No. 1 Seed Louisville Sweeps Samford In NCAA Opening Round

Friday, December 2

LOUISVILLE, KY

7 p.m.

University of Louisville

Samford

No. 1 Seed Louisville Sweeps Samford In NCAA Opening Round

December 02, 2022 | Women's Volleyball

Box Score Photo Gallery

Cardinal to face Purdue in NCAA Second Round

By: Justice Steiner

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Aiko Jones finished with a team-high 11 kills, hitting .558, and adding two blocks and an ace to lead the No. 1-seeded University of Louisville women's volleyball team to a 25-9, 25-13, 25-12 victory in the first round of the NCAA tournament over Samford Friday night at L&N Federal Credit Union Arena.

"I'm really proud of how we came out tonight," said UofL head coach Dani Busboom Kelly. "When you play in the NCAA Tournament, there can be nerves and a lot of distractions. But we were really focused and played very clean from point one. I was just really proud of our effort tonight and we've been preparing. Any team at this moment believes they can win and they (Samford) had some great wins at the end of their season so we were prepared for them to really battle. I'm just proud of how we came out and took that fight away right away."

The Cardinals won in dominating fashion, not allowing the Bulldogs to lead at any point in the match and hit a season-high .514. The win moves Louisville's record to 27-2, while Samford ends the season at 19-12 overall. Claire Chaussee finished the match with nine kills, seven digs, and a block. Amaya Tillman added six kills, and a team-high three blocks while hitting .625. Raquel Lazaro chipped in with 28 assists and five digs

UofL will return to action Saturday, Dec. 3 at 6 p.m. as they are set to host Purdue in the second round of the NCAA tournament. Purdue outlasted Tennessee 3-2 (14-25, 25-14, 22-25, 25-22, 15-11) to advance in the earlier match.

Set by Set Recap
Set 1
Louisville cruised past Samford in the first set 25-9, marking the first time this season they held an opponent under 10 points in a set. The set started with an impressive 9-2 rally for the Cardinals, forcing Samford head coach Keylor Chan to take his first timeout of the match. The Cards grew their lead to 17-9 before finishing the set on a dominating 8-0 rally capped by a Tillman kill. Chaussee was able to tally five kills in the set, while Jones added four kills.

Set 2
Chaussee and Jones were able to continue their momentum forward, each getting a kill for the first two points of the set. Tillman had her third kill of the set to cap off a 10-1 start for the Cards. Moments later, Tillman once again made her presence felt, extending the lead to double digits for Louisville with a block to gain a 12-12 advantage. Cara Cresse slammed a kill to ignite a quick 4-0 rally for Louisville, which helped boost the Cardinal lead to 20-8 late in the set. The Bulldogs responded with a 3-0 rally of their own to cut the Cards' lead to single digits. However, Anna Debeer was able to take over down the stretch as she recorded two kills and a block to score three of the final four points for the Cardinals and close out the set 25-13.

Set 3
The Cards once again got out to a quick start, jumping out to an early 11-4 lead, forcing the Bulldogs to call a timeout. Out of the break, each team was able to score four points apiece before the Cards went on an 8-2 rally, which was sparked by a Jones Kill off a Lazaro assist to push the Louisville lead to 22-10. After a Samford point, Cresse recorded consecutive kills to give Louisville a 24-11 lead. Debeer had the final kill of the contest moments later to end the match and give the Cards a 25-12 victory.

Louisville Post Match Quotes

Louisville Head Coach Dani Busboom Kelly
(Opening Statement)
"I'm really proud of how we came out tonight. When you play in the NCAA Tournament, there can be nerves and a lot of distractions. But we were really focused and played very clean from point one. I was just really proud of our effort tonight and we've been preparing. Any team at this moment believes they can win and they (Samford) had some great wins at the end of their season so we were prepared for them to really battle. I'm just proud of how we came out and took that fight away right away."

(Does anything at all change once you get to the NCAA Tournament or is it just trying to do everything the same?)
Aiko Jones, Senior, Opposite
"I definitely think, while we're very big on our routine and trying to stay consistent throughout the year, but I think when we get to this time of year, we flip a switch. We know that it's literally now or never. Not many teams get to play now, and we know that we are privileged to be able to still be playing, and I think when we come into tournament games, especially starting off really well today, we're like this is serious. This is the time to be as crisp as we can be and to play clean, and it's very important this time of year because you don't get second chances. We don't get to play Samford again. In two weeks, like in the ACC, we get to play teams twice, so I think we know that this is very important, it's very important to be clean and to execute the game plan the first time around."

Phekran Kong, Junior, Middle Blocker
"I would agree with what Aiko had to say, it's really important to be consistent with how you prepare for any game, no matter what part of the season it is, but now that it is postseason time, you only get one chance. So if you're not ready for it then you get sent home. I feel like with what she said with the crispness part, we've had issues starting off games slow early on in the season, so now we just have that little bit of extra urgency just to start out strong and finish even stronger."

(On getting better as the postseason comes along. Can you feel yourselves improving over the last several weeks?)
Phekran Kong, Junior, Middle Blocker
"I would say yeah, from preseason up until now, every single day we've been getting just 1 percent better. We've had issues, like with (Anna) DeBeer when she went out, we lost Raquel (Lazaro) for a game, our middle is rotating around and whatnot. So just being able to adjust to all those changes we've been making, but I would say as the season has kept going on we kept getting stronger, and now as the opponents keep getting harder, I feel like our game will only go up from there too."

