Sept. 18, 2015
Final Stats
CORAL GABLES, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) - It took four close sets, but the UCF volleyball team closed out the non-conference season with a 3-1 loss to Miami in the Knight Complex on Friday evening.
"You can't stop a team like Miami," head coach Todd Dagenais said. "They have four, five, six options to attack on every play. But we stayed patient; we stayed with our cues. We didn't bite on things that we weren't supposed to bite on. We really put ourselves in a position to win the match and just came up short."
In a battle of evenly-matched teams, UCF (6-6) fell behind early. The Knights bounced back and took the lead on a kill from redshirt freshman Maddie Haggerty. UCF held the advantage in the middle of the opening set, but the home team rallied for a 25-22 victory.
Switching sides of the court switched the momentum in UCF's favor for the second set. The teams traded points early and knotted the score at 6-6. A pair of miscues from the Hurricanes put the Knights out front and junior Kia Bright's kill extended the lead. Once ahead, UCF maintained control and evened the match with a 25-17 win.
The third set was a battle for both teams. UCF had 13 kills while Miami finished the frame with 14. The teams traded leads eight times and evened the score on 15 occasions. Bright tied the set at 19, but the Hurricanes closed on a 6-3 run to go ahead in the match.
Following the same pattern, the teams played a back-and-forth opening in the fourth set. Junior Shelby Foyer served up an ace to put the Knights up 7-6. Bright and redshirt sophomore Taylor Wickey teamed up for a block to extend the UCF lead, but Miami responded and reclaimed the lead.
Finding themselves tied at 19 yet again, the Hurricanes produced a pair of kills to take a 21-19 lead and force UCF to use a timeout. The Knights were unable to disrupt the home team, and Miami held on for a 25-22 set win and earned the match victory.
Bright and junior Jale Hervey led the UCF charge on offense. The two combined for 45 of UCF's 53 kills. Bright finished with 25 kills, nine digs and four blocks. She hit .365 and served up an ace for the Knights. Hervey added 20 kills and turned in a career-best .533 hitting percentage. Freshman Jordan Pingel recorded 13 digs, while Foyer finished with 10 digs.
Next Up
* The Knights opens American Athletic Conference action against UConn on Sept. 25. UCF hosts the first four league matches.
* General admission single game tickets are $5 for adults and $4 for youth, seniors (55+) and UCF Faculty Staff. Admission is free for UCF students. For more information on how to purchase tickets, visit UCFKnights.com or call 407-UCF-1000.
Story by Megan Herboth; Photo by Simone Amaduzzi