ECU Brushes Aside Tulane For First AAC Victory

Sunday, October 2

Greenville, N.C.

Noon

East Carolina University

6-10,1-3AAC

Tulane

5-10,0-4AAC

Team	1	2	3	4	Final F
Tulane	27	21	16	19	1
East Carolina	25	25	25	25	3

October 02, 2022 | Volleyball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

GREENVILLE, N.C. – East Carolina picked up its first American Athletic Conference victory of the campaign Sunday afternoon, disposing of Tulane 3-1 (25-27, 25-21, 25-16, 25-19) inside Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum.

The Pirates (6-10, 1-3 AAC) racked up 14 blocks and 11 service aces while limiting the Green Wave (5-10, 0-4 AAC) to a .185 hitting percentage. The 11 aces are the most in program history in an American Conference match.

Angeles Alderete tied for match-high honors with 18 kills and completed a double-double by adding 13 digs. Julianna Askew also put together a nice performance, finishing with 20 assists, six digs and four kills. Kenzie Beckham paced all players in the contest with 21 digs. Melissa Kolurbasi led Tulane with 18 kills and a .308 hitting percentage.

ECU got off on the right foot in the opening set when a block by Kianie Cummings and Brittany Wood gave the Pirates a 9-4 advantage. Following a Green Wave timeout, East Carolina stretched its lead to 21-14 before Tulane rattled off seven-straight points to knot the score. The visitors seized on the momentum and eventually captured the frame in extra points.

The second stanza was nip and tuck for the early portion until a kill by Izzy Marinelli and a Green Wave bad set afford the Pirates some breathing room at 15-11. Tulane answered with an 8-4 run that tied things up at 19, but East Carolina dug down and ended the set on a 6-2 run to deadlock the match 1-1 at the intermission.

It was all ECU in the third as it forced the Green Wave into negative hitting efficiency (-.026) to easily win the frame by nine. The Pirates finished the job in the fourth, utilizing a 9-0 run in the middle part of the set to build an insurmountable lead.

Up Next: East Carolina next takes the court Oct. 5 in Philadelphia for an AAC contest with Temple. First serve inside McGonigle Hall is scheduled for 7 p.m.