TCU
Pittsburgh
TCU Drops Three Games to Pittsburgh
9/20/2003 12:00:00 AM
Sept. 20, 2003
Pittsburgh, Pa. - TCU fell to Pittsburgh in three games tonight in their first shutout loss of the 2003 season. It appeared at first that the Horned Frogs could keep up with the Panthers, but in the end, Pittsburgh swept the Frogs to take the Pittsburgh Classic championship uncontested.
Shots fell for the Frogs tonight in a way they hadn't in previous weekend matches. Tips and swings alike made their way past Panther defenders; Anna Vaughn shined offensively in particular for the Frogs, picking up six kills in the first game alone. It was not enough, however. Pittsburgh bested TCU 30-24.
The second game had an identical score and featured long, exciting volleys that spiced up the contest. TCU came out with the short end of the stick by the conclusion of most of the rallies, however, losing long streaks of points to the Panthers without ever taking any back.
The third game was a tale of lost points once again. The Panthers scored seven points in a row at one point, which put the Frogs down for the count. The final score showed 30-23.
"We were great up to 20," Coach Prentice Lewis commented. "It was disappointing once we got to the last third of the games, though. We'd have a streak of errors - not attributed to Pitt's offense - but because we'd shank balls off the attack and we had no real defense tonight. We're usually leading up to 20, but it's past that that's the problem. We're a growing program and we need to work on getting from the first point to game point. It's a growing experience. Now we know we can get away with being good until 20 with some teams, but with any good, solid volleyball program, we can't."
Vaughn came up big for the Frogs, picking up a .688 hitting average with 12 kills and one error in 16 total attempts. She earned All-Tournament team for her weekend performance.
"It was a great weekend for Anna," Coach Lewis said. "She really stepped it up. And Domi had a stellar passing weekend once again."
Dominika Szabo, Tori Barlow, and Emily Allen each collected another double-double: Szabo with 10 kills, 14 digs; Barlow with 40 assists, 12 digs; Allen with 10 kills, 14 digs.
The Horned Frogs are now 10-3 overall, finishing third at the Pittsbugh Classic after Pittsburgh and Northeastern. Toledo finished fourth. They have the week off to prepare for the TCU Molten Invitational in Fort Worth next weekend, Sept. 26-27. It will feature Saint Mary's (Calif.), Saint Francis (Pa.), Grambling, and TAMU-Corpus Christi.
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