University of Houston
SMU
Volleyball Win Streak Snapped With 3-2 Loss To SMU
11/19/2010 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Nov. 19, 2010
Dallas, Texas - The University of Houston volleyball team's seven-match win streak came to an end Friday night with a 3-2 (19-25, 25-21, 25-22, 8-25, 8-15) loss to SMU at Moody Coliseum.
With the loss, Houston falls to 19-11 on the season and 13-5 in Conference USA play.
Stephanie Nwachukwu led the Cougars with 12 kills and three blocks. Marluci Toazzi added 10 kills and 13 digs, while Amanda Carson finished with a team-high 24 digs. Amber Brooks tallied 42 assists and 10 digs.
The match opened to a 6-6 tie but the Mustangs countered with a 7-0 run that began on the next point. SMU continued to add to its lead, pulling ahead by as many as 10 points, 17-7, but the Cougars were able to cut the deficit to seven, 22-15. With the lead dwindling, the Mustangs called a timeout.
Out of the break, Houston was able to pull within five but SMU would win the set, 25-19, on a kill by Kathryn Wilkerson.
Houston took the momentum they were building at the end of the first set to jump out to a 6-3 lead in the second set. SMU answered and knotted the score at 7-7, but the Cougars took advantage of two attack errors by the Mustang's Dana Powell and regained the lead, 9-7. The Cougars continued to control the match with an 18-14 lead before a timeout was called from the SMU bench.
Following the timeout, SMU was called for back-to-back ball handling errors and they were forced to call a second timeout, trailing 20-14. They traded points out of the timeout but the Cougars, behind strong play by Toazzi, evened the match with a 25-21 win.
Houston stormed out to an 8-2 lead in the second set and a timeout was quickly called from the SMU bench. The Cougars scored the first point out of the break, but the Mustangs answered with three-straight points and head coach Molly Alvey was forced to call a timeout to regroup her team.
UH held the lead following the timeout, but SMU would come back to tie the score at 16-16 and then take a 20-19 lead. The Cougars tied the score on the next point and regained the lead 22-21 on a kill by Lucy Charuk. Houston scored three of the next four points and won the third set, 25-22, on an attack error by Wilkerson.
For the second time this season, Houston would need a fourth set to decide a match against SMU. Earlier this season, the Cougars knocked off the Mustangs 3-1 at the Athletics/Alumni Center.
In the second meeting, SMU took a 5-0 lead to start the set. The Cougars called a timeout and scored the first point following the break, but the Mustangs continued to build on their lead. With UH within seven, 11-4, SMU went on a 6-1 run, extending their lead to 17-5.
Trailing by 12, Alvey called a second timeout. SMU came off the bench to post an 8-3 run and eventually win the set, 25-8.
SMU opened the fifth set to a 5-1 lead before Alvey halted play with a timeout. They traded points off the bench and SMU answered with a timeout. Off the bench, the Mustangs built on their lead and went on to win the set, 15-8.
UP NEXT
Houston will head to Tulsa for a 1 p.m. match on Sunday against the Golden Hurricane. Tulsa sits in first place in the C-USA standings. The Cougars will then close out the season at Rice on Nov. 27 at 7 p.m.
