Set 4- For the 3rd straight set the Bearcats found themselves up early 7-5 over the Owls. The Bearcats answered with a 3-0 run to extend their lead 10-5 before the Owls answered right back with a 4-0 run themselves to cut the deficit to 1 when the game was 10-9 favoring the Bearcats. The Bearcats didn’t allow temple to have a chance to score more than 1 point the rest of the set which set them up to take Set 4, 25-21. This meant it came down to Set 5 for their chance to play in the AAC tournament and both teams knew what was at stake.
Set 5- The Bearcats had all the momentum early as they jumped out to a 5-3 lead over the Owls before the Owls found their run at the right time and ran off a run for 4 points to take a 7-5 lead over the Bearcats. In a set thats only played to 15 the Bearcats knew they had to stop the damage and try to put some points on the bored quick. Once Temple found that energy they didn’t look back as they ran off another 3-0 run to take a 10-7 lead and look to continue their season. The Owls had a 14-8 lead before the Bearcats rallied off 3 straight to make it an 14-11 game before the Owls sealed the deal with a kill to clinch the number 2 seed in the East Division for the AAC tournament next weekend.
Overall the Bearcats fell just short as they had ran out of gas late in the match and fell just short. The Bearcats had a tremendous season, but they couldn’t pull out the win on the road to advance to next weeks tournament. The Bearcats played a lot better today in Game 2 as they had a hitting percentage of .211% today compared to .111% yesterday which the Bearcats knew would play a big role in today’s matchup. Stat leaders for the Bearcats today consisted of Shannon Williams as she had a career day as the sophomore recorded a match high 26 kills, seven digs and two blocks. Maria Mallon had a big day as well as she had 23 kills, one service ace, 18 digs and two blocks. Sarah Norcom had 11 kills and eight digs. Adria Oliver had 10 kills and four blocks. Overall the Bearcats had a tremendous season in the environment they were in with Covid it defiantly wasn’t easy to overcome. The Bearcats fell just short this season in a shortened season they didn’t get the amount of games they would in a typical season so that really screwed them over. The Bearcats did a fantastic job this season as they finished the season 6-7 and 4-4 in the AAC tied with Temple. Temple gets to advance to the AAC tournament though as they beat the Bearcats giving them the tiebreaker.
The Bearcats look to bounce back from this very unusual season this fall when they get back to a normal season. The Front Office News is very proud of the Volleyball team for their successes on and off the court this season and wish our lone senior Ashley Kozer the best in her future wherever her next stop takes her in life.
