TCU Suffers a Disappointing C-USA Opener
10/3/2003 12:00:00 AM
Oct. 3, 2003
Fort Worth, Texas - Tonight in New Orleans, the volleyball Horned Frogs lost their first Conference USA battle against Tulane's Green Wave. While neither team played inspired volleyball, Tulane grabbed the final three games for the match win.
The first game started off neck-and-neck, but TCU pulled ahead in the last third, making smart plays to Tulane's numerous attack errors. Two timeouts couldn't save the Green Wave in the first game, as TCU pulled out with a .444 hitting average while several negative hitting percentages brought Tulane down. The Frogs pulled out an easy 30-21 win.
The second game featured raucous Green Wave fans and a Tulane resurgence that the Frogs could not quell. TCU allowed Tulane to pull ahead in the second game; a late game rally by the Frogs left the win in reach, but the heartbreaking end saw Tulane take the game 30-28.
Two games in a row, TCU lost the game point on a service errors, as the third game went to the home team. The Frogs did not play up to their full potential tonight; Tulane's errors kept TCU in the game, but TCU's own mental errors kept the win from them. They lost the third game 30-23.
In the fourth game, TCU came close to making it a five-game match, as the Frogs tied it up at 20 and stuck it out straight to the end. However, Tulane wanted it more tonight, winning 30-28.
"There wasn't enough excitement over big or small plays. We didn't play inspired tonight," Coach Prentice Lewis said later. "This is a young team hoping to bounce back to play a competitive match tomorrow. It is extremely difficult to play at Southern Miss; it's a very tough environment."
Four Horned Frogs collected double-doubles tonight: Jenna Miller had 11 kills and 14 digs; Dominika Szabo had 13 kills and 15 digs; Ellen Rehme had 16 kills and 12 digs, along with four blocks.; Tori Barlow had 51 assists and 12 digs. Tulane's standouts included Deva Fowler with 17 kills and four errors in 34 attacks for a .382 attack percentage and Anastasia Kenon with 16 kills and 19 digs.
TCU primes itself to take on their second C-USA rival of the weekend as the team travels to Hattiesburg, Miss., to play Southern Miss in a 7 p.m. Saturday showdown. The Frogs are now 14-5 overall, 0-1 in C-USA play.
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