LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Tech volleyball closed out competition in Louisville, Ky. on Saturday, falling in straight sets against the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers at the Fleur de Lis Tournament.
"Our opponents this weekend were very talented," said head coach Jeannette Waldo. "We learned some valuable lessons about ourselves while in battle that we will take to the war ahead."
Junior Ali Verzani led the Golden Eagles offense with a team-high seven kills, while senior Rachel Thomas hit for .267 and tallied six kills. Freshman Morgan Gish also tallied six kills in the contest. Defensively, Aynsley Stier tallied a team-leading three blocks in the contest. Ashley Hand tallied 14 assists for Tech.
The Hilltoppers opened the contest with the early lead six-point lead, 9-3. Tech would respond with a 3-0 run to cut the deficit in half, 9-6, but that was as close as the opening set got as the Hilltoppers would slowly break away and take the opening set, 25-12.
Tech came out gunning in the second to take a 3-1 lead. The Golden Eagles battled with the Hilltoppers through eight ties until the WKU took a 12-11 advantage. The Hilltoppers would not relinquish the lead the remainder of the set as they would close things out to take the two-set advantage, 25-19.
Western Kentucky opened the third set with a 7-1 run to lead early. The Hilltoppers maintained an advantage until Tech produced a 3-0 run following a two-point deficit, 20-18, to take their first lead of the set, 21-20. The Golden Eagles battled with the Hilltoppers to a pair of ties at 22 and 23 before WKU would eventually tally a pair of kills to take the match, 25-23.
Freshman Morgan Gish was also named to the Fleur de Lis All-Tournament team with her solid performance throughout the tournament. Gish tallied 13 kills, averaging 4.33 per set. She also recorded a pair of assists, a pair of digs, and a block assist during her three sets of action in Louisville.
The Golden Eagles will head to Chattanooga, Tenn. next weekend as they participate in the Chattanooga Classic as they take on Manhattan, Chattanooga, and North Alabama.
