TicketsOct. 21, 2012
SYRACUSE, N.Y. - The University of Cincinnati volleyball team swept Syracuse University 3-0 (25-22, 25-20, 25-19) on Sunday afternoon in Syracuse, N.Y. Senior Emily Hayden (Louisville, Ky./Assumption) led the team with 12 kills and a .647 attacking percentage, a Cincinnati season-high when a player hits at least 12 kills.
"I think we minimized some of our errors today" said head coach Molly Alvey. "I would have liked to see us clean up our serving and execute a more balanced attack across the board, but I was pleased with how we followed our defensive plan. Emily Hayden today was elevating extremely well and played unbelievable."
Offensively, Cincinnati (9-14, 7-3 BIG EAST) recorded 38 kills to Syracuse's (9-15, 1-8 BIG EAST) 34. The Bearcats also out-assisted the Orange 37-32 while both teams finished with four service aces. Hayden led UC with 12 kills, followed by senior Jordanne Scott (Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence North) with eight and three players with six.
Junior Emily MacIntyre (Muncie, Ind./Yorktown) paced the defensive effort for UC, recording a match-high 12 digs while sophomore Jamie Netisingha (Westmont, Ill./Hinsdale Central) added seven. Sophomore Me'Ashah Nicholson (Shiloh, Ill./Belleville Althoff) had a match-high four blocks for the Bearcats.
Cincinnati found itself down 13-9 after a four-point run from Syracuse early in the first game. The Orange maintained the lead through 20-16 before the Bearcats rattled off six consecutive points on five SU errors to take a 22-20 lead. UC finished strong, closing the game with a 25-22 victory and taking a 1-0 lead in the match.
The Bearcats added to the lead with a 25-20 win in the second game of the match. UC stormed out to a 4-1 lead following a kill by Hayden and three SU errors. A four-point run, including kills by senior Becca Refenes (Westland, Mich./Lutheran Westland) and Nicholson extended the lead to 10-3. The Orange pulled to within four at 20-16, but the duo of Hayden and Scott produced five kills for the Bearcats' final five points to give UC the 25-20 victory.
In the deciding third game, the Bearcats recorded the final five points of the match to conclude the sweep of the Orange. After SU climbed to within a point at 20-19, the Bearcats used two Orange errors, a kill from Refenes and a service ace from Nicholson to take a 24-19 lead. On the team's first match point, senior Megan Turner (Ontario, N.Y./Wayne Central) slammed a kill over the net to wrap up the win for the Bearcats.
The Bearcats will have a week of preparation before returning to Fifth Third Arena on Sun., Oct. 28 at 1 p.m. to face No. 15 Louisville in a nationally televised match on ESPNU. The match will be the team's annual Think Pink game in support of breast cancer awareness.
-GoBEARCATS.com-