TicketsOct. 23, 2005
CINCINNATI, Ohio---Five Bearcats had double figure kills and Noel Olson nearly had a triple-double as Cincinnati earned a hard fought five-game win over Pittsburgh in a key BIG EAST battle on Sunday afternoon in Fifth Third Arena. UC rallied from a two games to one deficit to score the 29-31, 30-22, 19-30, 30-23, 15-9 victory.
The win, which improves the Bearcats overall record to 15-7, also moves UC into one-half game of third place in the BIG EAST at 6-2. Pitt is also 6-2 in the BIG EAST and 13-9 overall. Both squads are tied with Villanova in the conference race, trailing Louisville, Notre Dame (each 8-0) and Syracuse (7-2).
With Maria Pongonis once again sidelined, the Bearcats relied on balance and youth to secure the victory. Sophomores Jenny Custer and Erin Maldo led the squad with 16 kills each, with both players adding double-doubles to their day. Redshirt freshman Jessie Nevitt added 13 kills, as did true freshman Lindsey Peterson, with the latter posting a new career-high, while also tacking on her first career double-double. Junior Myanna Hellsten, one of the few Bearcat veterans, added 12 kills as the Bearcats put five hitters into double figure kills for the fifth time this year.
Olson also enjoyed a solid all-around day, handing out 53 assists, matching her career-high with 14 digs, while also tallying a new career-best with eight kills. Six players had double figure digs for the Bearcats, led by libero Melissa Zenz's 21. At the net, Nevitt had a match-high seven blocks, while Custer had six.
"That was an awesome win for us against a great team," said Bearcat head coach Reed Sunahara. "We fell behind two games to one, but I thought our kids showed a lot of heart to dig deep and pull out the match. I thought both of our outside hitters stepped up and Lindsey did a great job of filling in for us. We were pretty balanced too with five hitters in double figures."
Pittsburgh got a match-high 19 kills from Diana Andreyko, but the Bearcats were able to hold her to just .046 hitting. Gini Ullery had 18 kills for the Panthers, while Ashley White had 13. Libero Megan McGrane led all players with 30 digs.
Game one provided a preview of things to come as the score was close throughout. The Panthers jumped to an early four-point lead and led by five at 18-13 when the Bearcats called a timeout. Pitt was next to call for a stoppage as UC scored five straight out of the break to tie the score. The Panthers saw their lead grow to 27-24, but kills by Maldo and Peterson keyed a four-point Bearcat spurt that gave UC the lead at 28-27. After Pitt tied the score, Maldo set up game point for the Bearcats with a kill. That would be Cincinnati's last point of the game, however, as a kill and an ace by Andreyko and a White kill gave Pittsburgh the come from behind 31-29 triumph.
The Bearcats caught fire in game two, hitting .421 for the frame to take the eight-point victory. UC led by just 14-12, until a 6-0 run pushed its advantage up to eight. The Cincinnati lead was still eight at 24-16 and down the stretch, Custer and Maldo each picked up two kills to seal the Bearcat triumph.
The third game was a disaster for the Bearcats, as they hit just .048 in a game that Pittsburgh led from start to finish. The Panthers hit only .162 for the frame, but still pulled off the 11-point victory. Pittsburgh held a lead of 15-10 before a 6-0 run put the Bearcats in an 11-point hole. UC could get no closer and Maldo's service error ended game three for the Panthers.
Game four was an offensive struggle for both clubs with UC holding an advantage of just .125 to .019. The stanza featured seven tie scores and four lead changes, with the Bearcats going ahead to stay at 11-10. UC built its lead to 26-19 late and an error by Andreyko set up game five with the 30-23 Bearcat victory.
With the momentum in its favor, UC led all the way in game five, taking the match on the strength of a 15-9 victory. The Bearcats got off to a good start, leading 6-2, before a Pittsburgh comeback made it 10-8. Allie Chevren then brought Pitt to within 12-9, but that would be the Panthers last point of the afternoon as kills by Nevitt and Maldo and a block by Custer and Nevitt handed the Bearcats the come from behind victory.
UC will now take to the road for the next five matches, with the first two coming in trips to DePaul (Friday) and Notre Dame (Sunday) opening the swing.