Rice University
Houston
Rice Beats Houston 3-0 in Volleyball
11/12/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Nov. 12, 2009
Houston - The Rice Owls volleyball won its fifth consecutive match as it defeated Houston 3-0 inside Tudor Fieldhouse in front of 774 fans. Set scores were 25-20, 25-22, 25-20. The Owls are now 19-8 overall and 11-5 in Conference USA, while Houston is now 9-22 on the season and 6-10 in C-USA.
The Owls were led by Ashleigh McCord and senior Natalie Bogan who notched 11 and 10 kills respectively. McCord hit .435 (11-1-23), while Bogan hit .429 (10-1-21). Meredith Schamun had a match-high 36 assists, while Owl libero Tracey Lam posted a match-high 20 digs.
Rice hit .203 with 46 kills. Rice honored its senior volleyball players prior to the match. Besides Bogan, senior Jennifer McClean had 8 kills and 11 digs, senior Jessie Boulavsky posted 6 kills and 3 blocks, while senior Channing Grigsby had 12 digs.
The Cougars hit .132 as a team with 32 kills. Ingrida Zauere and Ashley Applequist led UH with 8 kills each.
Set one saw the Owls jump out to a 10-5 early lead that was increased to 18-13 before the Cougars rallied to tie it at 19. A trio of kills by Rice's Natalie Bogan gave the Owls a 23-20 lead that they would not relinquish.
Rice hit .340 with 20 kills (Meredith Schamun 16 assists) and was led by Bogan's set-high 7 kills. Freshman Nancy Cole had 4 kills. UH hit .214 with 12 kills and was led by Ashley Applequist's 4 kills.
The Owls pulled away late in set two for a 25-22 win. A kill by Bogan gave Rice its 24th point and Bogan teamed up with fellow senior co-captain on a block to seal the win.
Rice only hit .093 in set two with 14 kills, while UH fared better at .147 with 10 kills. McClean led Rice with 4 kills and Ingrida Zauere was tops for Houston with 4 kills as well.
Rice started strong in set three with an early 5-1 lead that blossomed to 9-6 and eventually to 15-10, before the final outcome 25-20. The Owls hit .163 with 12 kills as Ashleigh McCord led Rice with 6 kills. UH hit .044 with 10 kills.
Starting Nov. 20, Rice will serve as host to the 2009 Conference USA Volleyball Championship. The three-day event will be hosted inside Tudor Fieldhouse and will feature the league's top eight teams. An All-Session pass, which includes seven matches, is $15 for adults and $10 for youth.
Single session ticket prices are $8 for adults and $4 for youth and groups. FREE admission to all C-USA members with a valid university ID.
