Volleyball: Tulane drops home contest to UConn

NEW ORLEANS – Tulane volleyball struggled to find its rhythm, Sunday afternoon at Avron. B Fogelman Arena in the Devlin Fieldhouse, losing 3-1 (21-25, 20-25, 25-19, 22-25) against UConn. With the loss, the Green Wave (12-5 overall, 1-3 The American) have dropped back-to-back matches for the first time this season.

After dropping the first set against Temple in Friday night’s loss, Tulane failed to get back on track against UConn, losing the opening set, 25-21. The Green Wave opened an early 11-4 lead, but UConn surged back behind a team attack percentage of .351. Sophomore right side hitter Alexis Silver paced Tulane with three kills (attack percentage of .429), while junior middle hitter Dayna Kern also added three kills.

UConn controlled the action in the second set, maintaining a lead throughout the set before winning, 25-20. Tulane attacked to just a percentage of .065 in the set, struggling to create any offensive momentum. Silver recorded five kills (.333 attack percentage), but the Green Wave committed eight attack errors, slowing its own roll.

The Green Wave rebounded in the third set, showing newfound energy to win, 25-19. Tulane held UConn’s offense to an attack percentage of .083, as sophomore libero Kaylie McHugh’s defensive prowess was on fully display, tallying six kills. Kern posted four kills in the set to power the Tulane offense and help it record a team attack percentage of .250.

In the must-win fourth set, Tulane could not pull off the comeback, losing, 22-25, to drop the match. Silver finished with a team-high 13 kills, as Kern followed behind her with eight kills on a team-high .353 attack percentage. McHugh recorded a match-high 17 digs.

Up Next

Tulane sticks around New Orleans at Fogelman Arena in the Devlin Fieldhouse for another weekend, hosting The American newcomer Wichita State (12-3 overall, 4-0 The American), 7 p.m., Friday, before facing off against Memphis (7-8 overall, 0-3 The American), 1 p.m., Sunday.

Season ticket packages for the 2017 season are on sale now. Tickets may be purchased by calling 504-861-WAVE(9283), logging onto TulaneTix.com or visiting the ticket office at the James W. Wilson Jr. Center.

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