Southern Miss
Tulsa
Golden Eagle Volleyball Falls to Tulsa
10/9/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Oct. 9, 2011
Box Score | Box Score in PDF Format 
Senior Ashley Mell posted a team-high 10 kills for Southern Miss (7-11, 1-5) while Lauren Sears added eight kills on a .368 hitting clip. Amelia Hendrickson chipped in seven kills and added 18 digs. Lisa Knecht tallied a match-high 21 digs for the Eagles. Kelsea Seymour handed out 37 assists.
Tulsa (15-5, 6-1) placed three players in double digit kills led by Tyler Henderson with 14, Diana Silva and Kellie Culbertson added 13 and 14, respectively. Culbertson also led Tulsa with 19 digs while Jessica Adams had 15.
Both teams battled throughout the first set as there were 21 ties and seven lead changes. The Golden Eagles tallied 21 kills while Tulsa had 20. Heading down the stretch, the teams were tied at 23-23 when the Golden Eagles took a time out. Tulsa came right back with a big block for a 24-23 lead. The Eagles had to use their final timeout and Sarah Jane Bowden responded with a kill for the 24-24 tie. A Kelsey Hancock kill put Tulsa up 25-24 before Emily Sears knotted the set up at 25-25 on a kill. Tulsa ended the set with a kill from Henderson and a USM error for the 27-25 win.
Set two began much like the first set with both teams battling. After a 10-10 tie, Tulsa scored three straight points for a 13-10 lead which forced the Eagles to take a timeout. Out of the timeout, Hendrickson's kill cut the lead to 13-11, but Tulsa got a pair of kills from Silva and Henderson in pushing the lead to 17-11. From there, the Hurricane held off the Eagles down the stretch for the 25-18 win.
Out of the intermission, Southern Miss started the third set strong in running out to a 4-1 lead. Tulsa used a 5-1 run to take a 6-5 lead, but the Eagles responded with a 4-0 run for a 9-6 lead. Out of a Tulsa timeout, Sears and Seymour combined for a block and Mell added a kill for the 11-6 lead. Then, Carly Boatwright and Silva combined for the next four points to cut the Eagles' lead to 11-10. The two teams went back and forth for the next 13 points before USM scored four straight for the 21-16 lead. Out of a Tulsa timeout, the teams traded points. Following a Southern Miss timeout, Tulsa grabbed the momentum and finished the set by posting five to take the 25-23 win.
Southern Miss returns home to host East Carolina on Friday (Oct. 14) at 7 p.m., followed by a match against Marshall on Sunday at 12 p.m.
