University of Louisville
MOREHEAD STATE <BR>(OVC Champion)
Volleyball Sweeps Morehead; Awaits NCAA Selection Show
November 26, 2011 | Women's Volleyball
Nov. 26, 2011
Outside hitters Emily Juhl and Lola Arslanbekova had 13 kills apiece to lead the University of Louisville to a 25-12, 25-20, 25-18 win over Morehead State in volleyball action Saturday afternoon in Cardinal Arena.
U of L (23-8) is awaiting its NCAA fate, hoping to earn an at-large bid for its 22nd appearance in the tournament. The pairings will be announced Sunday at 6 p.m. ET on ESPNU. Morehead State earned the OVC automatic qualifier after sweeping Tennessee-Martin for the OVC crown.
"We did what we had to do today. Today was about taking care of business and it was a group effort for the win," said U of L head coach Anne Kordes. "Caitlin Welch did a great job defensively and Taylor Brauneis set a great, balanced offense against a very good Morehead State team. We did what we could to create the opportunity for the NCAA tournament. Our goal is to advance in the tournament and continue the tradition. Now we wait and see what happens tomorrow on the Selection Show."
The Cardinals hit .280 as a team and outblocked the Eagles 10-5. U of L had 40 kills to MSU's 23 and aced the Eagles five times. Caitlin Welch notched 14 digs. Juhl added two aces and two blocks to her total and Arslanbekova had an ace and three blocks. Setter Taylor Brauneis had a match-high 34 assists. Morehead was led by Aryn Bohannon's nine kills.
U of L blew out to a 9-4 lead early and never looked back, using torrid .455 hitting and five blocks to push to the 25-12 win. Emily Juhl and Lola Arslanbekova combined for eight of U of L's 13 kills and Kaitlynn James roofed the Eagles three times.
U of L seemed to have the second set in hand when it built a 17-11 lead early, but the Eagles chipped away at the lead and used a 4-0 run to tie at 20. After a Louisville timeout, the Cards ran off five straight for the 25-20 win. U of L hitting cooled to .179 but Morehead could muster only .000 hitting but the Eagles did outblock the Cards 4-2. Arslanbekova added another six kills to her total.
After tying at 11, Morehead let Louisville run off five straight to go up 16-11 and force an Eagle timeout. Morehead was able to score twice right after the timeout before Emily Juhl got two kills and an ace to squelch the comeback and take the Cards to a 20-14 lead. Morehead battled back to score three straight but then got outscored 5-0 down the stretch giving the Cards a 25-18 win.
