TicketsSept. 21, 2007
WASHINGTON, D.C.---Three Cincinnati players registered double figure kills as the Bearcats got their BIG EAST ledger off to a good start, sweeping Georgetown on Friday night at McDonough Gym. Freshman Lindsay Upton matched a career-high with 12 kills in helping the Bearcats to the 30-16, 36-34, 30-24 victory.
The win was far from easy for Cincinnati (9-4, 1-0 BIG EAST) as after breezing through game one, they were forced to deal with 23 tie scores and four lead changes in a breathtaking game two battle. The 36 points UC scored in the frame were the most by the Bearcats since a 39-37 loss at St. John's on Oct. 1, 2006.
Upton led the way for the winning Bearcats, hitting .421 with her 12 kills. Stephanie Niemer added 12 kills and Jessica Elley 10 for UC, which hit .298 for the evening. Two-time all-American Jessie Nevitt was held to only nine kills offensively, but made her mark at the net with a match-best six blocks.
"It's good to get our first BIG EAST victory under our belts," UC head coach Reed Sunahara commented. "I was really happy with the way we fought through game two in particular. We got down, but made plays when we had to. It was great and it had to be done."
Cincinnati dominated game one, racing to a 10-1 lead on its way to a 14-point victory. The Hoyas did little to help themselves early, committing five errors and falling victim to a pair of aces by Niemer. Georgetown would comeback to within 13-7, until the Bearcats bolted on a 10-6 run to take a double figure lead and force the Hoyas second timeout. Upton got hot down the stretch, racking up kills on three of the final four points of the game. UC wasted little time in dominating the stat sheet, outhitting Georgetown by a .309 to .040 count in the opening stanza.
Game two was a classic with the lead volleying back and forth until the Bearcats scored three straight points to take a 24-22 lead. Following a Hoyas' timeout, the hosts scored three of the next four and Sunahara took a stoppage with the score tied at 25. A UC service error and two Georgetown kills forced Bearcat timeout number two with the Hoyas within striking distance of tying the match at 28-27. Kortney Robinson set up Georgetown game point with a kill, but Elley and Annie Fesl countered with consecutive kills to give Cincinnati game point. Georgetown tied it on a Jessica Hardy kill, prompting the teams to trade the next eight points. UC finally ended it on kills by Niemer and Jenny Custer.
The Bearcats, hitting .351 through the first two games, couldn't sustain the hot hitting in the third frame, as they slipped to .167. UC did run out to an 8-3 lead and found themselves up 18-10 at a Hoyas' timeout. Out of that stoppage, the Hoyas exploded for a 10-3 run, getting within a single point when Courtney Cohen and Kiersten McKoy combined for a block. A pair of Niemer kills helped Cincinnati get up by four at 26-22 and kills by Upton and Elley in the late going sealed the win for the Bearcats.
Nevitt was Cincinnati's defensive leader with her six blocks, while Custer had four and Niemer three. Jaime Frey led all players with nine digs. Georgetown (4-11, 0-1 BIG EAST) got nine kills from Hardy and a team-best four blocks from McKoy.
Cincinnati is back on the court on Sunday afternoon, taking on USF in Tampa at 2 p.m. The Bulls were swept in their BIG EAST opener on Friday by Louisville.