TEMPE, Ariz. – Texas A&M-Corpus Christi volleyball dropped a pair of 3-0 contests against tough non-conference opponents Arizona State and No. 13 Louisville to open its season at the Arizona State tournament Friday at Desert Financial Arena.
Game 1 – Arizona State 3, A&M-Corpus Christi 0
The Islanders failed to find its offensive rhythm in its season opener, falling to tournament host Arizona State in a 3-0 setback.
Kyndal Payne opened the contest with a kill to hand the Islanders a 1-0 advantage, but ASU quickly countered with four-straight points to seize a lead that it would not relinquish.
Montez Uigaese closed the gap to three, 9-6, with a kill, but the Sun Devils claimed 10 of the last 16 points for the 25-17 win.
Both teams traded points to begin the second, as kills from Payne and
Ella Litterell evened the score twice before ASU rallied for three straight to take the lead. A&M-Corpus Christi found itself within five after a Sun Devil service error, but ASU slammed the door with a seven-point outburst for the 25-13 win and 2-0 match edge.
After forcing four ties early in the third, ASU strung together a five-point streak to take the 9-4 advantage and never look back. A pair of runs proved enough for the Sun Devils to roll to a 25-11 set win and complete the sweep.
Game 2 – No. 13 Louisville 3, A&M-Corpus Christi 0
No. 13 Louisville proved dominant from the start, handing the Islanders a 3-0 loss in Friday's nightcap.
With 12 assists on the night,
Faith Panhans became the ninth Islander in program history to reach 1,000 career assists.
The Cardinals jumped to a 4-0 lead to start the match, building to a 15-3 cushion midway through the first that the Islanders struggled to replicate and eventually claimed the opening set by a 25-10 decision.
After seeing Louisville take a 5-1 second-set lead, the Islanders managed trim the margin to two points on three occasions thanks to a pair of Cardinal errors and a
Morgan Baese kill. The Cardinals offense earned five of the next six points for a 17-11 cushion that they rode to a 25-17 win and 2-0 match lead.
A&M-Corpus Christi battled back from an early deficit as a
Kylie Filipiak kill put the Islanders on the Cardinals heels 5-4, keeping it close until a seven-point stretch for Louisville helped them put away the victory, 25-16.
The Islanders conclude the Arizona State tournament Saturday versus Cal Poly at 2 p.m. CT.
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