USF returns to The Corral Friday to face UCF in the War on I-4.
CINCINNATI, OHIO, OCT. 6, 2019 – The USF women’s volleyball team closed out a two-match conference road swing on Sunday with a four-set loss to the Cincinnati Bearcats (12-4; 4-0 American) at Cincinnati’s Fifth Third Arena.
After in impressive first set win by the Bulls, the Bearcats got going in front of the home crowd of 797 fans to post a 23-25, 25-21, 25-12, 26-24 victory. The Bulls fell to 7-11 overall and 1-3 in The American following their first conference road swing. USF will return to The Corral on Friday, Oct. 11, at 8 p.m. to face UCF in the War on I-4.
Cincinnati entered the match coming off straight set wins over ECU, Wichita State and UCF to open conference play and were 3-1 at home on the year, with their only home loss coming to No. 25 Louisville in five sets.
Cincinnati hit .259 in the match and posted 12 aces to out duel the Bulls who hit .220. Freshman Jac St. Cin (St. Petersburg, Fla.) led the Bulls with 14 kills on the day while hitting .650. Freshman Ally Barnhart (Lenexa, Kan.) and sophomore Nicole Legg (Union, K.Y.) both logged five blocks, while freshman Jordan Valley (Haslett, Mich.) posted a team-high 13 digs.
USF took an early 10-6 lead in the first set following a block from Lindsey Pliapol (Daytona Beach, Fla.) and Legg. Cincinnati tied the match at 18 before the Bulls reeled of six straight points to lead 24-18 behind kills from Jac’cara Walker (Gainesville, Fla.) and Legg and a big block. The Bearcats responded with five straight points to close to 24-23 before CC Clausen (The Woodlands, Texas) found the floor with a quick over to deliver the first set win to the Bulls.
Cincinnati took a tight second set that saw USF jump to a 9-5 lead. The match was later tied at 14 and 20. The Bearcats ran of four straight points late to take a 24-20 lead before claiming a 25-21 victory.
The Bearcats were in command from the start in the third set and cruised to a 25-12 victory. They continued the momentum into the fourth set, but the Bulls battled hard, tying the match at 13 on a Barnhart block. The Bulls tied the set again at 19 following a block from Pliapol and Legg, and then took a 22-21 lead on a kill from Walker. Cincinnati went on to post a 26-24 win to seal the four-set victory.
Notables
- Freshman Jac St. Cin led the Bulls with 14 kills and hitting .650
- Freshman Ally Barnhart and sophomore Nicole Legg both logged five blocks to lead the Bulls.
- Freshman Jordan Valley posted a team-high 13 digs.
About USF Women’s Volleyball
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Head coach Courtney Draper led her team to 20 wins in 2018, the most in her time at USF and the most for the program since 2002. The Bulls appeared in the NIVC, the program’s first postseason trip since 2002. Senior outside hitter Jac’cara Walker led USF with 394 kills and recorded her 1000thcareer kill during the 2018 year, on her way to earning first team All-American Athletic Conference honors. USF returns four starters, including its libero, while welcoming 9 newcomers to the fray in 2019 in the form of two transfers and seven freshmen.
