The Cougars defeated Prairie View A&M in straight sets on Wednesday. | Thomas Dwyer/The Cougar
After starting its first few games on the road, the volleyball team came back home this week to host the 8th annual Flo Hyman Collegiate Cup. Since their return to the Athletics and Alumni Center, the Cougars have managed a 2-1 record. They sought to continue their good fortune against the Prairie View A&M Panthers Wednesday night.
Houston eased into a first set victory behind strong performances from senior outside hitters Sarah Afflerbaugh and Brianna Gardner, who combined for a total of 10 kills in the 26-16 routing.
The Panthers responded in the second set and jumped out to an early lead, but their efforts were met with disappointment. Prairie View witnessed its lead dwindle as Houston continued to pound the ball relentlessly. As a team, Houston recorded 20 kills, sealing a second set 25-21 comeback victory.
Houston entered the third set looking to complete the sweep; a feat that has eluded them this season. The Cougars gained the edge early and coasted to a 25-20 victory that sealed the match, and the sweep.
Sophomore hitter Megan Duncan finished the game with a team-high ten kills followed by Afflerbaugh and Gardner, who each finished with nine.
The Cougars’ libero Katie Karbo continues to build on to her impressive resume, having finished last season second among AAC freshmen in digs and leading the conference in dig percentage this season.
The sophomore recorded another 21 digs in Wednesday’s sweep over the Panthers, bringing her to a total of 160 on the season.
The Cougars will head to Baton Rouge this weekend to take on Louisiana State University for the last non-conference game of the season. The game starts at 1 p.m. Saturday.
