Tulane University
SMU
Volleyball Drops Straight-Sets Decision To SMU
Oct 31, 2014 | Women's Volleyball
Tulane/SMU Box Score In PDF Format
The Mustangs (18-5, 7-4 American), who were picked to win the conference crown in a preseason vote, hit .376 as a team with 46 kills and just eight errors in 101 swings. The Green Wave (5-18, 3-8), meanwhile, were held to a .124 clip (30-18-97) en route to a 25-19, 25-19, 25-16 defeat.
"Our priority today was to try to play hard throughout the match," Tulane head coach Sinisa Momic said. "I think we accomplished that, but at the end it came down to numbers and straight to executing. We were struggling in most of our contacts. We're not digging or passing on the level that will allow our setters to execute any offense, and we're working on connecting with our setters at the same time. It's a matter of not being able to execute not only on one skill, but we'd get on a negative run on different skills at different times.
"We just have to keep playing hard and making sure we're trying to improve our skills little by little because if we can't execute out skills to a certain level, you'll struggle with strategy. I think the girls understand that. We just want to make sure that we have the right attitude, stay positive at all times and keep pushing hard."
Sophomore right-side hitter Tea Juric finished second to Wruck on the team in kills with seven while freshman outside hitter Sarah Ray and sophomore middle blocker Sarah Strasner posted six apiece. Sophomore setter Ally Frank had 27 of the team's 29 assists as well as three of the team's four service aces, and Strasner added three blocks (2 solo, 1 assist).
All three sets followed a similar script as Tulane and SMU battled toe-to-toe early on before the Mustangs pulled away midway through the stanza each time. During the opener, the two teams traded the first 10 points and Tulane trailed by just a pair at 13-11 later in the frame. From there, the Mustangs used a 4-1 run to create some separation and outscored the Green Wave 8-6 the rest of the way to come out on top.
In set No. 2, the teams sat deadlocked at 9-all before SMU used a 4-0 run to take a 13-9 lead it would not relinquish. Tulane cut the deficit to one at 15-14 seven serves later, but the Mustangs scored nine of the frame's final 14 points to take a commanding two-sets-to-none advantage.
Tulane got off to a solid start in what proved to be the final stanza and held a 7-5 lead after 12 serves. SMU shifted momentum back in its favor with a 6-0 run to go ahead 11-7 and clung to a 16-14 lead a dozen points later. The Mustangs, however, thwarted any talks of a Green Wave come-back attempt with another 6-0 rally to take a 22-14 lead and went on to cruise to a nine-point win.
"They have good hitters and they were passing the ball great," Momic said of SMU. "Their setter did a good job and the only way to respond to that is with overall team defense. It can't be one person blocking or one person digging. It's a connecting of blockers and defenders so we can cover the entire court. We had some break-downs there and that's another thing we're trying to get better at."
Caroline Young paced the Mustangs with a match-high 17 kills, followed by Abbey Young with nine and Kristen Stehliing with seven. Avery Acker tallied the match's lone double-double with 39 assists and 11 digs to go with two kills, two aces and a pair of block assists. Morgan Heise led all players with 20 digs while Janelle Giordano headlined the SMU defense with three block assists.
The Green Wave return to action on Sunday, Nov. 2, when they play host to Tulsa at 1 p.m. in Devlin Fieldhouse. For ticket information to that match, as well as future Green Wave events, contact the Tulane Athletics Ticket Office. The ticket office is located on the first floor of the James W. Wilson, Jr., Center and is open weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. For additional information, call (504) 861-WAVE (9283) or log onto the internet at www.TulaneGreenWave.com.
