Houston celebrates after a big point against the Cincinnati Bearcats on October 2, 2026, in Houston, TX. | Mikele Rodriguez/The Cougar
The Houston Cougars volleyball team faced off against the Cincinnati Bearcats on Oct. 2 at the Fertitta Center and won 3-1. Houston and Cincinnati have met each other a total of 31 times since 1979.
The last matchup between the two resulted in a loss for Houston, ending the winning streak Houston had maintained over Cincinnati since 2021.
For the first set, Houston maintained a lead for the majority, largely due to defensive plays, resulting in a score of 15-11 before the first timeout of the set. Eventually, Cincinnati made a comeback and tied up the score at 19-19 before going on to win the first set with a score of 25-23.
Houston scored the first point of the set with a kill from sophomore middle blocker Tara Greenberry, followed by more offensive attacks from Houston that put them in the lead with a score of 4-0. Cincinnati scored its first point of the set with a kill from fifth-year middle blocker Ligia Williams.
From then on, the score for the second set remained tight. Houston and Cincinnati stayed within two-point range of each other. After a kill from junior outside hitter Kamille Gibson, Houston took a three-point lead for a score of 23-20. Houston went on to win the set for a final score of 25-21.
Gibson scored the first point of the third set with a kill for Houston. Cincinnati suffered from a service error, which landed Houston an early lead. Cincinnati landed its first point of the set with a service error from Houston.
After an attack error that was blocked by Williams and freshman opposite hitter Nina Scrucca from sophomore outside hitter Noemi Despaigne followed by a service error, Cincinnati pulled ahead with 4-3.
A series of attack errors and the help of a bad set from Cincinnati helped push Houston in the lead with 10-9 before timeout.
Houston stayed in front for the remainder of the set, with a kill from Jones scoring the final point, leaving a score of 25-21.
Cincinnati scored the first few points of the final set, coming in strong offensively with 2 kills from Scrucca and a service ace. Houston’s first points on the board came from a block by Gibson and Greenberry, putting the score at 3-1. Cincinnati stood ahead until a kill from senior middle blocker Alexis Roberson tied the game 6-6.
Houston maintained a lead over Cincinnati for the duration of the set, eventually resulting in Houston winning the final set after a final kill from Despaigne, leaving the score 25-20, the biggest score difference of the night.
Despaigne had 17 kills and Gibson had 15, helping push Houston to victory, along with 42 assists from freshman setter Shannon Dworaczyk.
The Houston Cougars will have a cougar face-off against the Brigham Young University Cougars on Oct. 8 at 6:30 pm.
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