The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB
-1215,77 CUSA
University of North Texas
-1614,95 CUSA
Blazers Conclude Conference Season in Five-Setter Against UNT
11/18/2022 6:29:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
BOWLING GREEN – Blazer Volleyball finished the 2022 C-USA season with a thrill from start to finish. UAB (12-15, 7-7 C-USA) took on the UNT Mean Green (16-14, 9-5 C-USA) fell in five sets, concluding the postseason at the C-USA Quarterfinals Friday night.
"Closing the chapter on the 2022 CUSA season is a hard task, especially after a five-set loss. This team has faced so much adversity, especially in the last month of the season. Yet there are many reasons to be proud. While we are not where we want to be, it's a huge testament to our growth and finishing in the top five for the first time since 2012. We are hopeful for an at-large bid to the NIVC tournament and that our time together is not over quite yet." said Betsy Freeburg on UAB's performance.
IN THE SETS
Set one saw UNT jump out to a 9-1 lead in the early stages of the frame. The Mean Green's 8-0 run was ceased by an attack error and Blazer ace to stop the momentum. The Blazers continued to trail, getting as close as four points before North Texas turned up the intensity again, jumping to a 20-15 lead. The Mean Green outhit UAB .286 to .139, which helped North Texas secure set one, 25-18.
UAB responded in the second set with a 7-3 lead, which UNT continued to trail throughout the entirety of the set. The Blazers jumped out as far as eight points, with North Texas attempting to close the gap with no prevails. The Green and Gold eclipsed the 20-point mark with a dump from Lidya Canturk. The Blazers kept their foot on the gas, taking set two 25-21.
Sets three and four mimicked one and two, with UNT taking set three 25-17 and UAB taking set four with the same score. The Mean Green advanced to a 10-6 lead in the third set, working off of kills and attack errors on UAB's part. They continued to advance off a 5-0 run, 19-13. The Blazers would get as close as five points but were unable to secure the set.
Set four saw the same results, but in favor of UAB. A total of 16 kills in favor of the Green and Gold, partnered with a hitting percentage of .24 on the Mean Green's part was enough to give UAB the lead. The Blazers led by as much as seven but never dropped their lead, giving the team the boost to tie the match at two sets apiece.
The deciding set would not favor the Blazers, with UAB hitting .095 to the Mean Green's .533. The momentum shift came from a challenge that reversed a kill from Maia Rackel to an attack error. The 5-7 score reverted to 4-8. The Mean Green maintained the lead, eventually taking the match 15-8.
IN THE BOX
The Blazers finished with high accolades, taking a team they had played a week before to five sets. Second Team All-Conference honoree, Maia Rackel finished with a career-high 22 kills, leading the pack in the stat category. Fellow Second Team member, Alex Kells finished with a double-double of 17 kills and 11 digs. Three Blazers finished with double-digit kills, Rackel, Kells, and Chloe Rodriguez.
On the defensive, Erin Powers finished with 17 digs. As a team, the Green and Gold finished with eight blocks. Lidya Canturk contributed 53 assists for the Blazers. The determining factor would be errors, where UAB tallied six to UNT's zero in the fifth set. In total, UAB finished the night with 27 errors. The Blazers, however, outperformed the Mean Green in kills (67 to 57), aces (seven to four), and assists (64 to 54).
QUOTES FROM BETSY FREEBURG
"Growth has been a big theme for our team and every time we played a team a second time, we improved. That's a testament to the ability to adapt and make the game plan adjustments to put us in a scenario to succeed."
"It was great to see Maia Rackel have a bounce-back night as she did after a challenging weekend in Texas. She was tough and determined tonight. Chloe Rodriguez also did a great job attacking the volleyball."
A YEAR IN REVIEW
UAB finishes its season as the number five overall. Three Blazers received All-Conference honors (Fernanda Maida, Alex Kells, Maia Rackel), and one received All-Academic Team honors (Alex Kells).
The Green and Gold also completed the season with three 1000-kill club inductees (Maida, Kells, Rackel) and one 1000-dig club inductee (Erin Powers).
To keep up with the UAB Volleyball Team, follow @UAB_VB on Instagram and Twitter.
