TAMPA, NOV. 4, 2015 – USF won the first set, before falling to UCF 3-1 (24-26, 25-21, 25-22, 25-18) Wednesday in front of a crowd of 984 at the Sun Dome.
Junior Dakota Hampton recorded her 10th consecutive double-double with 11 kills and 11 digs to lead the Bulls which fell to 8-17 overall and 5-8 in the American Athletic Conference. The Knights won by the same score as they did in the first meeting in Orlando on Oct. 21 and improved to 14-11 (8-5).
Freshman Molly Burkhardt led the team with 20 assists while senior Wylie Devlin had a team-best 20 digs.
“I thought that we hustled and worked hard, but there was a lack of execution in the game plan and opportunities to kill the ball,” said head coach Courtney Draper.
USF won the first 26-24 in a back-and-forth battle that saw 16 ties and five lead changes. A Hampton kill set up match point which was won on an attack error by the Knights' Taylor Gallart.
Both teams hit below .100 in the second set which UCF won 25-21.
The third set was tied 17-17 before UCF closed the set on an 8-5 run to win 25-22.
The Bulls held a slim lead of 9-8 in the fourth set, but the Knights recorded a hitting percentage of .485 to the Bulls' .125 in the 25-18 win.
As a team, USF hit .160 while UCF hit .270.
USF returns to action on Friday when it hosts East Carolina at 7 p.m. in The Corral.
