Marshall University Athletics
Marshall University
Tulsa
Volleyball Suffers First Conference Loss
10/2/2009 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Oct. 2, 2009
TULSA, Okla. - The Marshall University volleyball team suffered its first Conference USA loss of the season in a match against Tulsa, 3-1 (21-25, 25-22, 12-25, 21-25) at the Reynolds Center on Friday night.
It marked the first time that MU lost a match since Sept. 12, when the Herd was defeated by Tennessee at the Carolina Classic in Chapel Hill, N.C. During that time span, the Herd had rallied off five-straight wins prior to this evening.
MU falls to 3-1 in C-USA, 15-3 overall, while the Golden Hurricane improves to 11-5 and 1-2 in C-USA with its first conference victory.
"The intensity level was the difference of the match," head coach Mitch Jacobs said. "Tulsa was able to sustain a level above ours. The two teams were very evenly matched when we matched their intensity."
In the first set, the Herd fell behind early, 3-0, but climbed its way back into the frame, only trailing by one at 9-8 after Katy Schad recorded a kill. Behind 13-12, Tulsa used a 5-0 spurt to own an 18-12 advantage. MU cut the deficit to three, 24-21, on a kill by Schad set up by Elizabeth Fleming, but the Golden Hurricane followed with a kill from Hannah Stout to earn a victory in set one.
The Herd made a strong push at the end of the first set, with the momentum spilling over into the second frame of the night as the team hit at a .441 attacking percentage. MU burst out of the gates, scoring the first four points and never trailed in the set. After a block by Kristin Marcum and Elizabeth Herman, the Herd upped its cushion to five, forcing a Tulsa timeout.
Tulsa made its way back in the frame, trailing 23-21, before Herman would register a kill and assist Emily Sullivan on a block to tie up the match, 1-1.
MU struggled in the third set, hitting at a .047 attacking percentage, compared to Tulsa who hit at .385. The Herd was behind 7-5 before the Golden Hurricane embarked on an 18-7 rally to take command of the contest, 2-1.
In the fourth set, the Herd took its first lead at 4-3, and would have the advantage grow to 7-3 after an attack error by a Golden Hurricane member. MU would lead the match until Tulsa tied the score at 12-all, and would follow with a 6-0 run. The Herd was able to muster one final push, but came up short dropping the set, 25-21, and the match, 3-1.
Sullivan led the charge offensively for the Herd with 16 kills and hit at a .355 attacking clip. Herman chipped in with 10 kills, six digs and five block assists.
Fleming tallied a match-high 42 assists, while adding nine digs and five kills in the loss. Kristin Marcum recorded a team-best 16 digs along with eight digs, while Ryanne Milligan added 11 digs.
"We have a resilient group and we are going to be focused and ready to play tomorrow against SMU," Jacobs said. " I do believe in this group and they will play with more fire in their bellies and sustain a higher level of intensity tomorrow."
Tyler Henderson had a match-high 21 kills, while Jennifer Eichler recorded a double-double, 17 kills and 10 digs in the victory.
MU travels to Dallas, Texas, to battle C-USA foe, SMU Saturday night at 8 p.m.
Game Tracker will be available by logging onto www.smumustangs.com.
