Volleyball Sweeps Utah

Friday, September 11

CARDINAL ARENA

7:30 PM

University of Louisville

3-3

UTAH

5-3

UTAH

Louisville

Erin Fairs

September 11, 2015 | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

Cards win 25-19, 25-16, 25-12

By: Nancy Worley

Senior setter Katie George had 32 assists, 11 digs and two service aces to lead the University of Louisville volleyball team to a 25-19, 25-16, 25-12 sweep of visiting Utah on the first night of the Active Ankle Challenge in Louisville, Ky.

The Cardinals improved to 3-3 overall as they hit .252 for the match compared to just -.010 for Utah, who entered the match hitting .259 on the young season. Junior outside hitter Maya McClendon led the offense with 12 kills, as Janelle Jenkins and Tess Clark added seven and six kills, respectively. Freshman libero Molly Sauer contributed 16 digs and three service aces.

"We had the ability to side out at 75 percent tonight and that made the difference," said UofL head coach Anne Kordes. "Our passing was strong, especially in the third set. Katie George didn't just do a great job of distributing the ball but her location and tempo was so good tonight. I am excited about this win against a physically imposing team like Utah."

In the first set, Utah jumped out to an 11-5 lead before Louisville climbed back to within 14-12, forcing a Utes timeout. The teams battled back and forth until a kill by Katie George gave Louisville its first lead of the match, 19-18. Utah would tie it at 19-19, before the Cards finished on a 6-0 run to take the set 25-19. Maya McClendon led the Cards with six kills in the set and Katie George added 10 assists.

"I was excited to see how we dig ourselves out of the hole in the first set," Kordes continued. "And that really set the tone for the rest of the match."

The Utes took control once again in the second as they jumped out to an early 8-5 lead. The Cards stormed back using an 11-4 run, including four kills from Erin Fairs, to take a 16-12 lead and force a Utah timeout. Louisville would close the set behind a 9-4 run capped by a Maya McClendon kill to win 25-16.

The third set was tightly contested early, before Louisville gained a 16-9 advantage behind a 6-0 run. Louisville extended the lead to 23-12 behind a 7-3 run, forcing another Utah timeout. An ace by Katie George gave the Cards match point at 24-12, and a Utah attack error closed out the match for Louisville 25-12.

The Cards return to Cardinal Arena on Saturday as they face Seton Hall at 10:00 a.m. and Ohio in the nightcap at 7:30 p.m.