Rice University Athletics
Rice University
Houston (C-USA)
Rice Rally Not Enough, Fall at UH 3-2
11/2/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Nov. 2, 2005
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HOUSTON - After overcoming a 2-0 deficit, Rice was not able to keep the momentum and lost to Houston 31-29, 30-23, 28-30, 34-36, 15-9 Wednesday night in Conference USA volleyball action at the UH Alumni Center.
Game one opened with three early ties before the Owls grabbed the early advantage and slowly built a five-point lead (17-12). The Cougars chipped away at the gap, tying the score at 23 then taking a 24-23 lead. The teams then traded points for six more ties before Houston secured the frame.
The Cougars came out strong in game three, jumping out to a quick 3-1 lead. The Owls answered with a kill from senior Kristina Hoban, but the Cougars had another 3-0 run to take control of the game. They never trailed again, taking a 2-0 lead into the break
Houston carried its momentum into game three and led by four twice, the last at 12-8. Hoban and freshman Jessica Holderness teamed for a block to spark a 3-0 Rice run as the momentum began to swing back in favor of the Owls. Rice knotted the score at both 16 and 17 before taking its first lead of the frame. After the Cougars stayed close and tied the score at 21, the Owls posted three-straight points off a pair of kills from freshman Karyn Morgan and a kill from junior Tessa Kuykendall to take the lead for good. Houston fought off two game points before Hoban and Holderness teamed for another block to take the frame.
Game four was a nail-biter as neither team could gain the upper hand. After 11 ties, Houston posted a 3-1 run to serve for match point at 29-27, but a pair of Cougar miscues tied the score again at 29-all. Houston had another shot at the match win, serving at 30-29, but another hitting error followed by a Morgan kill gave the Owls their first shot at forcing game five at 31-30. The teams traded kills for two more ties before Houston had two shots at match point (33-32 and 34-33). Rice took advantage of a Cougar service error and a kill from senior Olaya Pazo to serve for the game at 35-34, and finally won the frame off a UH mis-hit.
Houston jumped out to another early lead in game five, leading 3-1. The Owls twice closed to within a single point, but the Cougars rattled off another 3-0 run to take over the game.
Morgan and Pazo led the Owls with 18 kills each, while Hoban was one off her career best with 15. Kuykendall and Holderness added 12 a piece. Pazo also had a career high 25 digs, and Morgan posted 22. For the fourth time this season, Hoban scored a triple-double, adding 49 assists and 10 digs. In addition to her double-digit kills, Holderness added career highs of 11 assists and 17 digs for her first career triple-double.
The loss drops Rice's record to 15-8 overall and 6-6 in C-USA, while Houston holds on to second place in the league, going 14-9 and 9-2. The Owls continue on the road this weekend, playing at SMU on Friday night and Tulsa on Sunday afternoon.
