ECU Downs Houston 3-1 For First AAC Victory Of 2018 Campaign

Friday, September 28

Greenville, N.C.

7:00 p.m.

East Carolina University

9-4, 1-1AAC

Houston

13-5, 0-3AAC

Houston

ECU

Photo by: Rob Goldberg

ECU Downs Houston 3-1 For First AAC Victory Of 2018 Campaign

September 28, 2018 | Volleyball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

GREENVILLE, N.C. – In perhaps its most impressive performance of the season, ECU cruised past Houston 3-1 (25-17, 23-25, 25-11, 25-18) before a season-high crowd of 516 Friday night inside Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum.

The Pirates (9-4, 1-1 AAC) snagged their first American Athletic Conference victory of the season while keeping the Cougars (13-5, 0-3 AAC) winless in league play.

"We are really motivated to be successful in conference play this year," head coach Julie Torbett said. "We have had success against Houston since joining the conference and I think that confidence gave us an edge. We had some unfortunate hitting errors late in set two or else we are talking about a sweep here.

"The team is still gelling and coming together and I told them to keep playing with the same level of energy going into set three. Our passing was really good tonight and I thought [setter Shelby Martin] did a phenomenal job being offensive minded. Everything just came together from serving and passing as well as attacking. [Junior defensive specialist Maggie Hallow] made some great defensive plays as well and that made a really offensively potent Houston team start tipping and rolling the ball."

The Pirates did a great job of shutting down one of the best offensive teams in the country in the Cougars, limiting Houston to a .079 hitting percentage and 40 kills as well as five aces. The Cougars entered the match ranked fifth in the nation in total kills and total assists as well as third in total service aces. ECU was the side that excelled on the offensive end, hitting .238 with 53 kills. The Pirates also held the upper hand in digs (73-63) and total blocks (9.0-4.0).

Sophomore right side Bri Wood posted her third double-double of the season, pounding down a match-high 13 kills and tying her career high of 19 digs. Martin also reached double-double status for the second-straight match, collecting 29 assists and 10 kills. She fell just three digs shy of a triple-double, ending up with seven. Both players committed just one attacking error to hit .429 and .474 respectively. Sophomore outside hitter Sydney Kleinman turned in a nice match, notching nine kills and 11 digs, while junior defensive specialist Maggie Hallow paced ECU with 18 digs.

Megan Duncan was the top offensive performer for Houston, putting down 10 kills. Katie Karbo led all players in the match with 19 digs.

The first set was very tight in the early going as a Pirate service error knotted the score at 14. Kills by junior middle blocker Toya Osuegbu and Wood gave ECU some breathing room and a Martin kill later made the score 19-15. The Cougars called a timeout in an attempt to quell the Pirate momentum, but ECU scored three straight out of the break to seize control for good. The teams traded points the rest of the way as a Houston attacking error sealed the frame of the home team.

With the second stanza tied at 16, a kill by Martin afforded the Pirates a 19-18 edge and prompted the Cougars to burn their second and final timeout of the set. ECU had the lead late at 23-22, but Houston mustered the final three points to win it by two and tie the match at intermission.

The Pirates raced out of the gates in set three, building a 9-3 advantage following a block by Osuegbu and junior outside hitter Page Hiebert. The Cougars pulled within 11-9 after a kill by Silvia Pertens, but ECU ripped off a 12-1 run backed by tough serving to rattle Houston and take a commanding 23-10 lead. A kill by Hiebert ended the frame with the Cougars scoring the least amount of points allowed by the Purple and Gold in a single set in an American Conference match.

Riding the momentum of a big win in the third, the Pirates eventually pulled ahead 11-8 following a Houston attacking error. A solo block by Jordan Lockwood kept the Cougars within one at 13-12, but a 5-1 run capped by a Martin kill allowed ECU to build an 18-13 cushion. Houston did not threaten again as the Pirates pulled away to clinch the match.

ECU concludes its homestand Sunday at 1 p.m. with an American Athletic Conference match against SMU. The Mustangs were swept at Cincinnati earlier Friday evening.