LAKE CHARLES, La. - The ULM volleyball team got back on
track with its first win at the Comfort Inn & Suites Invitational after
defeating Prairie View A&M 3-1 (25-19, 23-25, 25-18, 25-13) Saturday
morning at Memorial Gym in Lake Charles, La. The Warhawks improve to 1-1 for the
tournament and 4-1 overall.
Sophomore Blanca Ocana led ULM both offensively and
defensively with match-highs in kills and digs recording 14 and 16,
respectively, for her sixth career double-double and third this season. Junior Zuzana
Markova earned her third-straight double-double with 12 kills and a team-high
17 assists while junior Samantha Morse had 11 kills. Senior Meghan McCoy contributed 13 assists and
senior Mahogany Dilonga stuffed a career-high-tying nine blocks including one
solo.
Marie Moulaz had the lone double-double for Prairie View
A&M (0-7) as she collected a match-high 30 assists and 10 digs. Christine
Ruckman had nine kills to lead the Lady Panthers while Breanna McNeil and Bruna
Menezes were each one shy with eight kills. Shanice Faison led in digs with 11
and Maegan Coleman had five blocks.
ULM started hot with the first four points of the match and
held the advantage for much of the first set until Prairie View A&M inched
its way within one point off an attack error 16-15. The Warhawks used a 4-2 run
to cushion themselves 20-17 before scoring four-straight points off kills by
Ocana and a kill and service ace by Markova to take a 24-17 advantage. The Lady
Panthers managed two more points before Morse's kill ended the first set 25-19.
Both teams went back-and-forth in the second set with
neither going up more than three points until a string of two kills and a
service ace by Prairie View A&M gave it a 17-12 lead. The Lady Panthers
maintained until the 22-16 mark when kills by Dilonga and Markova sparked a
five-point comeback to come within one point 22-21. However, the Warhawks were
edged by a 4-3 run to give the Lady Panthers the second set 25-23.
Prairie View A&M grabbed a 10-6 lead in the third set
before ULM found its rhythm and went on a seven-point spree including
three-straight service aces by Ocana to claim the lead 13-10. A 6-5 run in
favor of the Lady Panthers ensued before the Warhawks extended the deficit to 22-16
with four-consecutive points. A final 3-2 run ended the third set with ULM
winning 25-18.
ULM dominated the final set early on and doubled the score 10-5
after taking advantage of multiple Lady Panther miscues and kills by Markova,
Ocana and Alannah Cullum. The Warhawks had two separate runs of
four-consecutive points to extend the lead 18-7 before Prairie View A&M strung
together four points of its own to make the score 18-11. ULM's 7-2 spree which
included the final four points of the match awarded it the 25-13 set win.
The Warhawks play their final match of the Comfort Inn &
Suites Invitational this afternoon when they face their biggest test yet of the
season Oral Roberts at 3 p.m. in Memorial Gym.
