University of Louisville
CINCINNATI
Volleyball Upsets No. 21-ranked Cincinnati 3-2
October 16, 2010 | Women's Volleyball
Oct. 16, 2010
Lola Arslanbekova had 24 kills and an ace to lead the University of Louisville to a 3-2 upset of No. 21-ranked BIG EAST foe Cincinnati for a share of the BIG EAST lead. It was the first win over a ranked opponent since 2007 when U of L upended St. John's 3-0.
U of L (11-5, 6-1) dropped the first two sets 25-23 and 25-20 before rallying after the break to win 25-17, 25-22, 15-10 for the first 0-2 comeback win since beating Duke 3-2 on Sept 8 ,2007 at the Nebraska Ameritas Players Challenge. Cincinnati now posts a 17-4 mark with a 6-1 league record. The Cardinals were helped by Anastasia Artemeva's 15 kills and career-high eight blocks. U of L, which outblocked UC 19-5, was paced by Gwen Rucker's 13 total blocks which tied a school record. Freshman setter Taylor Brauneis notched her fourth double-double of the season with 48 assists and 18 digs. In a match marked by long rallies, two other Cardinals notched benchmarks in digs with Caitlin Welch (23) and Maci Wachtel (15) posting career highs. UC star Stephanie Niemer had a match-high 29 kills and two blocks.
"I have been saying all season that the toughness of our non-conference schedule would pay off down the line," said U of L head coach Leonid Yelin. "I am very proud of the way we hung in there after we had our backs against wall.. Our fans really helped us stay energized"
The Cardinals started out with a 5-0 deficit in the beginning of the set one, but used an 11-3 run midway through the set to go up 18-16. UC battled back to take a 21-19 lead and force a U of L time out. The Cards scored on two Arslanbekova kills to come within one at 23-21. A service error by Arslanbekova gave UC set point but an Anastasia Artemeva kill denied the deciding point. A Niemer kill gave UC the 25-23 win. U of L outblocked UC 6-1 and out hit them .167 to .091. But UC notched three aces and U of L did little to help its own cause with four service errors.
U of L jumped out to a 6-1 lead in the second set but UC answered with a 5-0 run and then took the lead at 8-7. U of L fell behind by four at 14-10 but battled back to within one at 15-14. UC dug in and ran off five straight to go up 21-15. Emily Juhl sparked a 4-0 run by U of L with two straight kills and forced a UC timeout at 21-19. Three U of L errors and a kill by Niemer gave the Bearcat the 25-20 win and a 2-0 set lead going into the break.
In the third set, after tying at nine, the teams exchanged runs as U of L put together a 7-2 run to go up 16-11 before UC put up a 5-1 run of the of its own to come within two at 18-16. However Gwen Rucker's three blocks helped spark a 7-1 run down the stretch to win 25-17.
Set four was tightly contested until U of L crafted a 6-1 run to go up 18-14. Four UC errors helped break open the U of L lead to 23-19. UC kept the pressure on, coming within two at 24-22 but kill by Anastasia Aretemeva gave the set to the Cardinals. Arslanbekova exploded for seven kills in the set as the Cards hitting .346.
In the deciding set, U of L scooted out to a 6-3 lead and forced a UC timeout. The Bearcats, who had not lost a single set in their previous six conference tilts, showed their grittiness by managing to tie at eight with two straight kills by Juliana Behrens. But the Cardinals took seven of the final nine points, four on Arslanbekova kills, for the 15-10 win.
Cards back in action at home on Wednesday versus Lipscomb at 7 p.m. in Cardinal Arena
