Oct. 31, 2008
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - The UCF (13-13, 5-7 C-USA) volleyball team could not take a win away from Conference USA's second-ranked Tulane (19-5, 10-1 C-USA) Friday night, falling to the Green Wave, 3-0 (21-25, 23-25, 17-25), in front of the home crowd at The Venue at UCF.
"I think the first step for us in trying to turn this thing around to have the kind of finish that we expect to have comes in attitude and it comes in effort," head coach Todd Dagenais said following the match. "That is the first step, then we try to get into the skills and the execution. What we needed to see tonight more than anything else was attitude and effort. We had a hard practice yesterday. The hardest practice I ever remember having the day before a match. I wanted to see how they would respond to the intensity. They responded tonight exactly how I wanted them to. They responded with the attitude and the effort that we need to have to build on to head into the end of the year. I am really proud of that. That was a really good effort on their part."
Janine Williams (Gainesville, Fla.) paced the Black and Gold offense with 10 kills, while Stephanie Serna (San Antonio, Texas) and Erin Campbell (Kansas City, Mo.) added nine and seven kills, respectively, for the home team.
In the opening set, the Knights fell behind early, but mounted a comeback midway through the set. Down 13-19, the Black and Gold went on a 3-1 run to force Tulane to take a timeout. After a Green Wave miscue, a kill and a block assist from Serna put the Knights within two points, 19-21. A Williams kill made the score 21-23, before an UCF error ended its comeback and the first set.
The Black and Gold matched up almost equally to the Green Wave in the first set, posting 13 kills to Tulane's 14, while hitting .206 compared to the visitor's .235. The same scenario held true in the second and third matches, with the Knights and Tulane recording 12 and 13 kills, respectively, in each. The main statistical factor that separated the two teams was blocking, with the Green Wave tallying 12.0 total blocks and the Knights posting 7.0.
The Knights fell down 0-3 to start the second set, but a Lauren Williams (Lake Mary, Fla.) kill and a Tulane error put the home team right back into the contest. After siding out, Andrea Youngblood (Castle Rock, Colo.) came in to serve for UCF, racking up seven-straight points to put the Black and Gold in the driver's seat, 11-5. During the run, the dynamic duo of Jenny Heppert (Lawrence, Kan.) and Renele Forde (Trincity, Trinidad and Tobago) combined for eight block assists, while Forde and Janine Williams each added a kill and Youngblood served up a service ace. A kill from Heppert ended a 4-2 Tulane run, and three kills from Serna extended the Knights' lead 19-14. A Green Wave serving error kept the Knights in the lead, 22-19, but a 6-2 run by Tulane completed the visiting team's comeback.
Heppert led UCF defensively, posting five block assists, while Forde contributed a career-high four block assists.
Again Tulane took the early lead in the third set, 0-4, and never looked back. UCF evened the set 15-15 following another serving run from Youngblood. The setter helped lead the Knights to a 4-0 run behind the service line, while posting her second service ace of the game. The Green Wave answered back with a 4-1 run to force the Black and Gold to take a timeout, before putting together a 6-1 run to clinch the set and the victory in the match.
Youngblood and Lauren Rosenthal (Colorado Springs, Colo.) split time as the Knights' setter, with Rosenthal racking up 20 assists and Youngblood adding 14.
The Knights will host their third-annual "Dig for the Cure" match at The Venue at UCF Saturday night against fellow C-USA competitor UTEP at 7 p.m. All donations will benefit the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.
Fans can help the team raise funds for the Komen Foundation by pledging money per dig earned ($1 or $.10) by the Knights in the match, or by making flat donations. Checks can be made to the Susan G. Komen Foundation.
Those interested in pledging money or making a donation for UCF's "Dig for the Cure" event will be able to pick up forms at the match or may also contact the volleyball office at (407) 823-6229.
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)
Tulane vs UCF (Oct 31, 2008 at Orlando, Fla.)
Tulane def. UCF 25-21, 25-23, 25-17
Tulane (19-5,10-1 C-USA) (Kills-aces-blocks) - WELLS, Bridget 11-0-4;
RADOSEVIC, Sara 9-0-1; DJURDJEVIC, Visnja 7-2-2; LINDER, Jen 5-0-7;
VLASKOVIC, Ksenija 5-0-4; GENEMARAS, Amaris 1-0-1; LINDELOW, Rachel
1-0-0; STROMATH, Stephanie 1-0-4; SHEPARD, Lindsey 0-0-1; REBROVIC,
Luna 0-2-0; Totals 40-4-12.0. (Assists) - REBROVIC, Luna 21; LINDELOW,
Rachel 11. (Dig leaders) - MILLER, Jenn 14; RADOSEVIC, Sara 9
UCF (13-13, 5-7 C-USA) (Kills-aces-blocks) - Williams, Janine 10-0-1;
Serna, Stephanie 9-0-1; Campbell, Erin 7-0-1; Forde, Renele 5-0-4;
Williams, Lauren 3-0-2; Heppert, Jenny 3-0-5; Youngblood, Andrea
0-2-0; Totals 37-2-7.0. (Assists) - Rosenthal, Lauren 20; YOUNGBLOOD,
Andrea 14. (Dig leaders) - Curry, Kathleen 12; Campbell, Erin 10
Site: Orlando, Fla. (The Venue at UCF)
Date: Oct 31, 2008 Attend: 212 Time: 1:26
Referees: Donna Carter, Eric Vlahov
-UCF-