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CINCINNATI - The University of Cincinnati volleyball team put up a hard-fought match to earn a 3-1 (25-23, 34-32, 22-25, 25-21) victory over Tennessee State on Saturday night to conclude the UC Invitational from Fifth Third Arena. The teams played even through most of the match, making for an exciting finish.
The Bearcats were led by Ciara Hill (Bolingbrook, Ill./Bolingbrook) who recorded a match-high 22 kills with a .378 attacking percentage. The kills total is a new career record for the sophomore and also ties the season high for any Bearcats player this year.
Redshirt junior Caitlin Ogletree (Montgomery, Texas/Montgomery) also had a banner night, dishing out a career-high 55 assists. She added 12 digs to her effort for her fourth double-double of the season.
// Notables
- With the win, Cincinnati improves to 8-4 on the season while Tennessee State falls to 5-9.
- The Bearcats finished second at the UC Invitational with a record of 2-1.
- Senior Me'Ashah Nicholson (Shiloh, Ill./Belleville Althoff) and sophomore Ciara Hill (Bolingbrook, Ill./Bolingbrook) were named to the UC Invitational All-Tournament team.
- The second set score of 34-32 was the highest-scoring set for the Bearcats since losing 33-35 in the first set against Rice on Sept. 9, 2011.
- The win was the second of the season over Tennessee State. UC also beat the Tigers 3-1 on Sept. 6 as part of the Active Ankle Challenge in Louisville, Kentucky.
- Senior Jamie Netisingha (Westmont, Ill./Hinsdale Central) recorded 23 digs in the match and has now tallied double-digit digs in each match this season. She also has recorded 20 or more digs in three straight matches.
- Junior Emma Roberson (Brooks, Ky./Evansville) tallied 17 kills and has recorded double-digit kills in six consecutive matches. She also added a career-high 5 digs.
- Junior Morgan Allred (Carrolton, Texas/Hebron) had 15 kills in the match and has produced double-digit kills in five consecutive matches.
// Set Breakdown
Set 1: UC 25, TSU 23
- The Tigers took a commanding lead early, going ahead 15-10 on a block by Naomi Wells and Haley Hampton.
- TSU held the five-point lead and was two points away from winning the set when a kill put the Tigers ahead 23-18.
- The Bearcats mounted a furious comeback to score the next seven points and win the game 25-23.
- Cincinnati produced its own points on six of the seven in the final rally, only using a TSU error on the last point. Two kills apiece by Roberson and Hill, along with a block by Roberson and Nicholson and a service ace from sophomore Lindsey Dinkelacker (Cincinnati, Ohio/St. Louis) paced the Bearcats to the set victory.
Set 2: UC 34, TSU 32
- Cincinnati scored four straight points to break a 4-4 deadlock and go ahead 8-4. A kill by setter Ogletree and a solo block by Nicholson highlighted the run.
- The UC lead increased to 17-11 before a TSU scoring run that saw it come all the way back to within 21-20.
- Two TSU kills and a UC ball handling error tied the game at 23-23, setting off a back-and-forth in scoring until Cincinnati finally broke through to win 34-32.
- A service error by the Tigers and a kill by Hill put the Bearcats over the two-point threshold to win the set and take a 2-0 advantage in the match.
- The game featured five lead changes and 12 tie scores.
Set 3: TSU 25, UC 22
- The Tigers took a 10-7 lead and expanded it to 12-7 following three straight kills.
- Cincinnati tied the score at 15-all with a kill by Hill but the Tigers scored five of the next seven points for a 20-17 advantage.
- The Bearcats regrouped to get within 22-20 and, out of a Molly Alvey timeout, tied the score at 22-22 on a Roberson kill and a Hill/Maya Muldrow (Raleigh, N.C./Wakefield) block.
- The Tigers called a timeout and preceded to score the next three points to win the game.
Set 4: UC 25, TSU 21
- The game was tied at 6-6 when the Tigers used a five-point scoring run to take an 11-6 lead.
- Cincinnati rallied with Hill's 20th kill of the match and a TSU attacking error to go ahead 16-15.
- Back-to-back blocks by the Bearcats put the home team ahead 20-18 and forced TSU into a timeout.
- Tennessee State fought off one Cincinnati match point but Ciara Hill hit her 22nd kill of the match on an assist from Ogletree to collect the Bearcats win.
// Up Next
With the conclusion of non-conference action, the Bearcats now focus their attention to the American Athletic Conference. Cincinnati opens league play in the Lone Star State with a match at Houston on Friday, Sept. 26 at 8 p.m., and then travels to Louisiana for a match at Tulane on Sunday, Sept. 28 at 2 p.m.
// Follow the Bearcats
For all of the latest information on Cincinnati volleyball, please visit GoBEARCATS.com. For up to the minute updates, follow Cincinnati Volleyball (@cincinnativball) and Coach Alvey (@CoachAlveyUC) on twitter. You can also find the Bearcats on Facebook and Instagram.
// Ticket Information
Season tickets for all 15 home matches can be purchased for as little $10. For more information, visit GoBEARCATS.com/tickets or call 1-877-CATS-TIX.
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