East Carolina University
Rice
Pirates Downed By Rice, 3-0
October 30, 2009 | Volleyball
Oct. 30, 2009
HOUSTON, Texas - Despite out-blocking Rice 7-5, the East Carolina volleyball team suffered a 3-0 setback (19-25, 17-25, 17-25) Friday night at Tudor Fieldhouse. The Pirates fall to 9-15 on the season and 2-10 in conference play while the Owls are now 15-8 and 7-5 against the league.
ECU jumped out to a 3-1 lead in the first set, but Rice chipped away at the deficit and eventually took its first advantage of the match at 13-12. The Owls then produced a 7-1 run to go ahead 20-13 and put the frame away.
Rice came out the agressor in the second interval, taking a 4-0 lead. However, the Pirates responded right back to knot the score at four. With the scoreline at 9-7 in favor of the home team, the Owls established some breathing room, using a 4-1 run to claim a 13-8 advantage. Rice kept East Carolina at bay the rest of the way, never allowing the visitors to pull within more than four points.
The Pirates kept it close in the third set and found themselves down just 15-14. However, the Owls asserted themselves with a 5-0 run to essentially ended the contest. ECU scored just three points in the remaining rallies.
Senior Melissa Zentner paced the Pirate offense with seven kills, while redshirt freshman middles Briana Fleener and Kelly Derby combined for 11 block assists. In the back row, redshirt sophomore Nicole Jones reached double digits with 10 digs.
East Carolina struggled with its offense, hitting just .046 while Rice enjoyed a solid .280 performance. The OWls also recorded more kills (48-22), digs (43-33) and aces (5-2).
The Pirates play their final road contest of 2009 tomorrow night, traveling five miles across town to face Houston at the Athletics/Alumni Center. First serve for the Halloween affair is set for 8 p.m.
