University of Louisville
USF
Volleyball Corrals Bulls 3-2
October 24, 2010 | Women's Volleyball
Oct. 24, 2010
The Cardinal volleyball team put its seven-match winning streak on the line against its old rival, the South Florida Bulls Sunday afternoon during a televised game in Cardinal Arena. The matchup did not disappoint as the Cardinals won in five sets (25-15, 23-25, 20-25, 25-17, 15-5.)
The Cardinals had 61 kills to the Bulls' 48 and were led by sophomore Lola Arslanbekova's 16 with teammates Anastasia Artemeva and Emily Juhl each tallying 12. U of L outblocked USF 11-5, led by Amanda Simmons' seven. Juhl also had a team-high, season-high five aces. Setter Taylor Brauneis notched her team-leading fifth double-double with 28 assists and 10 digs.
"Every time we play South Florida it is an emotional match because we have so much history with them," said U of L head coach Leonid Yelin. "It was an important match for us in terms of staying on top of the conference. I was trying to get playing opportunities for everybody so that we are prepared for anything. And sometimes that changed the momentum and changed the chemistry, but teams learn from adversity."
Louisville started the match in impressive fashion by quickly jumping out to a 6-1 lead. The Bulls narrowed the gap to one before Cardinal freshman Emily Juhl added two kills to help with the Cards' four point swing. Juhl continued in fine form as she served two consecutive aces causing the Bulls to burn a time out. After the break, the Cards took eight of the next 10 points to take the first set 25-15. The Cardinals tallied four service aces and 14 kills led by Lola Arslanbekova with four.
The second set was tightly contested and full of runs. Both teams traded points to tie at 11. Louisville then dropped six of seven points to trail for the first time in the match 16-12. Not to be out-done, the Cards put together a run of their own as they took seven of eight to regain control at 19-17. Louisville let its lead slip away as they allowed the Bulls to take seven of nine points. With their backs against the wall, the Cards tried to make a come back but fell short 25-23. Emily Juhl led the Cards with four kills followed by Lola Arslanbekova with three.
The Cards and Bulls traded points early in the third set to make it 9-9 early. The differential was never greater than two until the Bulls made a four-point run to make the score 13-9. The gap grew to five at 18-13 as the Cards were unable to make up ground. With heavy hitting from the Bulls from the outside hitters who hit .429 for the set, the Cards fell 25-20 after allowing 17 kills.
The fourth set began highly competitive as USF wanted to make it home to Tampa early while U of L wanted to stay alive and win its third match in five days. The Bulls had an early 7-5 lead before the Cards made a five-point swing with defensive help from Lindsey Mango and Maci Wachtel, who each made diving saves that eventually led to Lola Arslanbekova's kill forcing the Bulls to take a time out. With a 10-7 lead, the Cards continued to stretch the margin to a 16-9 lead. The Bulls managed to hang in the game as both teams traded points the rest of the set. In the end, the Cardinals took the set 25-17 with Lola Arslanbekova's set leading six kills.
The final set began with Cardinals jumping out to a 4-1 lead. After a 5-4 lead, the Cards took 10 of the next 11 points to take the set 15-5 with help from Anastasia Artemeva's set-leading three kills. Louisville improves its record to 14-5, and 8-1 in the BIG EAST. USF falls to 9-11 and 5-4 in the league.
The Cardinals' next match will be this Wednesday October 27 at Tennessee.
