the fourth set, eventually tying it at 8-8 on a Thorson kill before an Alualu ace and Rahilly kill put them ahead 10-8. Memphis used four straight scores to gain their first lead since 8-7, going up 16-15. Bohannon and Alualu converted on two attacking opportunities prior to a Memphis error that helped Tulsa regain their lead at 18-17. Six straight Tiger points all but ended the match as they grabbed a 23-18 lead on their way to recording a 25-20 set win.
Rahilly hit a team-best .278 on 18 attacking opportunities on the day while Bohannon and Alualu chipped in double-digit kills with 13 and 10 respectively. Brooke Berryhill finished with a team-high 17 digs for a Tulsa defense that had 59 on the afternoon.
The Hurricane will continue their four-match road trip into the weekend as they travel to Florida for a pair of matches against UCF and USF on Friday and Sunday.
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