Toledo, Ohio— Closing out the BG/UT Invitational, Toledo fell to Notre Dame on Saturday evening 3-0. The Rockets finished the weekend 1-2 and dropped to 2-4 overall after the loss to the Fighting Irish.

After the conclusion of the game, the All-Tournament team was announced:
Rebecca Nunge (MVP), Notre Dame
Natalie Johnson, Notre Dame
Jemma Yeadon, Notre Dame
Vicky Giommarini, VCU
Tori Baldwin, VCU
Emma Swope, Toledo
Lexie Torres, Southeastern Louisiana
Madeline Brandewie, Bowling Green
 
The freshman outside hitter for the Rockets tallied a team-high 30 kills over the course of the three games, including a career-best 16 against VCU. Junior libero Maurissa Leonard also had a good weekend, averaging 5.7 digs per set. Senior setter Brianna Foster stepped up big and had 93 assists for Toledo during the tournament.
 
"I was proud of the group that played tonight, and I thought they did a lot of nice things," Head Coach Greg Smith said. "We got into a big hole, 8-0, in that first set, but we outplayed Notre Dame after that point in the set. I thought we did a lot of positive things, but we also saw things we need to work on. We have to build upon those positives and continue to push forward."

Toledo will hit the road next weekend for the Thunder Invite in Huntington, W. Va. The Rockets will face Maryland on Friday, Sept. 8 at 4:30 p.m. before playing two games on Saturday: a 1:00 p.m. affair with tournament host Marshall and a 5:00 p.m. matchup against Virginia Tech. Facing three tough opponents away from home will make for a challenging weekend for the Rockets, but things are trending in a good direction for the Midnight Blue and Gold.

"I like the progression," Smith said. "I like what we're doing, and it's only going to get better. We just have to stay positive about it and keep working hard."

First Set
It was a rough start for the Rockets, who started off the first stanza against the Fighting Irish trailing 14-3, with ND dominating the early going. They would get back in it though and come to within four, 16-12, thanks in part to a couple big kills from freshman outside hitter Caleigh Barhorst. After trailing by 11 to start the set, UT rattled off nine of the next 11 points to get as close as they did and, as Smith mentioned, actually outscored the Fighting Irish after incurring an 8-0 deficit. Ultimately, Notre Dame would hang on to win the set 25-19.

Second Set
The second frame was much closer, even though it ended with the same score (25-19). UT and ND were tied 9-9 and the Rockets were as close as 16-14 at one point. Once again, however, the Fighting Irish pulled away to take a 2-0 lead in the match. Toledo saw a big improvement on its hitting compared to the opening set; in the second game UT hit .310, with five Rockets recording kills. Barhorst led the way with six, including consecutive kills that gave Toledo its first lead of the match (8-7).

Third Set
Toledo took an early 3-1 lead, punctuated by a kill from Swope. The Fighting Irish regained the set advantage, and really pulled away from the Rockets by scoring nine consecutive points and taking a 17-7 lead. Eventually the final score would come to 25-17, capping a Notre Dame victory. Foster was the only player on either team with at least 10 assists in the final set, while six different Rockets contributed kills to the cause.


Toledo's match against Notre Dame.


Head Coach Greg Smith gives his thoughts about the weekend.