University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Cajuns Snap Losing Streak
9/14/2002 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Saturday, Sept. 14, 2002
COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Louisiana-Lafayette's Ragin' Cajuns volleyball team snapped a five-match losing streak here Saturday at the McDonald's Texas A&M Verizon Invitational with a 3-1 (30-24, 30-26, 28-30, 30-17) win over Sam Houston State.
Priscilla Lima and Stacey Cole led the Cajuns offensive attack, combining for 43 of the Cajuns 69 kills. Lima had 25 kills and 21 digs, giving her back-to-back 20-kill matches on the day and four this season. The double-double was her fifth of the season. Cole had 18 kills and 11 digs for her second double-double of the day.
UL Lafayette (5-5) had a season-high 16.5 blocks and had more kills (69-44) than SHSU (6-5). The Cajuns attack percentage was a weekend-best .207 while holding the Bearkats to an opponent weekend-low .054.
The win over SHSU was the first in school history for Louisiana-Lafayette in 11 meetings.
The win came after a heartbreaking 3-2 (31-29, 26-30, 13-30, 30-27, 9-15) loss to No. 16 Texas A&M (7-1) in the first match of the day.
UL Lafayette played tough with the nationally ranked Aggies, grabbing a game-one 31-29 win. The win in that game snapped a 12-game losing streak and marked the first time in five matches that the Cajuns had not been swept in straight sets.
UL Lafayette led most of the first game against the Aggies and were up 28-21 late in the frame after a Clarice Laires kill. The Aggies used an 8-1 run to tie the game at 29-29. Five Cajun attack errors keyed the Aggies push. UL Lafayette responded with back-to-back kills to claim the 31-29 opening game win.
TAMU would take the next two games to pull ahead 2-1 in
the match. The Cajuns, who never backed down from the perennial powerhouse,
fought back in the fourth game to post a 30-27 win and force the
fifth-and-deciding game.
The two teams would exchange points in the final frame until the Aggies used a
7-0 run to finish the deciding game with a 15-9 win. TAMU's Tara Pulaski ended
the Cajuns upset bid when she put down the game-winner, pounding a Cajun
overpass for her 12th kill of the match.
Once again, Cole and Lima led the Cajuns attack. The two combined for 45 of the Cajuns 64 kills. Lima led all Cajuns with 23 kills and 21 digs, posting her fourth double-double of the season.
UL Lafayette will return to action next Friday at the Florida State Invitational in Tallahassee, Fla. The Cajuns will play host FSU at 11 a.m. (CST) and Brown at 3:30 p.m. (CST)
MATCH SUMMARIES
McDonald's Texas A&M Verizon Invitational at
College Station, Texas (G. Rollie White Coliseum)
Saturday, Sept. 14, 2002
No. 16 Texas A&M 3, UL Lafayette 2
1 2 3 4 5
UL Lafayette (4-5) 31 26 13 30 9
Texas A&M (7-1)
29 30 30 27 15
UL Lafayette: Kills 64 (Lima 23, Cole 22, Laires, Tough 8); Digs 93
(Lima, Tough 21, Bermes 14); Assists 59 (Henson 54).
TAMU: Kills 67
(Jones 20, Munsch 15, Pulaski 12); Digs 102 (Munsch 25, Beers, Jones, Price,
Wynalda 14); Assists 61 (Beers 53).
A: 822 T:
2:10.
UL Lafayette 3, Sam Houston State 1
1 2 3 4
Sam Houston State (6-5) 24 36 30 17
UL Lafayette (5-5)
30 30 28 30
SHSU: Kills 44
(Sartain 14, Jefferson 10, Henrichsen 9); Digs 72 (Sartain 13, Henrichsen 12,
Johnson 11); Assists 42 (Butler 18, Johnson 16).
UL Lafayette: Kills
69 (Lima 25, Cole 18, Laires 8); Digs 77 (Lima 21, Laires, Henson 12); Assists
65 (Henson 53).
A: 769 T:
1:30.
-Ragin' Cajuns-
