Oct. 18, 2008
HOUSTON, Texas (UCFAthletics.com) - Despite getting 11 kills from senior Stephanie Serna (San Antonio, Texas), the UCF volleyball team fell in straight sets, 3-0 (14-25, 16-25, 12-25), to Rice (15-4, 6-2 C-USA) Saturday night at Fox Gymnasium in a Conference USA contest. Serna's double-digit performance was her 13th-straight and her 15th of the season.
With the loss, the Knights fell to 13-9 on the season and 5-4 in league play. Before Saturday's three-set loss, the Black and Gold had gone 12-straight matches without getting swept, with the last coming on Sept. 12 at FIU.
"I give a lot of credit to Rice and how they executed tonight," head coach Todd Dagenias said after the match. "This was by far the best that any team has played against us all year long. Their intensity, their tempo and their execution were phenomenal. I thought they played like a top-25 team tonight.
Janine Williams (Gainesville, Fla.) posted six kills in the match, while Erin Campbell (Kansas City, Mo.) added four kills and two block assists.
Defensively, the Knights were led by eight digs from Lauren Rosenthal (Colorado Springs, Colo.). The setter also posted 19 assists and a block assist against the Owls.
Kristen Petrasic (Carrollton, Texas) added seven digs and two assists, with Campbell recording six digs.
Ashleigh McCord led the Owls with a match-high 16 kills.
The Knights return home to The Venue at UCF on Tuesday for a non-conference match-up with Florida Gulf Coast. The match is scheduled to get underway at 7 p.m.
Season tickets for UCF's 2008 volleyball campaign at The Venue are currently available by calling the UCF athletics ticket office at 407-UCF-1000. For the latest news on the Knights, log on to www.UCFAthletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. The site, which also contains ticket and Golden Knights Club donor information, is also the home of UCF's new online apparel store. Also visit www.UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.
Short Box Score (Match)
UCF vs. RICE (Oct 18, 2008 at Houston, TX)
RICE def. UCF 25-14, 25-16, 25-12
UCF (13-9, 5-4) (Kills-aces-blocks) - Serna, Stephanie 11-0-0;
Williams, Janine 6-0-0; Campbell, Erin 4-0-2; Williams, Lauren 2-0-2;
Fisher, Kristin 1-0-0; Heppert, Jenny 1-0-1; Rosenthal, Lauren 0-0-1;
Totals 25-0-3.0. (Assists) - Rosenthal, Lauren 19. (Dig leaders) -
Rosenthal, Lauren 8; Petrasic, Kristen 7
RICE (15-4, 6-2) (Kills-aces-blocks) - McCORD, Ashleigh 16-0-1;
MORGAN, Karyn 11-1-3; HOLDERNESS, Jessica 5-0-2; BOGAN, Natalie 5-2-4;
GILL, Caroline 4-0-3; LAM, Tracey 2-1-0; SCHAMUN, Meredith 1-0-1;
Totals 44-4-7.0. (Assists) - SCHAMUN, Meredith 33. (Dig leaders) -
LAM, Tracey 13; MORGAN, Karyn 10; McCLEAN, Jennifer 8
Site: Houston, TX (Fox Gymnasium)
Date: Oct 18, 2008 Attend: 433 Time: 1:15
Referees: Elaine Crane, Ted Lopez
-UCF-