Aiko Jones, Senior, Opposite
"I 100 percent agree, and I think the only thing I would add is that our best is yet to come, and we know that. We know that we have consistently gotten better, and we can only continue to get better, and we know that we have so much more to give on the court. So, it's exciting looking forward knowing that tomorrow we will be better than today."

(You had all the success last year, and you have to of course put that away. Is the feeling different or do you not even think about what it felt like when you started last year as compared to now?)
Aiko Jones, Senior, Opposite
"It's definitely different, in many ways. This group is different. A lot of us were here last year, but our dynamic is different ever so slightly. We have different leaders and we vibe differently but in the same way, so it's definitely different. I would argue that we're better prepared this year, because we know how it feels to win and to lose coming into this tournament, and I think we didn't have that last year, and it was always in the back of my mind, like we haven't lost yet, this is kind of scary. This year, we know what it feels like to lose and we hate that feeling, and I think we're even better prepared to not let that happen again."

Phekran Kong, Junior, Middle Blocker
"I would also agree with Aiko. The run that we had last year was nice. It was great. And we returned a lot of those players. But for me personally, I also feel like this season might be a little different than last, because I just had a limited perspective on things. Being a redshirt last season, I was around to learn the game and work on my own game, just get a little better. Now actually getting court experience and those kinds of things, it makes me see the whole game of volleyball a little bit differently and makes me just want to play just a little bit harder."

(Did you see what you were looking for in a first round game?)
Head Coach Dani Busboom Kelly
"Yes, we always first evaluate our serve and pass game and so we played great, we served great and our ball handling was really good. And those are signs of great things. You can build off that. Purdue is really good, so I was hoping we played crisp tonight. Otherwise, I would feel more nervous. I'm already plenty nervous for tomorrow, but we can't ask for much more. We got to play Cara Cresse (R-Fr.) who we know we're going to need and we got to play some of our defensive specialists who we know we're going to need if we make a big run. So it's really nice to get everybody in that we can potentially use in the tournament."

(Does it make a difference to play a team that you've played before (Purdue)?)
Head Coach Dani Busboom Kelly
"I think it's nice in the fact that we're familiar with them. We've actually played them every year for the past four years. So, we're very familiar with their roster and their style of play. But that also adds a little bit of pressure and a little rivalry that wouldn't be there with another opponent."

Samford Post match Quotes

Keylor Chan, Head Coach, Samford
(Opening Statement)
"Louisville is good. They're really good. I'm proud of my team. It's never easy to face a team as talented and prepared in a team like Louisville who is preparing for a national championship - that's obvious. But I'm super proud of this group. Tonight is an indication of the season that they've had - they've really had an amazing season."

(How long does it take to get out the jitters in a game like this?)
Lauren Deaton, Fifth Year, Outside Hitter
"Louisville is a great team, and they obviously have a great system. That first set, we were kind of just getting our feet under us and seeing how they play. We don't see teams like that really often in the Southern Conference, so we were just kind of acclimating ourselves to that level of play, and then just trying to move on from there and play our best volleyball and try to combat that."

(What does an experience like this do for the program as a whole?)
Head Coach Keylor Chan:
"It's everything. I would tell you that there's a lot of teams that would trade places with us. Today was rough, but the NCAA Tournament, is where you want to be. Getting in is one thing, but that's kind of the place we've been, and we definitely want to make some waves in it and that's what we've been trying to do. For this group, there's just been so many things we've had to deal with in good ways and to get back here, for Lauren [Deaton] in her fifth year getting here four out of five times is special and for our seniors getting here three out of four times is special. Not many programs can say that. But our goal is to try to be competitive and win a round. We're going to have to definitely move into that direction, but overall, it's an amazing experience and I'm very proud to be part of Samford. I'm very proud of these young ladies and it's just been an honor and hopefully people see that."

(On the run at the end of the season)
Sarah Hayes Farley, Senior, Outside Hitter
"It's a really cool experience to make the run that we did. The SoCon [Southern Conference] is a very competitive conference and so that was really fun to be able to do that. The bond that we have as a team is just – you don't really see. It was really fun as a senior to be able to go out like that just knowing that we have the friendships that we do and it's not just about the wins and losses, but also about the memories that we make and we made some really good memories this year."

Lauren Deaton, Fifth Year, Outside Hitter
"Like she said, we didn't dominate the SoCon this year, we had some losses throughout the season. Going into the tournament, we just turned it to another level with our resilience and we were relentless in the tournament, so it was really cool to see this team start fighting towards the end of the year, when at the beginning of the year we were kind of struggling with that. So just seeing the team grow immensely, the underclassmen really stepping up and then the leadership from the seniors and juniors was really cool to see. And I know that we'll pass that down and they'll do the same thing next year and the year after that."

(On the senior class and their importance in terms of laying the foundation for the future of the program)
Head Coach Keylor Chan
"I don't want speak too much, I'll probably start crying – that's kind of my MO. They're just special. I've been doing this a long time. I've seen volleyball at the very top. I've coached some elite players and elite teams, but that's just part of it. That's not the deal in college volleyball. It's not just about winning and losing, and if it is, then I'll get out. It's about overcoming adversity, teaching people how to deal with issues. And learning how to play together. Putting your issues aside sometimes and being humble enough to do that. I'll get off my pulpit a bit, but it's just been an honor and they're special, so I'll leave it at that. They are special."