Royal, Hogs fall short against Tulsa
Nic Schluterman
Issue date: 9/12/08 Section: Sports
Arkansas head volleyball coach Robert Pulliza was unable to find anything wrong with his home debut against Tulsa Wednesday night, "but that we lost."
The Razorbacks (1-6) gave the visiting Golden Hurricane (6-1) a back-and-forth five-set battle, but faded with three points left on the board, losing 25-14, 21-25, 25-19, 23-25, 12-15.
"Our kids played hard tonight. I think it was the best match of the season so far," Pulliza said.
Arkansas held the advantage in a number of key statistical areas, tallying 17 more kills, 11 more digs, and 19 more earned points than Tulsa.
Sophomore Heather Royal and freshman Kelli Stipanovich each had career nights with 19 kills apiece, in the first five-set match the Hogs have played this season.
"I'm really excited for Heather. Her last two outings have been really good," Pulliza said.
Freshman libero Phoebe Bautista far outpaced any digs per set figure she had posted in her previous six matches, and senior Caira Dortch also blew away a career best with 56 sets.
Errors ruined Pulliza's first outing in Fayetteville. Eleven Razorback serves were never in play, and five failed block attempts resulted in Hurricane points.
The night began with Dortch serving seven straight points for Arkansas, and the Hogs maintained a large lead through to the set point.
Both teams struggled to take control for most of the second set, which was deadlocked as late as 19-19. Kelsey Hancock capped the late Hurricane surge to take the set with a hard kill along the right sideline.
Tulsa hitter Hannah Stout, who was the team's MVP in both of the weekend tournaments it has won this season, suffered an apparent knee injury early in the second frame and did not return.
The second half saw two more tightly-contested sets. Arkansas took a small lead in the middle stages of set three on a string of Royal kills and never acquiesced.
The fourth set was tied at every point value from 13 to 23. Hancock drove home Tulsa's set point, which Arkansas' Bautista dug into the home bench. Royal had eight kills in the last full frame alone.
The Razorbacks (1-6) gave the visiting Golden Hurricane (6-1) a back-and-forth five-set battle, but faded with three points left on the board, losing 25-14, 21-25, 25-19, 23-25, 12-15.
"Our kids played hard tonight. I think it was the best match of the season so far," Pulliza said.
Arkansas held the advantage in a number of key statistical areas, tallying 17 more kills, 11 more digs, and 19 more earned points than Tulsa.
Sophomore Heather Royal and freshman Kelli Stipanovich each had career nights with 19 kills apiece, in the first five-set match the Hogs have played this season.
"I'm really excited for Heather. Her last two outings have been really good," Pulliza said.
Freshman libero Phoebe Bautista far outpaced any digs per set figure she had posted in her previous six matches, and senior Caira Dortch also blew away a career best with 56 sets.
Errors ruined Pulliza's first outing in Fayetteville. Eleven Razorback serves were never in play, and five failed block attempts resulted in Hurricane points.
The night began with Dortch serving seven straight points for Arkansas, and the Hogs maintained a large lead through to the set point.
Both teams struggled to take control for most of the second set, which was deadlocked as late as 19-19. Kelsey Hancock capped the late Hurricane surge to take the set with a hard kill along the right sideline.
Tulsa hitter Hannah Stout, who was the team's MVP in both of the weekend tournaments it has won this season, suffered an apparent knee injury early in the second frame and did not return.
The second half saw two more tightly-contested sets. Arkansas took a small lead in the middle stages of set three on a string of Royal kills and never acquiesced.
The fourth set was tied at every point value from 13 to 23. Hancock drove home Tulsa's set point, which Arkansas' Bautista dug into the home bench. Royal had eight kills in the last full frame alone.
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