PISCATAWAY, N.J. - The Rutgers volleyball team saw its three-match win streak snapped Saturday afternoon as it fell to South Florida,3-1, in its home opener in College Avenue Gym. The match opened BIG EAST play for both teams.
The Bulls (8-3) took a hard-fought first set by a 25-22 mark but the Scarlet Knights (6-8) retaliated with a 26-24 second-set victory to knot the match at 1-all. South Florida controlled the match the rest of the way with a strong defensive effort to capture the final two sets, each by a 25-18 score. The Bulls proved why they are one of the nation’s best in blocks as they swatted a season-high 29.
The all-time series between the two teams is now tied at 4-4.
Rutgers head coach
CJ Werneke was pleased with how his team battled in the first two sets but credited the Bulls ability to make adjustments at intermission as the difference in the latter part of the match.
“We took too long to recover after the adjustments they made,” said Werneke. “At this level, you have to adjust when your opponents changes things up. South Florida is a very good team. They will beat a lot of teams in the BIG EAST and they will be right up there challenging for the conference championship. I thought we played well but they were the better team today.”
Sophomore middle blocker Hannah Curtis (Wasilla, Alaska) led the team in kills (15) and total blocks (5). The BIG EAST Honor Roll selection has notched double-digit kills in three straight matches.
Freshmen Stephanie Zielinski (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.) and Alex Jones (Chesapeake, Va.) shined in their first conference competition. Zielinski dished out a match-high 30 assists and scooped nine digs. The 5-foot-10 setter has notched 30-plus assists in seven of RU’s 14 matches this season. Jones scored seven kills on a career-best .667 attack percentage.
Junior co-captain Caitlin Saxton (Encinitas, Calif.) chipped in with 10 kills to push her season total to a team-best 192.
Senior BIG EAST Preseason Player of the Year Marcela Gurgel highlighted the match for the Bulls with a match-high 16 kills and seven digs.
The Scarlet Knights will be back at College Avenue Gym Sunday afternoon when they host the Georgetown Hoyas at 2 p.m. The Hoyas (10-6) lost at Seton Hall, 3-2, Saturday afternoon.
