Marshall University Athletics
Marshall University
SMU
Volleyball Falls in Five to SMU
10/17/2010 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Oct. 17, 2010
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - A career-high 30 kills from Elizabeth Herman helped push the Marshall University volleyball team into five sets against SMU, but the Mustangs came out on top 3-2 (25-23, 25-15, 24-26, 23-25, 15-11) on Sunday afternoon.
The Thundering Herd moves to 9-11 overall and 3-5 in Conference USA with the loss, while SMU improves to 16-4 overall and 8-1 in C-USA action.
Set one opened with a teeter-totter play between both squads and despite an 11-kill performance from Herman, the Mustangs captured the opening set 25-23.
"Elizabeth Herman didn't have a great match just because of her kills, she played great defense in the position that we needed to," said head coach Mitch Jacobs. "She blocked well and had the best match that I have ever been a part of with Liz. She was fantastic and kept us in the set in games three and four."
SMU then ran away with the second set, 25-15, hitting at a .385 clip as a team. Marshall came back fighting in the third stanza; behind 20-16 a Jacobs' timeout sparked an 8-3 MU run. With the score knotted at 23-all, SMU was forced into a timeout of their own, but it was Marshall who took the third set 26-14 to extend the game 2-1.
The fourth frame saw another 11 kills from Herman as Elizabeth Fleming pitched in with 14 helpers. Fleming would finish the game with 50 assists and 17 digs - her eighth double-double on the year.
A strong .405 attacking percentage from the Herd in the fourth helped MU capture the set, 25-23, giving both teams two sets each as the game was pushed into a fifth and deciding frame.
With three lead changes and five ties in the fifth stanza, it would be SMU to come out with the victory winning the set 15-11 and the game 3-2.
"We are a team that is trying to find itself again right now," Jacobs said. "We were playing a team that was extremely confident and the ability today to fight back and make it a five-set game, I'm proud of the way we did that. Heading into this week we have to build on that confidence and go into Southern Miss and Tulane and hold our own.
Freshman Kaitlin Holm added 12 kills for the Herd as the squad also saw double-digit marks in digs from five players, including 20 from Dorothy Rahal.
UP NEXT FOR THE HERD: Marshall heads to Hattiesburg, Miss., where they will face Southern Miss at 8 p.m. on Friday Oct. 22.
Dig For the Cure : The volleyball team will be auctioning off pink game jerseys with proceeds being donated to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Awareness Foundation. Uniforms will be available for bidding online for a week at HerdZone.com. Minimum bids start at $50.
www.Herdzone.com
