TAMPA, Oct. 21, 2016 – The University of South Florida volleyball team (14-7, 5-4 The American) was defeated by SMU (14-6, 7-1) in four sets on Friday night.
The Mustangs won the match with scores of 25-18, 25-16, 21-25, and 25-20.
USF middle blocker Joli Holland (Dublin, Calif.) set a career-high with a .706 hitting percentage. She needed just 17 attempts to notch 12 kills in her two sets.
After dropping the first two sets, Holland led USF to a third set victory with six kills. Redshirt sophomore middle blocker Clara Payne (Osteen, Fla.) also tallied four kills in the set.
Holland registered another six kills in the fourth set but SMU earned the road win three sets to one.
Quotables:
- USF head coach Courtney Draper on the key to the match: “When you are playing a team as good as SMU, you have to come out sharp and we just weren't very sharp in the first two sets…we handled them much better in the third and fourth sets but we just came out way too slow.”
Key Stat:
- Three Mustangs totaled double digit kills in the match compared to one for USF (Holland).
Notables:
- SMU leads the all-time series with USF 5-3.
- Junior setter Alex Mendoza (Minneola, Fla.) compiled 39 assists over four sets. She also contributed a team-high 13 digs as well.
- Senior libero Amy Van Sant (Atlanta) posted 12 digs. She was also honored in a pregame ceremony for her 1,000th career dig earlier in the season.
- Senior right side hitter Alexus Heidelberg (Winter Garden, Fla.) tied a season-high with 10 digs.
- The Bulls wore pink for their annual Dig Pink match.
Up Next:
The Bulls remain at home to host Tulsa on Sunday. First serve is set for 1 p.m. at The Corral.
It is Girl and Boy Scout day with patches being given to all attendees. The girl and boy scouts will also participate in on-court events throughout the match. The Bulls will hold a postgame clinic for middle school and younger students as well.
Tickets are only $5 and fans can purchase their tickets HERE.
About USF Volleyball
The USF volleyball program has reached the NCAA Tournament seven times and boasts seven conference championships. In 2016, the Bulls return 10 players from last season including their top eight point scorers from a year ago. USF also brings back senior outside hitter Dakota Hampton (Orland Park, Ill.), who was named to the 2016 American Athletic Conference preseason team. The 6-0 start was the program's longest winning streak to begin a season since 2000. The Bulls are guided by fifth year head coach Courtney Draper. Follow the volleyball team on social media (Twitter | Facebook | Instagram) and visit GoUSFBulls.com for the most up-to-date information.
– #GoBulls –
