Oct. 14, 2005
ORLANDO - Despite 18 kills from sophomore outside hitter Schanell Neiderworder, the UCF volleyball team dropped a hard-fought, 3-2 (21-30, 30-23, 21-30, 30-26, 15-6) Conference USA match to visiting Rice, Friday evening at UCF Arena. The Golden Knights fall to 4-10 overall and 2-5 in league play, while Rice improves to 12-4 and 3-2.
Junior setter Leah Alexander tallied 48 assists for UCF and also added 10 digs for her first career double-double. Sophomore libero Lindsay Randazzo posted a match-high 25 digs.
In the fifth game, the Owls clinched the contest, hitting .429 as a team, compared to -.100 for the hosts.
"There were plenty of opportunities for us to win," said UCF head coach Meg Colado. "I credit Rice for keeping the ball in play."
For the match, UCF hit .218 and posted eight total team blocks.
The Golden Knights opened the match in strong fashion, hitting .462 in the first game.
Sophomore outside hitter Lorin Lukas nearly recorded a double-double, finishing with 13 kills and nine digs. Junior outside hitter Maina Heming had 14 kills and sophomore middle blocker Jana Mitchell posted eight kills and five total blocks.
Olaya Pazo recorded a match-high 28 kills for the Owls. Kristina Hoban had a triple-double with 10 kills, 50 assists and 15 digs. Karyn Morgran tallied 12 kills and 16 digs in the win.
The Golden Knights play the second match of a three-contest homestand on Sunday afternoon, hosting Houston at UCF Arena. The league match is slated to begin at 1 p.m.