University of Houston
* East Carolina
Volleyball Ends C-USA Regular Season With Win Over ECU
11/16/2002 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Nov. 16, 2002
Greenville, N.C. - Sparked by another outstanding performance by Jenny Tanneberger, the University of Houston volleyball team held on to defeat East Carolina 3-2 at Williams Arena Saturday night in its last regular-season Conference USA match of 2002. The Cougars now have an overall record of 17-11 and are 7-6 in C-USA play.
Three-time 2002 C-USA Player of the Week Tanneberger led Houston with 22 kills (.268) and seven digs. Laura Koster was just short of a double-double, adding 18 kills and nine digs, while setter Donna Sellen added 53 assists, 10 kills and eight digs. Cougars Jaci Gonzalez and Mirela Vasconcellos each added 11 digs on the night.
ECU's Robyn Drewes posted a career-high 19 kills and Sarah Vick added 16 in the loss. Johanna Bertini led the Pirates' defensive effort with 14 digs.
The Pirates took a 1-0 lead in the match after picking up a 30-23 win in game one. They were in a position to make it a sweep with a 30-28 win in game two, but the Cougars answered with a 30-21 win in the third game. ECU could not answer in game four, with Houston taking the lead early and winning 30-19. Houston held off a late ECU rally to win game five 15-13 and clinch the match.
The Pirates hit .287 as a team, which was the highest hitting total against a C-USA opponent this season. The loss to Houston concludes the 2002 season for the Pirates (6-25, 0-12 C-USA).
Houston, who hit only .225 and compiled 6.0 blocks as a squad against the Pirates, will compete in the first round of the 2002 Healthy Choice C-USA Volleyball Tournament to be held Nov. 22-25 in Chicago.
The annual C-USA banquet will be held in Chicago Nov. 21 prior to the start of the tournament. Tanneberger, Gonzalez and Sellen have been nominated for all-conference awards this season, including All-C-USA, Freshman of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year and Setter of the Year.
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