Nov. 19, 2011
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By Eric DeSalvo
UCFAthletics.com
TULSA, Okla. (UCFAthletics.com) - It was a tough start to a three-match road trip for the UCF volleyball team as it dropped a 3-0 (25-15, 25-17, 25-19) decision to Tulsa Friday night inside the Reynolds Center. The Knights (18-11, 10-8) will travel to Dallas, Texas, to face SMU Sunday at 2 p.m.
UCF was held to a .118 hitting percentage on the night, just the seventh time all year the Knights have been held under .200. Head coach Todd Dagenais was impressed with the Golden Hurricane's (26-5, 17-1) defensive prowess in the match.
"Tulsa played extremely well tonight and they look like a team that is gearing up for the NCAA Tournament," Dagenais said of the Conference USA champions. "They are playing at a defensive level right now that would give anybody a real difficult time in the tournament."
Still with two matches left to go in 2011, Dagenais takes away a lot from the match.
"More than anything else, we take away that we have two very important matches that are still yet to come and will ultimately determine our destiny for the rest of the year. As nice as it may have been to beat Tulsa, this match was the one that holds the key to our whole season."
The Knights totaled 33 kills in the match with sophomore Angelica Crump (Atlanta, Ga.) leading the way with 12 kills and notching double-digit daggers for the 28th time in 29 matches this season. Junior Evija Vilde (Riga, Latvia) posted a team-high 16 digs and also chipped in with nine kills. Senior setter Rachel Vukson (Oakville, Ontario) hoisted 29 of the 32 assists in the match.
Tulsa, led by Kellie Culbertson's 12 kills and 10 digs, hit for .365 on the night and out blocked UCF, 8-1.