The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB
FIU
UAB Falls to FIU, 3-2, in Conference Opener
9/4/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
BOX SCORE
Sept. 4, 2015
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The two squads battled to five sets, but UAB volleyball dropped the conference opener to FIU, 3-2, Friday evening in Bartow Arena. The match marked the day one finale of the Blazer Classic.
After the Golden Panthers (3-1, 1-0 C-USA), grabbed a set one victory (25-22), the Blazers (2-3, 0-1 C-USA) won back-to-back sets (25-20, 25-23) to take a 2-1 advantage. FIU would rally to win sets four (25-14) and five (15-8) to claim the win.
"We went out and didn't execute," said head coach Kerry Messersmith. "We can't seem to take care of the ball. We struggled last season, and it will be a process to get going. We have great and talented kids. They just have to go out and bring the things they can control like the enthusiasm and the energy. That was lacking tonight."
Junior Gabby Deshotel continued her hot streak with her second consecutive match with 20 or more kills. The outside hitter tallied 24 kills to hit for a .281 clip. Deshotel also recorded nine digs, two blocks and one ace.
"Gabby has grown so much as a player since her freshman year," said Messersmith. "She is developing into such a great player. She makes an effort to get the girls going. She expends a lot of energy on the floor both physically and emotionally."
Freshman Jillian Tinglin recorded a breakout performance for UAB, adding 10 kills for the Blazers. Setters Amber Treace and Caitlin Conner paced the Blazer offense with 24 and 19 assists, respectively.
Libero Emma Schroer led the Blazer defense with 26 digs while recording six assists. Redshirt freshman Zahria Ri'chard contributed to the defense with a team-leading five blocks (one solo, four assists).
FIU made 22 blocks against the UAB offense while two Golden Panthers tallied double-digit kills.
The Blazers will return to the court Saturday for the final day of the Blazer Classic. UAB will open Saturday with a 9 a.m. match with Savannah State before hitting the court versus Austin Peay at 4 p.m.
For the full tournament schedule visit our tournament central home page.
For more information on the UAB volleyball team, follow the Blazers on Twitter (@UAB_VB). For more on all Blazer sports teams follow the official social media accounts of UAB Athletics on Twitter (@UABAthletics), on Facebook (Facebook.com/UAB.Blazers), on Instagram (@uabathletics) or on Snapchat (@uabathletics).
