University of Houston
UCF
Houston Volleyball Upsets UCF
10/4/2015 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
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ORLANDO, Fla. â€" Houston Volleyball never gave up as the Cougars defeated American Athletic Conference rivals UCF in five sets (18-25, 25-19, 17-25, 25-21, 15-12) Sunday afternoon.
Houston improves to 13-3 on the season, 3-1 in the American Athletic Conference while UCF drops to 8-8, 2-2 in league play. The Cougars last upset UCF in Orlando during the 2013 season.
After two weeks of conference play, Houston sits in second place behind undefeated Temple.
Houston dropped the first set of the day 25-18, but quickly responded to tie the match 1-1 with a 25-19 win heading into the half.
Set two was the Cougars best showing of the day as they hit .312 with just two errors.
Coming out of the half, UCF took a 2-1 lead in the match with a 25-17 win in the third set.
Knowing they had to force a fifth set, the Cougars jumped out to an 11-6 lead forcing a UCF timeout. The teams went point-for-point as Houston held onto the lead 20-16. The Cougars exhausted a timeout when UCF gained momentum and pulled within two, 21-19. Two Houston kills and back-to-back UCF errors closed the set 25-21, forcing a decisive fifth set.
The final set was all Houston as the Cougars took a 5-2 lead to force a UCF timeout. The Cougars reached eight points first before switching sides and forcing another UCF timeout. Houston didn't let up and overcame the Knights attack with a 15-12 win to clinch the match.
Redshirt freshman middle blocker Chenelle Walker led the Cougars from the middle with 12 kills, hitting .476, and five blocks. Junior right side Hunter Wise also posted 12 kills, three digs and nine blocks in the five-set win. Senior libero Olivia O'Dell tallied 23 digs in the five sets. She has now posted double-digit digs in all 16 matches this season.
As a team, the Cougars posted a season best of 15.0 blocks led by Wise.
NEXT SERVE
Houston Volleyball makes the short turnaround this week as the Cougars travel to New Orleans, La., Wednesday for a midweek match against travel partner Tulane. Houston enjoys Friday off before hitting the road Sunday to face East Carolina in Greenville, N.C.
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SHASTA PASS
The Houston Fan Experience Headquarters is proud to offer the Shasta Pass for the 2015-16 athletic season. For just $50, Cougar fans can purchase one Shasta Pass, which allows season-long general admission entrance to all Houston Women's Basketball, Volleyball, Soccer and Softball home games.
The Shasta Pass offers Houston fans a substantial savings as single-game tickets start at $8 for all four sports. Fans can save $126 alone during the Houston Volleyball and Soccer seasons. To purchase a Shasta Pass, CLICK HERE.
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Fans can help support the Houston Volleyball program by joining the Point HOUSTON Club. To find out more information about the Point HOUSTON Club, visit UHCougars.com or call Cougar Price at (713) 743-GOUH
