Tulsa
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UTEP
Volleyball Defeats C-USA Foe UTEP 3-1 Sunday
10/12/2008 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Oct. 12, 2008
Final Stats
TULSA, Okla. - Senior Malorey Grove recorded a match-high 23 digs, while sophomore Hannah Stout had 13 kills and junior Jennifer Eichler added 10 to lead The University of Tulsa volleyball team to a 3-1 Conference USA victory over UTEP (25-14, 23-25, 25-23, 25-23) Sunday afternoon at the Donald W. Reynolds Center.
The Golden Hurricane improves to 17-5 overall and 4-3 in C-USA play on the season, while UTEP's record falls to 5-14 and 1-6 in C-USA play. Tulsa came out firing and won the first set by 11 points, but the next three would not be as easy for TU, as UTEP won the second set before the Hurricane pulled out sets three and four for the 3-1 win. The win is Tulsa's fifth straight against the Miners.
Tulsa hit a .111 attack percentage for the match, with 44 kills and 27 errors in 153 attack attempts, but held UTEP to just .081 hitting with 51 kills and 38 errors in 160 attempts. TU blocked seven Miner attacks, led by sophomore outside hitter Emma Ridley who had four total blocks (one solo, three assists) and junior middle hitter Julia Kenealy with three block assists. Eichler recorded her 10 kills with just three errors in 23 attempts to hit .304 for the match, while sophomore setter Jessie Ayers came on in relief to record 21 assists.
The Hurricane handled the first set with relative ease, jumping out to a 13-5 lead, punctuated by six straight Tulsa points, five of which were served by freshman defensive player Thaise Vieira. UTEP got only as close as six points the rest of the way, at 16-10, but Tulsa was able to pull away again, outscoring UTEP 9-4, including six points in a row, to end the set 25-14 in TU's favor.
The next three sets would prove to be much closer and much tenser for the home team. In set two, Tulsa fell behind 3-0, but freshman outside hitter Kelsey Hancock power-served the Hurricane to a 6-3 lead before a service error gave UTEP a side-out. In the six-pint run, sophomore setter Rachel Vukson got a kill off of a pass by senior defensive player Kelsey Wood, and Stout recorded a kill off an assist by Vukson. Tulsa kept UTEP at bay and extended its lead to 12-7, before the Miners pulled within three at 13-0.
TU pulled away again, but with the score 17-12 Tulsa, UTEP made its move scoring five consecutive points to tie the set at 17 apiece. The two teams remained neck and neck, until UTEP scored a 21-18 advantage that Tulsa could not surmount. The Hurricane made a late move to pull within 24-23 on a Stout kill, but the next point came from a kill by UTEP's Amy Sanders, to give the Miners the set win 25-23.
The final two sets were decided by identical scores, and coming out of the break, Tulsa made a change at setter and turned to sophomore Jessie Ayers. Tulsa started off with four quick points on a UTEP attack error, a Stout kill and two straight service aces from Hancock. However the lead did not last, as UTEP came back to tie the score at 6-6. UTEP gained an advantage after a 9-9 tie, with a kill by Keisha Hyman-Gifth. UTEP held a 13-11 lead before Tulsa took over the set with a 10-3 run for a 21-15 lead it would not relinquish. The Hurricane held the lead that got down to 22-19, but TU went on to win the set 25-23.
The Golden Hurricane fell behind 2-0 early in the fourth set, but with three quick points, took the lead on a UTEP attack error and never trailed the rest of the way. With the score tied at five, Tulsa took the lead with a couple of errors by UTEP, and extended its advantage with a Miner service error, and kills by Hancock and Eichler to make the score 10-6. UTEP hung around with the Hurricane, staying within four to five points the rest of the way, and even pulled to a tie at 19-19. But with six of the final nine points, including the final two daggers by Hancock and Stout, Tulsa was able to pull out the set and match victory.
The Golden Hurricane returns to action next weekend when it begins a four-match C-USA road trip with a match at UAB on Friday at 7 p.m. TU also plays Sunday at Memphis in a 2 p.m. match scheduled to be televised by CBS College Sports on a tape delay basis. That match will air Tuesday, Oct. 21 at 8 p.m. CT. All Tulsa home volleyball matches are free to the public. All Golden Hurricane news and information can be found on the web at www.TulsaHurricane.com.
