| |
|
|
 |
| |
|
2
|
3
|
|
|
|
|
USF
|
|
22
|
17
|
|
|
|
|
Cincinnati
|
|
25
|
25
|
|
|
|
| Top Performers |
| Player |
|
|
|
|
|
| USF - Boaz |
|
|
|
|
|
| USF - Rivera |
|
|
|
|
|
| CIN - Niemer |
16
|
.289
|
4
|
7
|
20.0
|
| CIN - Scott |
7
|
.250
|
8
|
1
|
11.5
|
|
|
|
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The University of South Florida volleyball team was eliminated from the BIG EAST tournament in straight sets (25-22, 25-22, 25-17) by the No. 2 seed Cincinnati Bearcats in the semifinal round Saturday afternoon.
"I've got to give Cincinnati credit, they have a lot of horsepower on that team and it was too much for us today," said head coach Claire Lessinger. "I told my players to keep their heads up and walk with pride - they have so much to be proud of. Tonight just wasn't our night."
Senior Marcela Gurgel, an All-BIG EAST First Team member, led the Bulls with 11 kills, posting a .227 attack percentage with an ace and two blocks. Junior Allie Boaz added double-digit kills for the second match in a row with 10. Sophomore Janice Rivera led all players defensively with 13 digs for the Bulls.
Cincinnati (24-9 overall) was led by All-BIG EAST First Team selection Stephanie Niemer, who had a match-high 16 kills and paired with freshman Jordanne Scott, who posted a match-high eight blocks.
USF (18-9 overall) was down early in the first set, 3-1, but a 6-0 rally pushed the score in the Bulls' favor. Boaz downed a ball to start the rally and an ace by Rivera forced the Bearcats to call a timeout with the 6-3 lead. Cincinnati fought back to tie the set at 10 and USF went on a 3-0 run to even the score 13-13.
The Bearcats went on a 3-0 run of their own and never looked back as they did not trail again in the set. Down 24-20, the Bulls fought back like they have in all sets in the tournament but fell short. Freshman Emily Hayden was big at the net, putting away three kills to help the Bearcats to a 25-22 win.
The Bulls took a quick 5-1 lead in the second set with back-to-back kills from Boaz to start the set. USF pushed its advantage to 8-3 with back-to-back kills from Gurgel, which forced Cincinnati to use an early timeout. The Bearcats regrouped after the break, using an 8-3 run of their own to tie the game and a streak of five straight points for a 16-11 advantage.
After Lessinger called a timeout at 21-17, Luiz slammed down back-to-back kills, the third of the set, to assist USF to battle back to come within two at 21-19. Three kills from Niemer down the stretch gave the set to the Bearcats, 25-22.
Cincinnati came out of the intermission strong and took a 9-4 lead in the third set. USF came within two after a 4-1 rally on a kill by Gurgel, who then followed with her 219th career service ace. Three Bearcat errors pulled USF within two at 10-8. UC used a 10-5 run to close out the match, including five straight points to end the set.
The Bulls close out the regular season hosting the Knights of Central Florida on Nov. 25 at 6 p.m. in The Corral.
