University of Houston
Florida Gulf Coast
Volleyball Splits Matches At NMSU Tournament
9/5/2008 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Sept. 5, 2008
Florida Gulf Coast Box Score in PDF Format 
New Mexico State Box Score in PDF Format
Las Cruces, NM - The University of Houston volleyball team split two matches Friday during the opening day of the 2008 Hotel Encanto Volleyball Classic hosted by New Mexico State University.
The Cougars won the first ever match-up with Florida Gulf Coast, 3-1, with scores of 25-16, 25-27, 25-18, 25-20 in the first match of the day. In the night match, Houston lost a five-set match to New Mexico State with scores of 21-25, 15-25, 25-23, 25-23, 13-15.
Houston 3, Florida Gulf Coast 1
In the first match of the day, Houston defeated Florida Gulf Coast, 3-1.
Houston was led by senior Justine Farmer's 17 kills and 52 assists by senior Kelsey King. Farmer was one of four Cougars to have at least 10 kills for a team attack percentage of .333.
The Cougars took a dominating first set win, 25-16 to open play. Houston never lost the lead after opening with an 8-1 run. Sophomore Lucy Charuk paced all players with four kills in the set, guiding Houston to a .320 hitting percentage while the Eagles hit just .067.
UH backed up their strong start taking an early lead in the second set but Florida Gulf Coast and battled back to tie the set and eventually take the 27-25 win.
For the first time in the match, Houston started the third set falling behind 3-0. But the Cougars would continue to chip away at the deficit and regain the lead14-13 mid-way through the set. It would be all Houston from that point on, as Farmer notched five kills in the set and move Houston to 2-1 in the match.
With the lead in the match, UH played in their third four-set match this season. By taking the 25-20 win, the Cougars are 3-0 this season in four-set matches.
UH finished the match leading in nearly every team category including assists (55), digs (56), points (78.0) and attack percentage.
Houston 2, New Mexico State 3
In a five-set loss to New Mexico State, Houston was paced by seniors Barbara Freitas and Kelsey King. Freitas recorded 17 kills, setting a career-high, and King added 45 assists.
The Cougars were held to their lowest attack percentage of the season at .135, however, the Aggies were held to a .191 hitting percentage.
Houston dropped the first two sets of the night but battled back to force a fifth set. The Cougars are now 0-2 in five-set matches.
UH used nine tie scores and four lead changes to defeat New Mexico State, 25-23 in the third set. Sophomore Kinsey Cave led all athletes in the set with five kills.
In the fourth set, Houston played from behind most of the time. They tied the score at 22-22 before pulling ahead on kills from freshman Nataliya Panova and Cave. She would also record the final kill of the set to give Houston the win, 25-23.
The Aggies got the best of the Cougars in the fifth set, holding Houston to four kills and preventing a Houston come from behind win.
Houston is now 3-2 on the season and 4-5 all-time against the Aggies.
Up Next
Houston will close out tournament play on Saturday with a 4:30 p.m. match against Utah. Houston is 4-1 all-time against the Utes, winning the last match-up against the two schools, 2-1, in 1983.
Following the tournament in New Mexico, the Cougars will stay on the road for the third-straight weekend, traveling to the Time Warner Cable Texas Invitational on Sept. 11-12. UH will play host to Lamar on Sept. 17 in the 2008 home opener at 7 p.m.
