In what was billed as a ?win and you're in” contest between two teams on the bubble for a conference tournament bid, USF Volleyball (18-8, 8-5 BIG EAST) showed they were ready for postseason play with a 3-0 sweep (30-26, 30-23, 30-28) over the Connecticut Huskies Friday night in The Corral.
The Bulls used outstanding blocking at the net and timely passing from the back row to held the Huskies to just a .128 hitting percentage, well below their .229 season average. USF's offense once again showed they could attack from points all over the floor, with six players charting four or more kills.
“I thought this was our best display of team volleyball all year long,” said head coach Claire Lessinger, who guided her team from just one conference win in their inaugural BIG EAST season of 2005, to seven wins in 2006, and now at least eight in 2007. “UConn is a solid team and I'm still somewhat in shock that we got out of here in three against a really good offensive team. To block the way we did, to ?determinate' the way we did, this is where you want to at this time in the season. To be rewarded with a BIG EAST Conference Tournament berth is a credit to how hard these kids have worked.”
Sophomore outside hitter Marcela Gurgel once again lived up to her billing as one of the BIG EAST's most feared attackers, notching 15 kills against five errors on 28 attempts for a .357 hitting percentage, her third straight game over the .300 barrier. Gurgel also had 13 digs, the only Bull to record a double-double for the contest. It was also a breakout performance for O2 hitter Cynthia Danthon, as the junior from Montelimar, France put away a career high eight kills with just one error, hitting .350 for the contest.
“Marcela, we all know what she's capable of, it's fun to see the look in her eyes before these big matches," said Lessinger. "She's showed up big in three big matches, she's putting up consistent numbers, and you need that in a go-to player that you're developing your offense around. Cynthia did tonight what we knew she was capable of doing all year long. We haven't gotten her the opportunity to shine in matches. We went with her tonight because she had a good matchup tonight against the setter, and she hits ?line' well. We're excited to get her back out there and keep doing what she's doing for us.”
The Bulls showed they wanted to leave no doubt about their spot in Milwaukee next week in game one, putting up one of their most impressive offensive displays of the season. Gurgel came out ablaze, hitting a white-hot .750 with seven kills in a game where USF as a team would post a torrid .412 pace. Senior Kristina Fabris would also add three aces, two of them in a run of five points that shot the Bulls ahead to a 14-11 lead they wouldn't concede. The final score was made closer by the efforts of UConn senior Sade Chambers who had seven of the Huskies 17 kills. At 27-26 and receiving serve, the Bulls used three straight terminations by Danthon, Gurgel, and Alli Arbogast to take the opening frame.
Game two showed the other side of the Bulls abilities, as they used their defensive prowess and balance to pull away. USF notched four team blocks to go with 15 digs, helping to hold UConn (17-8, 7-6 BIG EAST) to just .077 for the game. Seven different Bulls also found UConn's side of the floor, despite just 17 kills as a team. Gurgel led the way with four more put-aways, and recorded five digs as well.
Game three became a defensive struggle on both sides, with longer points and better blocking and passing forcing a few more mistakes. Both teams entered double digits on attacking errors for the first time, with 12 for the Huskies and 10 for the Bulls. USF would outblock UConn five to four, and were led at the net by sophomore middle blocker Alli Arbogast. She posted the final four of her eight block assists in the penultimate game, pulling her to within two of breaking the USF block assist record for a season held by Bulls great Erica Berggren (135 in 1995). A see-saw battle until the Bulls mustered a small lead at 18-13, UConn came roaring back down 27-23 behind two USF errors, a Chambers kill, and two solid team roof blocks to take a 28-27 lead and strike some fear into the Corral crowd. But a huge kill for the senior Fabris, followed by a team block from Arbogast and Fabris put the Bulls on match point, which they won with an ace from junior libero Stephanie Augustavo.
USF will take on #21 St. John's on Sunday at 2 p.m., which will also be Senior Day for the Bulls lone leaving player Fabris, who currently stands 6th on the Bulls all-time kills list. St John's is already assured of the #2 seed in Milwaukee behind conference champion Louisville.
