TAMPA, Fla. ? The University of South Florida volleyball team struggled in its BIG EAST Conference opener, losing to Louisville, 3-0 (30-18, 30-19, 30-20), at The Corral on Friday night in front of a crowd of 767 people.
“I think that this was a good time for a wake up call for us and for it to be against a team as powerful as Louisville, especially newcomers and players that we have been trying to prepare all week for the grind of the BIG EAST Conference,” coach Claire Lessinger said. “I think they know now what the reality is of playing in the BIG EAST. What are challenge is now is that we have to work harder. We have to work harder in practice. We have to out-work our opponents. We have to take this part of our season more seriously and Louisville gave us a wake up call tonight. They are phenomenal team and are very dominant. They're a team that we have to aspire to be like, and we have to work harder to get to that level.”
Sophomore Marcela Gurgel led the Bulls offense on the evening and was the lone USF player to with 10-or-more kills. The Fortaleza, Brazil, native recorded 14 kills and posted her ninth double-digit kill outing of the year.
On the defensive side, libero Stephanie Augustavo had a team-high 18 digs, while Gurgel chipped four block assists for the team best.
The Bulls offense struggled from the start of the match and couldn't get into motion, as they hit .015 to Louisville's .248. USF (8-2, 0-1 BIG EAST) had more attacks in the match, 134 to 121, but couldn't convert it into points.
The Cardinals (6-4, 1-0 BIG EAST) also came out strong defensively at the net, countering the Bulls attacks with key blocks. USF couldn't make the necessary adjustments offensively to answer. In the end, U of L tallied 18.5 blocks to the Bulls' 7.5.
In the third and final game, the Bulls came out of the gates with some momentum, staying close early and then tying the score at 11. Despite a spirited effort by USF, the Cardinals kept putting the ball down and closed out with the match victory.
USF will look to rebound and get back on the winning track when it continues BIG EAST action on Sunday at 2 p.m. against Cincinnati.
