Rice University Athletics
Volleyball: Owls Fall Short at SMU
10/13/2000 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
The Mustangs opened the match with six straight points before Rice could get on the board. Junior Michelle Craven provided the spark for the Owls, answering the Mustangs by serving up six straight points of her own to tie the game. That wasn't enough for Rice, as SMU went on to win game one 15-6. The Owls were held to just .150 hitting compared to the Mustangs' .560 in game one.
Game two was much of the same story for the Owls as Rice was out hit .193 to .322. Junior Leigh Leman knocked down seven of her 15 kills in game two as the Owls conceded the game 15-8.
Despite outhitting SMU in game three .300 to .241, the Mustangs rallied from five points down to tie the game at eight, and closed the deal with an 18-16 win to defeat the Blue and Grey and earn their first conference victory of the year. Sophomore Briana Cook posted 11 kills on 22 attempts with four errors. Senior Karolina Zelinka led the Owls with 17 kills on 40 attempts and three errors, and added 12 digs to post her thirteenth double-double for the season.
The Mustangs' Shelly Bredwater led all hitters with 19 kills on 31 attempts with only five errors, as SMU moves to 10-7 overall, 1-4 in the WAC.
Halfway through the season, Rice now stands at 14-6, 3-3 in the WAC, and heads to Fort Worth tomorrow night to face TCU. The Owls return to Autry Court next Friday, October 20 at 7 p.m. when they play host to conference newcomer Nevada.
