Cougars fall in straight sets to Baylor, suffer second Big 12 loss

The return of senior outside hitter Brenya Reid after a four-match injury absence wasn’t enough to power Houston volleyball past Baylor on Wednesday night in Waco, Texas. 

In her return to the lineup, Reid recorded five kills and four digs, while playing in all three sets.

Staring down a sweep loss, Houston rallied for an early 7-0 run in the third and final set. The Cougars had no trouble building early scoring streaks throughout the match, but consistently closing them out remains an issue they haven’t yet solved.

Houston was swept for the fifth time this season, and for the second time in its first three Big 12 matchups of the year.

The loss wasn’t due to a lack of defense at the net, as the Cougars recorded a three-set season-high of 12 blocks, including six from redshirt senior middle blocker Kellen Morin, who not only set a season-high, but also surpassed 300 career blocks in the process.

A 16-5 run propelled Baylor past Houston in set one, after both teams were knotted up through the first 20 points of the matchup.

Baylor’s precision on serves was on full display, as it recorded four service aces during that stretch, finding seams in UH’s side of the net. Houston native and freshman outside hitter Bailey Warren was responsible for three of them, and recorded a team-high four overall.

Behind a 7-0 run in set two, the Cougars found themselves pacing Baylor 12-6, though the Bears would respond with a 16-10 run, aided by four Houston errors. 

Redshirt sophomore outside hitter Alyssa Gonzales’ sixth kill of the set gave the Cougars the lead at 23-22, but two service errors, including one by her, ultimately resulted in a gutting 25-27 defeat, Houston’s closest set loss of the match. 

Gonzales led Houston with her nine kills on Wednesday, while junior outside hitter Halle Schroder reached 100 blocks in her career.

Houston will head to Boulder, Colo., to take on the Colorado Buffaloes on Saturday, Oct. 4 at 2:00 p.m. CT.