Saturday, Feb. 6

UCF 3, Tulane 1 (25-18, 19-25, 25-23, 25-19)	Box Score
Temple 3, St. John's 0 (25-23, 25-20, 25-17)	Box Score
Xavier 3, Cincinnati 1 (12-25, 20-25, 26-24, 20-25)	Box Score

UCF 3, Tulane 1

The UCF Volleyball team fought hard to secure the 3-1 victory over Tulane on Saturday in Orlando. The win moved UCF to 5-0 on the season.

"This was not a one-person win," said UCF Volleyball head coach Todd Dagenais. "Just like last night, there are a lot of things that don't necessarily show up in the box score that really made the difference in the match. Yes, there were solid individual performances… but there are a lot of hidden things too."

It was a close contest early on as the two sides tied scores on five different occasions in the first set. The Knights sat with a slight, 15-13 advantage at the media timeout, but Tulane tied it up at 15-all when play resumed. A couple of clutch late-set kills from MaKenzie Chambers and McKenna Melville put the Knights in the driver's seat and guided them to the 25-18 first-set victory.

The second set began just like the first, with both teams exchanging blows until the media timeout stopped play with Tulane in the lead, 15-13. Following the timeout, the Green Wave posted three unanswered and Dagenais called time to help the Knights regroup. Unfortunately, it would not help as Tulane continued their run to go up, 21-13 before UCF finally struck back. The Black and Gold put up a fight late in the set, but it would not be enough as Tulane went on to win, 25-19 to tie the match at one apiece.

The tight match continued in the third set. After UCF took the 15-14 lead in the middle stages of the set, the momentum swung back in The Green Wave's favor as Tulane outscored the Knights, 7-3 over the next ten points. Down 23-18 late, the Knights rallied big to go on a seven-point run, culminating in a Kathryn Wesolich service ace to help the Knights complete the comeback and win the set, 25-23.

The fourth set was in line with the previous three, coming down to the final moments before a winner was decided. With the Knights leading 17-16, back-to-back service aces from McKenna Melville widened the lead and allowed UCF to finish strong on a 7-3 run to give them the 25-19 set and match victory.

The UCF offense ran through Melville, who turned in a career day in the contest, hitting for 26 kills on 66 total attacks, both season highs. Her 66 total attacks are the most she has ever had in a four-set contest. On the year now, Melville averages 5.05 kills per set and a .352 hitting percentage.

Defensively, Nerissa Moravec continued her strong start to the 2020-21 campaign, notching eight block assists on the day to go along with seven kills, both season highs. She now has 25 kills from the middle position on the year and is hitting at a solid .460 clip.

Temple 3, St. John's 0

The Temple volleyball team took down the defending Big East Champions on Saturday afternoon, sweeping visiting St. John's in McGonigle Hall. The Owls improve to 4-0 on the season with the 25-23, 25-20, 25-17 win. The Red Storm drop to 1-1 on the season.

How It Happened
> Temple hit .283 for the match, holding St. John's to just a .206 attack.
> The Owls came out on top of a tight first set, hitting a massive .387 to set the tone for the match.
> Another back-and-forth set followed in the second, but Temple again took control, using a late run to go up 2-0.
> Temple continued the momentum from the second set into the third, jumping out to a 7-1 lead and not looking back.

Individual Highlights
> It was another solid day for junior Miray Bolukbasi, who finished with 14 kills.
> Junior Gem Grimshaw tallied her first double-double of the season, fnishing with 10 kills and a team-best 10 digs.
> Junior Peyton Boyd finished with eight kills and two blocks, while classmate Tylder Lindgren ran the offense to the tune of 37 assists.
> Freshman Taylor Davenport had five kills and two blockls, while fellow rookie Nina-Symone Williams had four kills and two blocks.
> Rounding out the highlights, freshman Falanika Danielson finished with eight digs.

Set One: Temple 25, St. John's 23
> Temple took control of a very tight set late, hitting .387 to start the match up 1-0.
> After an early 5-5 tie, the Owls began creating separation, going up 13-9.
> Temple held the lead until a 5-1 run tied the match at 17-17.
> Tied as late as 22-22, Temple finished it out with a pair of Boyd kills to take set one.

Set Two: Temple 25, St. John's 20
> 11 ties and six lead changes were the stories of the second set, another back-and-forth affair.
> Temple broke an 11-11 tie with four-straight points, but St. John's answered back with a run of their own to tie things at 16-16.
> After the teams traded sideouts, the Owls took control of a 20-18 set, closing on a 5-2 run to go up 2-0 in the match.

Set Three: Temple 25, St. John's 17
> A hot start to the third set saw the Owls start with a 7-1 advantage and the team never relinquished the lead.
> Temple pushed the lead to eight points at 20-12, before a small surge from St. John's closed the gap.
> Leading 21-16, Temple scored four of the next five points to seal the set and the sweep.

Xavier 3, Cincinnati 1

The University of Cincinnati volleyball team dropped a four-set match to crosstown rival Xavier Saturday, 3-1, in nonconference action inside Fifth Third Arena.

Cincinnati (2-2) fell in the first two sets, 25-12 and 25-20, respectively, won the third 26-24 but fell in the fourth 25-20. Xavier (2-2) snapped a five-match skid against the Bearcats and picked up their first win in Fifth Third Arena since 2013.

The Bearcats hit .124 with 34 attack errors against a Xavier attack which posted a season-best .329 hitting percentage while outblocking UC 16-1.

NOTES
Sarah Norcom had a career day, leading the team with 13 kills, a career best. Norcom also finished the day with a kill percentage of .419. 

Maria Tobergte paced the Bearcats with 18 digs, a service ace and five kills. 
Ashley Kozer finished the day with a set of aces and 43 assists, putting her season total at 176. 

SET BREAKDOWN 

SET 1: XU, 25-12
Cincinnati would drop early in the first set after an 11-point streak by Xavier would put them in a commanding lead of 12-2. Xavier continued the momentum with another four-point streak and a 13-point lead. A kill by Adria Oliver would start a small streak for the bearcats where Kerstin Ficker would deliver her first service ace of the afternoon. The Musketeers stunted the Bearcats rally going on to claim six of the last seven points and the first set. 

SET 2: XU, 25-20
Xavier would hold on to their momentum going into the second, where a pair of kills by the Musketeers put them in an early lead that they would look to hold for most of the second. An ace by Ashley Kozer would give the Bearcats hope, tying it up at seven. Xavier's Delaney Hogan would take three kills in a row over the Bearcats, putting them up 13-9. Xavier would keep the lead for the remainder of the set where a service ace by Carrigan O'Reilly would set Xavier up for the set point, taking it the next rally on an attack error. 

SET 3: UC, 26-24
Cincinnati would go point-for-point against the Musketeers tying it up at seven on a service ace by Payton Frederick. Xavier's MaryAnn O'Toole would answer just four points later with an ace of her own, putting them up by two. The battle would remain even where a kill by Norcom, set the Bearcats up for a 25-24 set point. Norcom delivered the final blow in set three with a UC win of 26-24. 

SET 4: XU, 25-20
Shannon Williams would create some separation for the Bearcats after a service ace put them up 3-1. Xavier would push back tying it up at seven and going on a six-point run, led by Ellie Chaffee. Norcom would come off two good rallies for the Bearcats, putting up two kills and bringing them within one, with a score of 15-14. Xavier held onto the lead and pushed for a final three-point streak where an attack error in UC's favor forced a Xavier timeout. The Musketeers would return, delivering the match point in the form of a kill by O'Toole.