Friday, September 14
Houston, TX
6:30 pm CT
Rice University
7-4
3
vs
1
Ole Miss
9-4
1
2
3
4
F
Ole Miss
25
17
21
20
1
Rice
21
25
25
25
3
Photo by: Maria Lysaker / Rice University
Owls Use Balanced Attack to Defeat Ole Miss
9/14/2018 9:32:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Four Owls register 10 or more kills in four-set victory
HOUSTON – The Rice Owls volleyball team set a season-high with a .291 hitting percentage and four players tallied 10 or more kills to help take down Ole Miss in four sets (21-25, 25-17, 25-21, 25-20) Friday evening on day one of the Rice Adidas Invitational II at Tudor Fieldhouse.
Rice (7-4) bounced back from a tough loss earlier in the week at Stephen F. Austin by defeating their second SEC opponent (South Carolina earlier this season) of the year.
RICE HEAD COACH GENNY VOLPE
What were the goals to victory?
"I thought the team did a really nice job of serving. I thought that helped the whole match because it put Ole Miss on the defense and they were out of system a little bit more than they usually are. I also think our balanced attack picked up. Our passing started improving and our setters did a really nice job."
On the importance of offensive balance:
"All coaches probably want it and it doesn't always happen. But, the more successful teams happen to have that balance. We have players that are ready to go at every position. The team did a great job of following the scouting report and executing at a more consistent level than they did on Tuesday (SFA)."
RICE JUNIOR TORI WOOGK
On the team's mindset after set one loss:
"We started slow but after the first set we said, 'What do we want to focus on'? We said passing and serving. And I think we came together and fixed what we were lacking in the first set and brought it back."
On her most recent success:
"That's all because of the setters. They're doing a great job getting everyone involved and creating splits for me, which is really helpful. It just comes back to being a team effort."
HOW IT HAPPENED
Set 1
Rice hit .295 in the opening set with a sideout clip of 72 percent but Ole Miss matched the Owls and then some by hitting .378 with an 85 percent sideout rate in a 25-21 victory. Emily Stroup recorded six of her match-high 18 kills in the frame for the Rebels and Ole Miss never trailed after breaking a 9-9 tie.
Set 2
Rice had an answer in set two, and dug in on the defensive side by holding Ole Miss to a .167 hitting percentage while hitting .379 themselves. Rice sophomore outside hitter Nicole Lennon led the Owls with four kills and sophomore Kassidy Muse added three more kills on four attacks in a 25-17 match-tying win.
Set 3
In a back and forth affair, it was Rice who would eventually break open a 16-16 tie by outscoring Ole Miss 9-5 the rest of the way. Lennon posted three kills during the run and Woogk sealed the 25-21 win with one of her 12 kills.
Set 4
Rice trailed only once in the final frame (0-1) and never looked back. Muse posted four kills in the match-clinching set and Woogk added three more while Morgan played the role of stopper on the defensive end with three blocks in a 25-20 Owls win.
MATCH NOTES
• Lennon (13 kills), Woogk (12 kills), Muse (11 kills) and Morgan (10 kills) all registered 10 or more kills for a balanced attack.
• Lennon notched her fifth double-double of the season with 13 kills and 12 digs.
• Freshman setter Carly Graham (28 assists) and Adria Martinez (25 assists) did a sensational job running the offense, allowing the Owls to set a season-high hitting percentage of .291.
• Junior libero Lee Ann Cunningham led all players with 24 digs. It was her sixth match this season with 20 or more digs and fourth straight overall.
• McKay Kyle (6 kills) and Seyvion Waggoner (5 kills) each set season-highs in kills.
UP NEXT
The Owls return to the court on Saturday for a pair matches, beginning at 11 a.m. versus Austin Peay (10-1) before closing out the tournament at 7 p.m. against McNeese St. (1-11). For ticket information and links, be sure to visit www.RiceOwls.com and @RiceVolleyball on Twitter.
-RiceOwls.com-
Rice (7-4) bounced back from a tough loss earlier in the week at Stephen F. Austin by defeating their second SEC opponent (South Carolina earlier this season) of the year.
RICE HEAD COACH GENNY VOLPE
What were the goals to victory?
"I thought the team did a really nice job of serving. I thought that helped the whole match because it put Ole Miss on the defense and they were out of system a little bit more than they usually are. I also think our balanced attack picked up. Our passing started improving and our setters did a really nice job."
On the importance of offensive balance:
"All coaches probably want it and it doesn't always happen. But, the more successful teams happen to have that balance. We have players that are ready to go at every position. The team did a great job of following the scouting report and executing at a more consistent level than they did on Tuesday (SFA)."
RICE JUNIOR TORI WOOGK
On the team's mindset after set one loss:
"We started slow but after the first set we said, 'What do we want to focus on'? We said passing and serving. And I think we came together and fixed what we were lacking in the first set and brought it back."
On her most recent success:
"That's all because of the setters. They're doing a great job getting everyone involved and creating splits for me, which is really helpful. It just comes back to being a team effort."
Set 1
Rice hit .295 in the opening set with a sideout clip of 72 percent but Ole Miss matched the Owls and then some by hitting .378 with an 85 percent sideout rate in a 25-21 victory. Emily Stroup recorded six of her match-high 18 kills in the frame for the Rebels and Ole Miss never trailed after breaking a 9-9 tie.
Set 2
Rice had an answer in set two, and dug in on the defensive side by holding Ole Miss to a .167 hitting percentage while hitting .379 themselves. Rice sophomore outside hitter Nicole Lennon led the Owls with four kills and sophomore Kassidy Muse added three more kills on four attacks in a 25-17 match-tying win.
Set 3
In a back and forth affair, it was Rice who would eventually break open a 16-16 tie by outscoring Ole Miss 9-5 the rest of the way. Lennon posted three kills during the run and Woogk sealed the 25-21 win with one of her 12 kills.
Set 4
Rice trailed only once in the final frame (0-1) and never looked back. Muse posted four kills in the match-clinching set and Woogk added three more while Morgan played the role of stopper on the defensive end with three blocks in a 25-20 Owls win.
• Lennon (13 kills), Woogk (12 kills), Muse (11 kills) and Morgan (10 kills) all registered 10 or more kills for a balanced attack.
• Lennon notched her fifth double-double of the season with 13 kills and 12 digs.
• Freshman setter Carly Graham (28 assists) and Adria Martinez (25 assists) did a sensational job running the offense, allowing the Owls to set a season-high hitting percentage of .291.
• Junior libero Lee Ann Cunningham led all players with 24 digs. It was her sixth match this season with 20 or more digs and fourth straight overall.
• McKay Kyle (6 kills) and Seyvion Waggoner (5 kills) each set season-highs in kills.
The Owls return to the court on Saturday for a pair matches, beginning at 11 a.m. versus Austin Peay (10-1) before closing out the tournament at 7 p.m. against McNeese St. (1-11). For ticket information and links, be sure to visit www.RiceOwls.com and @RiceVolleyball on Twitter.
-RiceOwls.com-
Team Stats
OM
RICE
Kills
52
63
Errors
24
19
Attempts
154
151
Hitting %
.182
.291
Points
60.0
72.0
Assists
47
61
Aces
1
2
Blocks
7.0
7.0
Game Leaders
Kills
13
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
12
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
11
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
10
Aces
1
Blocks
4
Players Mentioned
L
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's VolleyballOPP
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