Pirates Fall To Bearcats In Three

Wednesday, October 6

Greenville, N.C.

7:00 p.m.

East Carolina University

6-8,2-3AAC

Cincinnati

9-4,4-1AAC

Cincinnati

East Carolina

October 06, 2021 | Volleyball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

GREENVILLE, N.C. – Cincinnati remained in the upper echelon of the American Athletic Conference standings Wednesday night, sweeping East Carolina (28-26, 25-16, 25-10) inside Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum.

Reigning AAC Offensive Player of the Week Abby Walker had another strong match for the Bearcats (9-4, 4-1 AAC), finishing with 10 kills on 16 attempts with two errors for a .500 hitting percentage. Cincinnati spread the wealth offensively with four players recording at least seven kills. The Bearcats hit .255 as a team while limiting the Pirates (6-8, 2-3 AAC) to just 24 kills and .053 efficiency. Cincinnati also had the upper hand on the defensive stat sheet in total blocks (9.0-6.0) and digs (47-37).

Sydney Kleinman paced ECU with seven kills and seven digs to go along with a six-kill, seven-dig performance from Bri Wood.

The Bearcats rolled to a 10-4 lead in the opening set after a kill by Emme Madden. Following a Pirate timeout, consecutive kills by Sophia Kruczko allowed East Carolina to stay close at 14-10. Later trailing 18-14, ECU fought all the way back to knot the score at 22 on the back of a Cincinnati attacking error. The Pirates reached set point with a 24-22 cushion, but a kill and a service ace allowed the visitors to tie things up. The Bearcats eventually won out, claiming the frame by scoring four of the final six points.

Cincinnati got off to another fast start in the second stanza, pushing ahead 12-7 following a kill by Kailea Carrier. ECU was unable to catch up the rest of the way as the Bearcats grabbed a two sets to none lead at the intermission. Cincinnati finished the sweep off in the third, racing out to a 15-5 advantage on the way to the win.

Up Next: East Carolina hosts Temple Friday at 6 p.m.