TicketsSept. 1, 2012
LAS CRUCES, N.M. - The University of Cincinnati volleyball team recorded its first victory of the season, a 3-0 (28-26, 25-15, 25-20) defeat over Drake University, in the finale of the La Quinta Invitational in Las Cruces, N.M. Senior Megan Turner (Ontario, N.Y./Wayne Central) led all players with a career-high 20 kills and an impressive .594 attacking percentage. The win also marks the first for head coach Molly Alvey while at the helm of the UC volleyball program.
"Tonight our passing for the majority of the match was unbelievable" said Alvey. "We were in system and our offense was working properly. We also had good attacking from multiple players. Megan Turner had a fantastic weekend and played well in all three matches. Rachel Rohlfs did a nice job distributing the ball tonight and Emily Hayden had a very consistent, competitive and successful weekend."
UC (1-5) held off a late rally from DU (0-6) in the third set to solidify the first win of the season. A kill from senior Jordanne Scott (Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence North) put the Bearcats ahead 24-20. On match point, Turner slammed the ball over the net for her 20th kill of the match, to end the La Quinta Invitational on a high note for Cincinnati.
Scott added 17 kills in the match, along with seven digs and two service aces. Senior Rachel Rohlfs (Cincinnati, Ohio/Grand Valley State) played a big part in the match, offering a career-high 53 assists and breaking her previous high of 41 set in the first match of the day. Becca Refenes (Westland, Mich./Lutheran Westland) also set a career milestone, playing in her 400th career set during the third set of the match, joining Scott as the only two active players to reach the 400 set mark.
The Bearcats took the first set 28-26 in come-from-behind fashion after being down 23-18 late in the stanza. UC came out of a timeout to score five consecutive points, including four kills from Turner to even the count at 23-23. After fighting off two Drake set points, two kills from Scott gave the Bearcats the set and a 1-0 lead in the match. Turner finished the set with 10 kills and a .588 hitting percentage. Rohlfs added 22 assists.
Cincinnati used its momentum to win the second set in dominating fashion, jumping out to an early lead and never looking back. Turner picked up where she left off in the first set, stringing together back-to-back kills to give UC an 8-3 advantage. The lead ballooned to 20-11 on another kill by Turner before a kill from Scott and two from senior Emily Hayden (Louisville, Ky./Assumption) gave the Bearcats a 23-13 advantage. On its first set point, Cincinnati was able to put it away, 25-15, on a Scott kill with an assist from Rohlfs. The victory marked the first match in which the Bearcats have won two sets.
UC will look to continue its winning ways when it opens the home portion of the schedule on Tuesday, Sept. 4 at 6:30 p.m. against Western Kentucky University. The match will be played at Fifth Third Arena with a Meet the Team reception immediately following in the UCATS Club on the fifth floor of the arena.
-GoBEARCATS.com-