Oct. 17, 2014
SAN ANTONIO, Texas— In a battle of Conference USA undefeateds, the WKU volleyball team (19-5, 7-1) fell to home-team UTSA (12-7, 8-0) by a score of 3-1 (25-13, 23-25, 19-25, 20-25) on Friday night at the Convocation Center.
Freshman Alyssa Cavanaugh led the team with 16 kills while junior Haley Bodway followed with 11. Senior Heather Boyan put down nine kills to go with four blocks while freshman Jessica Lucas notched a double-double of 41 assists and 10 digs. Sophomore Georgia O'Connell tabbed 15 digs in the back row.
As a team, WKU outhit UTSA .281 to .279 and outblocked the Roadrunners 6-5. The teams had the same number aces and digs at five and 51, respectively, but UTSA had three more kills than WKU at 57 and made a few more plays to seal the win.
For UTSA, three Roadrunners hit double-digit kills, led by Dajana Boskovic at 17 followed by Dempsey Thornton's 16 and Marijeta Runjic's 11. Jessica Waldrip tallied a double-double of 51 assists and 10 digs while Annie Kunes notched 15 digs.
WKU came out aggressive in the first frame, using a 4-0 run to pull ahead 13-6. The Lady Toppers hit .630 for the contest, led by Cavanaugh's 7-of-9 effort with one error. Scoring the last seven points of the set, WKU took the initial win 25-13.
Struggling in the second set, WKU couldn't fight its way from behind, falling 25-23 to UTSA. A 3-0 run by the Roadrunners gave the home team a 12-8 lead, as WKU called its first timeout of the set. The Lady Toppers worked their way back, cutting the deficit to one late at 24-23 after back-to-back UTSA miscues; however, UTSA closed the win at 25-23 to tie the match.
The teams stayed close in the beginning of the third and fourth set. In the third frame, UTSA used a total of 17 kills to pull out of a 16-16 stalemate to win 25-19. During the final set, the Roadrunners used two key blocks to pull ahead 16-12 before a 4-0 run gave UTSA a 22-15 lead on the way to a 25-20 win.
WKU will look to bounce back on Sunday, Oct. 17, facing UTEP in El Paso, slated for a 1 p.m. CT first serve.
The 2014 WKU volleyball season is being presented by the United States Marines. This season, the Marines and WKU Athletics are working together to promote the outstanding athletic and academic achievements of our female student-athletes. The Marines are proud to work with and support these future leaders of America.
For all the latest news and information on WKU volleyball, visit WKUSports.com or follow the program on Twitter via @TravisHudsonWKU and @WKUVolleyball.
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