The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Volleyball Team Falls To Cincinnati 3-0
11/17/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Nov. 17, 2002
CINCINNATI, Ohio - Cincinnati (20-7, 11-2 Conference USA) defeated UAB (13-19, 5-8 C-USA) 30-20, 30-25, 30-16 in Conference USA volleyball action Sunday afternoon at the Shoemaker Center.
Junior outside hitter Martina Shields led the match in kills for UAB with 14 and also added nine digs. It marked the 25th match this season that Shields has recorded double digits in kills and the 11th time she has led a match in kills in 2002. Senior setter Dina Katsoulis added 31 assists and nine digs for UAB.
"We knew going in that this was going to be a tough road weekend for us," said UAB head coach Melinda Claiborne. "Louisville and Cincinnati are two of the top teams in our league and it is hard to face them on the road. I thought we played well at times, but we struggled with our consistency."
Cincinnati was led by sophomore outside hitter Julie DuPont who had 13 kills and 10 digs. Junior setter Laura Lauder added 38 assists and eight digs for the Bearcats.
UAB next travels to Chicago for the Healthy Choice Conference USA Tournament, held Nov. 22-25 at the DePaul Athletic Center on the campus of DePaul University. The Blazers garnered a No. 9 seed at the tournament and will face eighth-seeded Southern Miss (15-14, 6-7 C-USA) in first round play Friday at 6 p.m. The Blazers will look to avenge a 3-1 loss to the Golden Eagles in regular-season action.
"We are excited about going to the Conference USA Tournament and facing Southern Miss," Claiborne added. "We hope to put together some of our top performances in Chicago."
The winner of the UAB-Southern Miss match will then play No. 1 seed Louisville at 6 p.m., on Saturday. The Cards are aiming for their third Conference USA Tournament title.
The C-USA Television Network will carry the tournament final on Monday, Nov. 25 at 7 p.m. Don Russell will announce the play-by-play with Amy Prichard providing the commentary. Please check your local listings for details.
For live play-by-play, statistics, photos and recaps of each 2002 Healthy Choice Conference USA Tournament match, go to the Conference USA's official website, www.c-usasports.com.
