TCU
BYU*
Frogs fall short against No. 13 BYU
10/28/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Oct. 28, 2005
FORT WORTH, Texas -- In a rematch of a Sept. 30 showdown that saw the then No. 20 BYU Cougars win in three games, the TCU volleyball team battled tough but fell to the No. 13 ranked Cougars in four games (21-30, 23-30, 30-25, 23-30). Freshman Nirelle Hampton led the Frogs with 29 assists and10 kills, posting her third double-double of the season.
Game one began sloppy as neither team was able to find a consistent swing. The Frogs managed to hold the Cougars, who lead the conference in hitting percentage (.285), to .158 hitting. The Frogs were unable to benefit from the low percentage as they totaled nine kills for the game. Sophomore LeMeita Smith led TCU with three kills.
BYU's Lindsay Hartsock, the nation's leader in attack percentage (.474), tallied three kills as the Cougars took the first game.
After faltering in game two, the Frogs headed into the locker room down 2-0. On Tuesday, the team erased a 2-0 deficit to come back and defeat Colorado State 3-2. The win snapped the Rams 72-match win streak when leading 2-0. The Frogs were looking for the same magic heading out of the locker room for game three.
Similar to the CSU match, TCU looked for a spark on offense and it came from Hampton. The Gainesville, Fla., product started to find the holes in the Cougars' defense and tallied four kills on four attempts. Hampton's kills helped Anna Vaughn get into the mix as the junior middle-blocker racked up three kills.
Talaya Whitfield and Loren Barry did an excellent job of keeping the Cougars' offensive numbers modest as the sophomore duo combined for 11 digs. The team was able to maintain its focus and pressed to a 30-25 victory.
After the Frogs built a three-point lead in game four, the Cougars battled back to take the win.
Whitfield (18), Barry (16) and junior Calli Corley (10) all recorded double-digit kills.
Freshmen Devon Kirk and Gabi McHugh came off the bench to record four and two kills, respectively.
With the loss, TCU fell to 15-10 on the season and 3-6 in the Mountain West Conference. The Frogs will play the final match of their three-match home stand on Saturday night when the Utah Utes come to the University Rec Center. Match time is slated for 7 p.m.
