University of North Texas Athletics
University of North Texas
Marshall
North Texas Volleyball Dealt 3-2 Loss By Marshall Friday Night
11/4/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Box Score vs. Marshall
Cumulative Stats
C-USA Only Stats
DENTON -- The North Texas volleyball team was dealt a, 3-2, five-set loss by the Marshall Thundering Herd in a Conference USA match on Friday night at the North Texas Volleyball Center.
"Marshall and North Texas have always had traditionally tough matches, and that was the case again tonight," head coach Andrew Palileo said. "They just held on and made a couple more plays at the end to pick up the win."
Marshall out-hit the Mean Green (11-15, 5-6 C-USA) .256 to .244 in the contest, but committed 23 attack errors to the Mean Green's 22. The Thundering Herd also registered 69 digs to North Texas' 58.
The Thundering Herd secured the first set of the match, 25-19, behind 10 kills from Jac'cara Walker and a .516 attack percentage, only committing two errors in the set.
The Mean Green rallied in set two, taking the early lead 6-3. Marshall (19-7, 8-3 C-USA) answered the Mean Green rally with one of its own, knotting the set at seven. North Texas pulled ahead to take a 14-11 advantage, but Marshall once again clawed back, tying the set at 15. The Mean Green ended the set on a 10-6 run, highlighted with kills from LekaLeka Kiner-Falefa, Chelsea Abii and Karley York to take the set, 25-21.
Out of the break, the teams jostled for control and the momentum. With the set tied at six, North Texas made its move, taking the advantage at 14-9 after multiple attack errors by Marshall's offense. North Texas went on a 6-2 run, extending its lead to 20-11 in the frame. The Mean Green would secure the set, 25-13, on back-to-back kills from Holly Milam, taking a 2-1 lead in the match.
In set four, Marshall regained its composure after a lopsided loss in the previous set. The Thundering Herd would lead by as many as seven points before settling for a 25-21 victory to force a fifth-and-final set. Marshall secured a 3-2 match victory with a 15-6 victory in set five.
"We came out tentative in the fifth set and I could have done a better job of matching our lineups," explained Palileo. "We need to come out and be ready to go on Sunday against a Louisiana Tech team that is playing well."
Friday's match also marked senior night for the Mean Green, and the team celebrated Amy Henard before the match.
"We wanted to get this win for Amy, but we couldn't pull it off in the end. We have one more match at home on Sunday to send her out on a good note."
Quick Hits
• Henard on senior night: "Tonight meant a lot to me. The beginning of the match was rough because of all the emotions, but we settled in and got into our groove. We just couldn't close it out in the end."
• Holly Milam led North Texas with 18 kills, her second-highest total this season
• Karley York added another double-double with 50 assists and 12 digs. This is her ninth double-double of the season.
• Henard led North Texas with 16 digs
• North Texas out-blocked Marshall nine to seven
• Jordyn William's registered 11 kills on the night, tying her career high set versus San Jose State
• Kiner-Falefa recorded three kills, matching her career best
• North Texas has yet to clinch a spot in the C-USA tournament, but potentially could do so with a victory on Sunday
Up Next For North Texas
The Mean Green will play their final home match of 2016 on Sunday at 1 p.m. versus Louisiana Tech. North Texas defeated the Lady Techsters 3-0 on Oct. 2.
Players Mentioned
