East Carolina University
VCU
Volleyball Falls To VCU, 3-1
August 29, 2009 | Volleyball
Aug. 29, 2009
RICHMOND, Va. - The East Carolina volleyball team rallied from a 1-0 deficit Saturday evening against VCU, but could not get past the host team, dropping a 3-1 decision in the finale of the VCU Invitational at the Siegel Center. The Pirates fall to 1-2 on their campaign while the Rams remain unbeaten at 4-0.
After the first set produced a 3-3 stalemate after six points, VCU won seven of the next 12 rallies to take a 10-8 advantage. Then, without the benefit of a kill, the Rams racked up a 8-1 run to push ahead, 18-9. ECU would not recover, dropping the frame 25-16.
VCU out-hit the Pirates .400-.273 while also aiding its cause with four service aces.
The Rams jumped out to a 14-10 lead in the second interval, but East Carolina responded with a 5-1 run to knot the score at 15. However, VCU scored the next four points, regaining its four-point cushion. Once again, the Pirates pushed back, leveling the score at 21, 22 and 23 before a Kelly Derby kill and a Ram attack error gave ECU the narrow set win.
Both teams tallied 12 kills in the frame while VCU held the slight edge in hitting at .188-.182. In addition to the 1-1 match score, each team owned 29 digs and 24 set assists at the intermission.
The Pirates went ahead 3-0 at the start of the third set, but the Rams quickly tied things up, helped by two East Carolina attack errors. Then, with the score deadlocked at 13, VCU took command with a 7-1 run from which the Pirates never recovered. The Rams would cruise to the 25-16 win and take a 2-1 match lead.
VCU out-hit ECU .300-.036 in the set while also nearly doubling up on kills (13-7).
The final set remained tight throughout, but the Rams edged out to a 14-10 lead, forcing a Pirate timeout. The teams played to ties at nearly every point, the final time at 23. VCU then received a kill and a block to seal the match.
Melissa Zentner led the way for East Carolina offensively, tallying 15 kills while Stephanie Turner added 14 for her third-consecutive effort in double figures. Defensively, Katie Prast set a career high with 15 digs in her first full match at the libero position.
The Rams out-slugged the Pirates .285-.148 while also recording 55 digs to ECU's 48. The Pirates were also plagued by 11 service errors while VCU held the edge in blocking 11-6.
East Carolina returns to the Commonwealth State next weekend as it participates in the Hokie Invitational in Blacksburg, Va. The Pirates face host Virginia Tech on Sept. 4 at 7 p.m. at the Cassell Coliseum.
