Volleyball Falls at Cincinnati
10/3/2008 12:00:00 AM | WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL
CINCINNATI, Ohio. The DePaul volleyball team dropped a 3-0 (25-12, 25-17, 25-18) BIG EAST Conference match to Cincinnati, Friday at Fifth Third Arena. The Blue Demons fall to 1-14 and 0-3 in league action, while the Bearcats improve to 11-5 and 1-2 in the conference.
Cincinnati controlled the match with 40 kills and a .286 team attack percentage while defensively holding the Blue Demons to a .067 hitting percentage. Stephanie Niemer and Lindsay Upton paced the Bearcats with 10 kills each, while Upton added a team-high four block assists. Cincinnati tallied six and a half blocks in the win.
Cincinnati’s proficient hitting limited the Blue Demons offensive opportunities as DePaul registered just 23 kills in the match. Sarah Cullen paced DePaul with nine kills.
Unable to find an offensive rhythm in the first set, the Blue Demons tallied a season-low four kills and hit a dismal -.065 as a team. Conversely, the Cincinnati was unstoppable as the squad collected 16 kills and a match-high .367 clip. The Bearcats won the first set 25-12.
The Blue Demons found their offense in the second set; but after starting the frame slowly, they were unable to recover and lost the stanza 25-17. DePaul swung for a match-high .227 with eight kills, but the Bearcats mustered 13 kills and a .296 clip to control the set.
Following the break, DePaul took its first advantage of the match. The Blue Demons’ first lead came at the 4-3 mark on a block by Christy Landschoot and Jacie Fiedler. With momentum in their favor Kate Letcher gave Blue Demons an offensive boast with three kills in the set including a pair of back-to-back balls that gave the squad a 7-5 advantage. Following Letcher’s kills, Cincinnati went on a 12-2 run to regain control and a 17-9 lead. The Bearcats won the final set 25-18.
Landschoot paced the Blue Demons defensively with 11 digs while Fiedler finished with three total blocks. Landschoot also dished out 19 assists in the loss.
The Blue Demons travel to Louisville for a 1 p.m. (CST) match with the Cardinals on Sunday.
Notes: Jacie Fiedler has registered double-digit kill totals in 11 of the Blue Demons’ 15 matches... Fiedler has finished 26 career matches in double-digit kill totals... Sarah Cullen has 10 double-doubles (kills-digs) this season and 18 in her career...Cullen has finished the last 10 matches with double-digit kill totals... the Blue Demons have dropped their last 10 matches and last five (dating back to 2007) BIG EAST conference matches... although 1-14, the team has only lost four matches 3-0, while they have played eight, four set and three, five set matches... DePaul lone win is a 3-2 victory over James Madison on Sept. 6.