TicketsCINCINNATI – University of Cincinnati volleyball officially opened the new Fifth Third Arena on Friday night with an impressive 3-0 sweep of Wichita State.
UC's offense was lethal, attacking at a season-high .483 percent with 53 kills and 47 digs in the three sets.
// NOTES
• The Bearcats earned their 20th win of the season while improving to 10-2 in conference action
• The Shockers drop to 11-12 overall and 6-6 in American Athletic Conference play
• Jordan Thompson became the AAC's single-season points leader as she finished with 24 kills while hitting an unbelievable .611
• Maria Mallon had a double-double with 11 kills and ten digs while adding in two blocks
• Jade Tingelhoff finished with 40 assists and 11 digs
• UC ended with five blocks, but many came at pivotal moments. The first set ended with back-to-back solo blocks and a block sealed the match-victory
// COACH ALVEY'S COMMENT
"What an unbelievable, amazing event tonight. The volleyball match was just one piece of a really incredible experience. Our fans were here in full force. The arena is amazing. And to get our first win in the arena like that I think is really exciting. This atmosphere is the atmosphere that I would like to grow for this volleyball program for every single match that we have. It was a tremendous environment."
// SET BREAKDOWN
Set 1: UC, 25-23
A 6-0 run to close out a comeback win gave the momentum all to UC. Wichita State started the match strong with three-straight kills before Mallon ended a 4-0 streak with a kill. The Shocker's lead grew to 11-7, causing the Bearcats to call a timeout. That lead grew to 15-9 before UC began to close the deficit. Thompson had three kills midway through the set before four Wichita State attack errors made it a three-point set, 19-16. Down 23-20, Jones and Thompson had back-to-back kills to start the set-ending 6-0 run. Dasha Cabarkapa and Mallon kept it going with a block. Mallon followed with a kill before solo blocks by Cabarkapa and Mallon closed out the set victory for the Bearcats.
Set 2:.UC, 25-12
The momentum stuck with UC as it was all Bearcats in the second set. Mallon started it off with a kill and back-to-back Thompson kills and one from Tingelhoff put the lead at 8-4. The lead grew to ten with back-to-back kills by Thompson once again. Erica Kostelac and Jasmine Jones finished off the set with kills to make it a 2-0 match lead for the Bearcats.
Set 3: UC, 25-17
The third set was close at the onset until UC was able to start to pull away. Tied 10-10, Thompson, Cabarkapa and Mallon followed each other will kills for the first sizeable lead of the set. More kills by Thompson and Kostelac allowed the lead to grow. Leading 23-17, Mallon made it match-point with a kill and Cabarkapa and Thompson teamed up with a block to end the match with an exclamation point.
// NEXT MATCH
• The Bearcats remain home in Fifth Third Arena with a match on Sunday at 1 p.m. against Tulsa
• Admission is complimentary for all UC home volleyball matches
• The match is a Signature Sunday where the team will sign autographs afterwards on the court
// 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 (@GoBearcatsVB) and Coach Alvey (@CoachAlveyUC) on twitter. You can also find the Bearcats on Facebook (GoBearcatsVB) and Instagram (GoBearcatsVB).
UC's offense was lethal, attacking at a season-high .483 percent with 53 kills and 47 digs in the three sets.
// NOTES
• The Bearcats earned their 20th win of the season while improving to 10-2 in conference action
• The Shockers drop to 11-12 overall and 6-6 in American Athletic Conference play
• Jordan Thompson became the AAC's single-season points leader as she finished with 24 kills while hitting an unbelievable .611
• Maria Mallon had a double-double with 11 kills and ten digs while adding in two blocks
• Jade Tingelhoff finished with 40 assists and 11 digs
• UC ended with five blocks, but many came at pivotal moments. The first set ended with back-to-back solo blocks and a block sealed the match-victory
// COACH ALVEY'S COMMENT
"What an unbelievable, amazing event tonight. The volleyball match was just one piece of a really incredible experience. Our fans were here in full force. The arena is amazing. And to get our first win in the arena like that I think is really exciting. This atmosphere is the atmosphere that I would like to grow for this volleyball program for every single match that we have. It was a tremendous environment."
// SET BREAKDOWN
Set 1: UC, 25-23
A 6-0 run to close out a comeback win gave the momentum all to UC. Wichita State started the match strong with three-straight kills before Mallon ended a 4-0 streak with a kill. The Shocker's lead grew to 11-7, causing the Bearcats to call a timeout. That lead grew to 15-9 before UC began to close the deficit. Thompson had three kills midway through the set before four Wichita State attack errors made it a three-point set, 19-16. Down 23-20, Jones and Thompson had back-to-back kills to start the set-ending 6-0 run. Dasha Cabarkapa and Mallon kept it going with a block. Mallon followed with a kill before solo blocks by Cabarkapa and Mallon closed out the set victory for the Bearcats.
Set 2:.UC, 25-12
The momentum stuck with UC as it was all Bearcats in the second set. Mallon started it off with a kill and back-to-back Thompson kills and one from Tingelhoff put the lead at 8-4. The lead grew to ten with back-to-back kills by Thompson once again. Erica Kostelac and Jasmine Jones finished off the set with kills to make it a 2-0 match lead for the Bearcats.
Set 3: UC, 25-17
The third set was close at the onset until UC was able to start to pull away. Tied 10-10, Thompson, Cabarkapa and Mallon followed each other will kills for the first sizeable lead of the set. More kills by Thompson and Kostelac allowed the lead to grow. Leading 23-17, Mallon made it match-point with a kill and Cabarkapa and Thompson teamed up with a block to end the match with an exclamation point.
// NEXT MATCH
• The Bearcats remain home in Fifth Third Arena with a match on Sunday at 1 p.m. against Tulsa
• Admission is complimentary for all UC home volleyball matches
• The match is a Signature Sunday where the team will sign autographs afterwards on the court
// 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 (@GoBearcatsVB) and Coach Alvey (@CoachAlveyUC) on twitter. You can also find the Bearcats on Facebook (GoBearcatsVB) and Instagram (GoBearcatsVB).