University of Louisville
at South Florida
No. 7 Volleyball Corrals Bulls 3-1
November 06, 2005 | Women's Volleyball
Nov. 6, 2005
Lena Ustymekno had 23 kills, two aces and 12 digs to lead the No. 7-ranked University of Louisville to a 3-1 win over South Florida in BIG EAST Conference volleyball action Sunday at the Sun Dome in Tampa.
U of L improves to 23-1 and 11-1 in BIG EAST action with the 30-20, 24-30, 30-23, 30-14 win. South Florida falls to 3-20 and 1-12 in the league. The Cardinals, who have not been out-hit this season hit .390 to USF's 152 and had its 17th straight match where they outblocked their opponents. U of L had nine to USF's three.
"Every road win is great and hard to get," said Louisville head coach Leonid Yelin. "In the end, our hitting wore them down."
After trailing 8-7, U of L roared off on an 11-2 run in the first game to push the Cards up 18-10. USF scrambled back to come within three at 18-15 but could get no closer. U of L ran off the final four points to win 30-20. The Cardinals hit a healthy .370 to USF's .108. U of L was led by Ustymenko's six kills. Elena Pilnikova and Kara Hamilton each added two aces apiece.
In the second game, U of L fell behind early at 13-9 and could not get back on track. Despite hitting .371, the Cardinals couldn't get points during Bull runs and fell 30-24. Ustymenko had five kills in that game to lead the Cardinals.
A hitting percentage of .375 helped the Cardinals get back on track In the third game. U of L was up 21-17 when South Florida used its first timeout. The Cardinals would let the Bulls no closer as spread the lead to seven before Ustymenko had two straight points to win 30-23.
The Cardinals had a 20-6 lead in the fourth and final game and it proved too much for the Bulls. U of L hit .438 and USF hit negative -,054.
Freshman Rui Liu had 11 kills on 15 swings and no errors .733 with senior Jennifer Hoffman adding 11 kills and five blocks to the effort. USF was led by Michelle Stalbaum's 17 kills.
