TicketsBearcats Bounced From C-USA Tournament
Marquette wins four-game battle
Contact: Shawn Sell
11/21/2004
Julie DuPont had 22 kills and 18 digs vs. Marquette. |
LOUISVILLE, Ky.---Cincinnati couldn?t overcome a two games to one deficit and a .138 hitting performance as Marquette eliminated the Bearcats from the 2004 ChevronTexaco Conference USA Tournament during semifinal play on Sunday night. Marquette, with wins of 30-15, 30-27, 25-30, 30-25 advances to Monday?s championship game, where they will meet top-seeded Louisville.
Julie DuPont had a match-high 22 kills for the Bearcats, while adding 18 digs. Maria Pongonis added 11 kills, while Myanna Hellsten and Rachel Torblaa each had 10.
Marquette?s duo of Theresa Coughlin and Jamie Mueller combined for 34 kills to lead the Golden Eagles to the win. Coughlin had 18, while Mueller had 10, leading four Golden Eagles in double figure kills. Kimberly Todd and Erin Heisser each tacked on 10.
Trailing two games to one, the Bearcats fought hard in game four as they trailed for much of game four, but got to within 25-24 on a DuPont kill. But Marquette took control from there, scoring four of the last five to take the win. As was the case through much of the match, UC struggled to hit finishing the game at just .109 in the deciding game four.
The Bearcats got the night off to a rough start, as they hit -.081 for the game as Marquette dominated play. Leading by five at 16-11, the Golden Eagles took control with a 9-1 run that blew the lead up to 13. Down the stretch, Marquette scored the last four points to close out the win.
Game two was another battle that saw the Bearcats draw to within two points down the stretch. UC got to 29-27 on a Hellsten block, but a Bearcat service error closed out the game for Marquette.
UC came out firing in game four and broke a 22-all tie with a 5-1 run that got the Bearcats to 27-23. Torblaa was instrumental in the run, taking part in three straight blocks to aid the run. Leading 28-25, the Bearcats closed out the game with a DuPont kill and a Marquette ball handling error.
With the defeat the Bearcats fall to 21-10 on the year with a pair of matches left on the schedule. Marquette is now 22-6. The Bearcats will host a pair of non-conference matches over the Thanksgiving holiday, with Ohio (Friday) and Dayton (Saturday) visiting Fifth Third Arena.