University of Toledo
North Carolina State
Rockets Fall in Matches to NC State and Rice
9/7/2014 4:08:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
RALEIGH, NC – The Toledo volleyball team concluded the Courtyard Midtown Classic with losses to host North Carolina State and Rice on Saturday in Raleigh, NC. The Rockets fell 3-0 (25-15, 25-18, 25-17) to the Wolfpack in the day's first match and 3-0 (26-24, 25-19, 28-26) to Rice in the second match of the day.
“We saw a lot of positives out there today, especially tonight against Rice,” head coach Greg Smith said. “We had our chances to win, and that's all we can ask, to play hard and put ourselves in position to win.”
UT was held to a .066 attack percentage in its match against NC State, as sophomore OH Mary O'Connor led the way offensively with six kills.
Junior DS Maddie Strall and sophomore OH Alyssa Ehrhardt each added six digs on the defensive end, while freshman MB Rachel Vidourek tallied six block assists en route to six total team blocks for the Rockets.
NC State compiled an impressive .357 attack percentage, led by senior MB Alesha Wilson with nine kills (.438 ATK).
In the second match of the day, the Rockets were held to a .142 attack percentage and Rice compiled seven total team blocks.
Toledo was tied at 24 with the Owls in the first set, and led 25-24 in the third set, but was unable to close out Rice, falling in both frames in the 3-0 loss.
Junior S Alex Hines had a strong match, recording four kills, 29assists and four digs. Ehrhardt led the way with nine kills, while Vidourek added eight and senior MB had seven kills and six digs.
Freshman libero Lauren Bakaitis added 15 digs on the match.
The Rockets took the lead in the third set with a kill by Ehrhardt to make the score 25-24, but Toledo could not score the game-winner, losing four of the next five points.
Vidourek was the lone Rocket earning all-tournament honors, accumulating 21 kills on the weekend. It was the second-consecutive tournament a first-year Toledo player was named to an all-tournament team.
“We're still trying to figure out how to close out the sets and matches,” Smith said. “We've had some tough losses but we're definitely improving. We're learning how to play the game as a group and knowing we're still very young and trying to put things together. There was improvement in this weekend from last weekend and we just have to keep pushing hard.”
The Rockets complete their road tournament schedule next weekend at the CSU Invitational in Cleveland. Toledo will take on Dayton in its first match of the weekend on Friday, Sept. 12 at 4:30 p.m.
