Houston Splits Friday Action at Bama Bash

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The University of Houston Volleyball program posted a split in its first two matches of the Bama Bash inside Foster Auditorium on Friday.

The Cougars opened the tournament with a 3-0 win (25-20, 25-21, 25-19) over Western Carolina before falling to host Alabama 3-1 (23-25, 25-22, 19-25, 20-25) in the day's finale.

Houston closes out the tournament and its regular-season non-conference schedule when it meets Tennessee Tech at 1 p.m., Saturday, inside Foster Auditorium.

Houston 3, Western Carolina 0
In their first match of the day, the Cougars rolled to a 3-0 win over the Catamounts in the first meeting between the two schools.

Winning the first set 25-20, Houston trailed the Catamounts 19-17 in the second set before Head Coach David Rehr called a timeout. The Cougars emerged from that huddle to erupt on a 6-0 run, thanks to two kills from senior outside Kortlyn Henderson and a pair of aces from sophomore setter Annie Cooke, and went on to build a 2-0 lead.

In the final set, Western Carolina moved to within 15-14 following a kill from Julia Gardon. However, the Cougars scored seven of the match's next eight points to build a 22-15 advantage. Theut led the way with three kills in the Houston rally with Jackson and Warren adding single kills.

Senior middle blocker Isabel Theut led all players with 15 kills and only one error for a dazzling .700 hitting percentage. Junior outside hitter Abbie Jackson added 13 kills with nine digs, while junior middle blocker Rachel Tullos totaled 11 kills.

Cooke led the way with 40 assists and added four kills with two service aces and five digs, while sophomore libero Kate Georgiades finished with a match-high 22 kills.

Western Carolina's Julia Gardon led the Catamounts with 10 kills, while Sydney Carlson added 14 assists. Destinee Dorsey and Sarah Janourova tied for team-high honors with eight assists apiece.

Team, David Rehr, Huddle, Recap vs. Alabama

Alabama 3, Houston 1
In the nightcap, the Cougars played close against the host through the first two sets before the Crimson Tide pulled away to win the final two sets and the match.

After dropping the first set to Alabama, the Cougar roared back to knot the game at 1-1 in the second set. Alabama jumped to a quick 2-0 lead and build a 15-9 advantage before the Cougars scored six straight points to tie the game at 15-15, thanks in part to kills from senior outside hitter Kennedy Warren and senior middle blocker Bridget Wallenberger

Warren led the way with 15 kills and added 10 digs for her team-leading third double-double of the season. Jackson finished with 14 kills, six digs and four blocks.

Cooke paced the Cougars with 37 assists, while Georgiades totaled 24 digs in the loss.

Abby Marjama and Kennedy Muckelroy each led Alabama with 11 assists, while Brooke Slusser dished out 22 assists. Emily Janek and Dru Kuck recorded 15 digs apiece to lead four Crimson Tide players in double-digit digs. Sarah Swanson led the way with nine blocks.

The Crimson Tide regained the lead at 18-16, but the Cougars scored the next five points for a 21-18 lead, thanks to kills by Wallenberger and Jackson. Alabama moved to within 23-22 following a Cougar service error, but an Alabama attack error and a kill from Warren gave the Cougars the Set 2 victory and tied the match at 1-1.

Unfortunately, that would be as close as the Cougars would get. Alabama built early leads in the next two sets and held to win the match and split the series at 1-1 against Houston.

FOLLOW the COUGARS
Fans can follow live stats from Saturday's match against Tennessee Tech on StatBroadcast by clicking here.

BUY TICKETS
Fans can purchase Houston Volleyball tickets by calling 713-462-6647 or by clicking here. The 32-match schedule features 13 contests inside the Fertitta Center, which has returned to full capacity for the 2021 season.

UP NEXT
Following the Bama Bash, the Cougars open American Athletic Conference play inside the Fertitta Center. Houston meets Tulsa on Sept. 24 before taking on Wichita State on Sept. 26.

From there, the Cougars hit the road for four consecutive matches, starting at Tulane on Sept. 29 and continuing at Temple on Oct. 3 to open the month.

JOIN POINT HOUSTON CLUB
Fans can help support the Houston Volleyball program by joining the Point HOUSTON Club. For more information about the Point HOUSTON Club, fans can click here or call Cougar Pride at (713) 743-GoUH.

STAY CONNECTED
Follow Houston Volleyball on Twitter and Instagram at @UHCougarVB, and "Like" UHCougarVB on Facebook.

– UHCougars.com –

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Isabel Theut

Abbie Jackson

Rachel Tullos

Kennedy Warren

Players Mentioned

Annie Cooke

Kate Georgiades

Kortlyn Henderson

Abbie Jackson

Isabel Theut

Rachel Tullos

Bridget Wallenberger

Kennedy Warren

Players Mentioned

Annie Cooke

Kate Georgiades

Kortlyn Henderson

Abbie Jackson

Isabel Theut

Rachel Tullos

Bridget Wallenberger

Kennedy Warren

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