NORMAL, Ill. (UCFKnights.com) – The UCF volleyball team narrowly fell to No. 7 ranked Marquette (6-1) on Friday night (27-29, 25-27, 25-23, 25-19, 14-16) at the Redbird Classic in Normal, Ill. After dropping the first two sets, the Knights pushed for the comeback, taking sets three and four before losing 16-14 in the final set.
"These are the kinds of matches that leave a hole in your stomach." UCF head coach Todd Dagenais said. "But, with that being said, it is just the first of three matches this weekend. We are going to have to find a way to quickly put the pieces back together and go out and see if we can't capitalize on the other two opportunities that we have."
Despite dropping the first two sets, the Knights showed fight and battled all the way back to claim the third and fourth sets, forcing a decisive fifth set, where the Knights were up 14-10 before Marquette went on a six-point run to secure the victory.
McKenna Melville continued to add to her offensive resume this season, posting another 21 kills in the match to go along with 12 digs and three blocks. Kathryn Wesolich had seven blocks and was hitting at a .400 clip on the night.
The loss marked the second of the season for the Knights. They will play a double-header tomorrow, facing off against No. 14 Illinois (2-2) at 11:00 am ET followed by host Illinois State at 6:30 pm ET.
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FIRST SET
Marquette kicked off the first set of the night by going up 3-0 over the Knights early, but the Knights battled back to tie it up at three apiece. Once again, Marquette began to pull away, going up 14-8, but the Knights pushed back again to tie the set at 22. The two sides traded blows, with UCF needing just one point to win the set on three separate occasions, but they couldn't close out the set and Marquette pulled away to win 29-27.
SECOND SET
The second set was neck-and-neck, with neither side pulling away by more than two points. With Marquette up 25-24, Melville recorded the kill to tie it up at 25 apiece, but a UCF service error and a Marquette service ace was all the Golden Eagles needed to take the second set, 27-25, and go up 2-0 over UCF.
THIRD SET
Down by two sets, the Knights refused to give up. They fell behind, 0-3, early in the third set, but fought their way back to 7-7. With sisters Amber Olson and Erin Olson leading the team in the set at four assists apiece, the Knights went on a run to go up 15-10 before finally taking their first set of the night by a score of 25-23.
FOURTH SET
The fourth set was perhaps the Knights' most complete set of the night as they hit a team combined .353 percent to help them secure the 25-19 win. Kristina Fisher led the charge, knocking down six kills at a .600 hitting percentage to set the pace for the Knights. Meanwhile, Anne-Marie Watson had four kills in the set, good for a .400 hitting percentage.
FIFTH SET
After dropping the first two sets and taking the third and fourth, the Knights were poised to finish off the comeback. Marquette was first to strike in the fifth set, going up 1-0 after a UCF attack error, but the Knights went on a six-point run to go up 6-1. A service ace later in the set would put UCF up 11-3, just four points away from taking down No. 7 ranked Marquette, but the Golden Eagles seemed determined. With the Knights up 14-10, Marquette went on a six-point run to come back and defeat UCF, 16-14.
DAGENAIS DIALOGUE
On the takeaway after the loss:
"They're fighters. Usually we are the most resilient team when it comes down to those close moments. I thought Marquette was that tonight. I am proud of the fight from our team. We did a really good job of holding some of their first or second-team All Americans at bay. We gave ourselves a chance to win."
On transitioning from this match to the double-header:
"It is not the first time we've had to do this. What they will do is watch the first match. They'll scout Illinois vs. Illinois State and then they'll go back, get some rest, and get some work on these teams. We are playing three matches in just over 24 hours… so we have to come back and get ready to go, and I think that's what they'll do."
On the opportunity to comeback…
"They knew that they had opportunities that they didn't take advantage of… I thought they took advantage of that third set, and really pushed in the fourth set, but just couldn't get that last break in the last set when they needed it."
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UP NEXT
The Knights will play a double-header tomorrow, facing off against Illinois (2-2) at 11:00 am ET followed by host Illinois State at 6:30 pm ET.
