Last weekend the Cougars split the first two games of their four-game road trip. This weekend, they came home after the final two games not much better than when they left.’
UH lost both of its matches this weekend to fall to 4-7 in Conference USA and 7-19 overall for the season.
The Cougars lost to Tulsa 3-0 (21-25, 14-25, 12-25) Friday and Southern Methodist 3-0 (20-25, 19-25, 19-25) Saturday.’
Both were quality opponents that knocked the Cougars off two weeks ago at the Athletics/Alumni Center.
Against SMU, the Cougars couldn’t stop the Mustangs’ attack. The Mustangs converted 16 kills in the first set and 15 kills in the third set. UH’s 10 errors in the second set didn’t help, and the Cougars couldn’t find their rhythm.
The tandem of Marluci Toazzi and Jasmine Terry, which was so effective last weekend, struggled this time out as they combined for 14 attack errors. Along with their 15 kills in the third set, the Mustangs also had five blocks to thwart the Cougars’ attack and take the match.
While the Cougars were at least competitive against SMU, the real disappointment came against Tulsa.
UH stayed close in the first set. The Cougars were down 6-12 before they went on a 12-6 run to tie the score at 18-18.
However, the Cougars resorted to a familiar trend. Four offensive errors committed by the Cougars and three blocks essentially cost them the game.
Things spiraled out of control for UH, as it lost its offense for the rest of the match.
Over the final two sets, the Golden Hurricane swatted 11 blocks, and the Cougars committed 16 more offensive errors.
The Cougars, after 12 kills in the first set, could only muster 12 kills for the rest of the game. The match’s 24-kill output matched the Cougars’ lowest of the season, set Aug. 28 against Baylor. The 47 points in a 3-game match also tied UH’s lowest-scoring match of the season, with the other coming against Miami (Ohio) on Sept. 19.
The Cougars will try to regain their confidence when they return home for two games this weekend.’
The Cougars will play respectable conference foes in Marshall (19-5, 7-3) at 7 p.m. Friday and East Carolina (9-14, 2-9) at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Athletics/Alumni Center.
