Saturday, October 30
Birmingham, AL
1:00 P.M. CT
Rice University
-155,100 CUSA
3
at
0
UAB
-913,46 CUSA
1
2
3
F
Rice
25
25
25
3
UAB
19
11
18
0
Volleyball Secures Second Straight West Division Title
10/30/2021 3:24:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Winning streak moves to 10 in a row
BIRMINGHAM, AL – The Rice Owls volleyball team ran their winning streak to 10 consecutive matches and in the process secured their second straight Conference USA West Division title, sweeping (25-19, 25-11, 25-18) the UAB Blazers on the road Saturday afternoon.
Rice (15-5, 10-0) captured their fourth regular season title under head coach Genny Volpe by outhitting the Blazers, .270-.117. For a second straight match the Owls registered double-figure blocks with 10.0 team rejections.
Senior outside hitter Nicole Lennon led all players with 14 kills on 30 attacks (.367) while also adding eight digs and three blocks. Freshman middle blocker Shaylee Shore contributed across the board with eight kills (.471), three aces, three digs, and two blocks.
Junior setter Carly Graham distributed 32 assists while junior middle blocker Anota Adekunle totaled eight blocks. Elizabeth LaBue once again led the Owls with 14 digs in the victory.
Postgame Reaction - Head Coach Genny Volpe
"I'm really proud of our intentional focus today and the energy we had the entire match. Our entire team was locked in and contributed to this win today. I believe our preseason definitely prepared us for conference play and we are looking to finish league play strong."
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Set
The Owls never trailed in a 25-19 victory as they used a fierce defense to take a 1-0 match lead. Rice totaled 4.0 team blocks along with 20 digs while limiting the Blazers to a .150 hitting percentage. Lennon led the way offensively with five kills while Shore contributed a pair of aces.
Second Set
Rice hit .462 en route to a 25-11 victory as they closed the game on an 8-0 run. Adekunle had four kills on seven attacks while Lennon and Danyle Courtley also contributed three kills apiece. The Owls posted a staggering 90 percent sideout rate while also holding UAB to a .069 hitting clip.
Third Set
Lennon (6 kills) and Shore (4 kills) combined for 10 kills on 18 attacks as Rice put the match away with a 25-18 victory. The Owls closed the set on an 8-2 run to win 25-18 as Graham assisted on 13 of Rice's 16 kills.
UP NEXT
The Owls return to Houston for their final homestand of the regular season Nov. 5-6 at Tudor Fieldhouse against UTSA. The Nov. 5 match at 6 p.m. will be Senior Night, where the Owls will honor the careers of Nicole Lennon, Tia Grippo, and Elizabeth LaBue in a pregame ceremony.
Rice (15-5, 10-0) captured their fourth regular season title under head coach Genny Volpe by outhitting the Blazers, .270-.117. For a second straight match the Owls registered double-figure blocks with 10.0 team rejections.
Senior outside hitter Nicole Lennon led all players with 14 kills on 30 attacks (.367) while also adding eight digs and three blocks. Freshman middle blocker Shaylee Shore contributed across the board with eight kills (.471), three aces, three digs, and two blocks.
Junior setter Carly Graham distributed 32 assists while junior middle blocker Anota Adekunle totaled eight blocks. Elizabeth LaBue once again led the Owls with 14 digs in the victory.
"I'm really proud of our intentional focus today and the energy we had the entire match. Our entire team was locked in and contributed to this win today. I believe our preseason definitely prepared us for conference play and we are looking to finish league play strong."
First Set
The Owls never trailed in a 25-19 victory as they used a fierce defense to take a 1-0 match lead. Rice totaled 4.0 team blocks along with 20 digs while limiting the Blazers to a .150 hitting percentage. Lennon led the way offensively with five kills while Shore contributed a pair of aces.
Second Set
Rice hit .462 en route to a 25-11 victory as they closed the game on an 8-0 run. Adekunle had four kills on seven attacks while Lennon and Danyle Courtley also contributed three kills apiece. The Owls posted a staggering 90 percent sideout rate while also holding UAB to a .069 hitting clip.
Third Set
Lennon (6 kills) and Shore (4 kills) combined for 10 kills on 18 attacks as Rice put the match away with a 25-18 victory. The Owls closed the set on an 8-2 run to win 25-18 as Graham assisted on 13 of Rice's 16 kills.
The Owls return to Houston for their final homestand of the regular season Nov. 5-6 at Tudor Fieldhouse against UTSA. The Nov. 5 match at 6 p.m. will be Senior Night, where the Owls will honor the careers of Nicole Lennon, Tia Grippo, and Elizabeth LaBue in a pregame ceremony.
-RiceOwls.com-
Team Stats
Rice
UAB
Kills
43
30
Errors
13
18
Attempts
111
103
Hitting %
.270
.117
Points
57
38
Assists
37
30
Aces
4
4
Blocks
10
4
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
14
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Kills
8
Aces
3
Blocks
2
Kills
5
Aces
0
Blocks
8
Kills
5
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Players Mentioned
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
OH/RS
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's Volleyball
L/DS
/ Women's Volleyball
DS/L
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's VolleyballMB/RS
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