BUFFALO, NY – The UB women's volleyball team was unable to sustain a 2-1 lead as the visiting Miami RedHawks defeated the Bulls in five, 3-2, Saturday evening at Alumni Arena. The loss was just UB's second five-set loss of the season and snapped a streak of UB splitting every conference weekend to date. The Bulls are now 15-11 on the season and 5-7 in the MAC.
The RedHawks took a very evenly contested match 22-25, 25-15, 16-25, 25-20, 17-15 as they narrowly outhit UB, .250 to .226. After the Bulls won the first set, Miami played very strong in the second set. The Bulls responded by playing one of their best sets of the season in the third, hitting .382 for the set. However, the RedHawks responded with a fourth set victory and then the two teams fought back and forth in the fifth before Miami took the lead. The Bulls did fight off two match points before Miami claimed the victory.
"I thought we did a nice job bouncing back after last night, but we still have to get better at finishing when we have the lead," said head coach Todd Kress. "I give Miami a lot of credit for the way they fought and that is why they are amongst the top of the conference."
Junior Lindsey Schlegel had 43 assists, five kills and 10 digs on the night, while freshman Tori Beckman added a match-high 23 digs. Beckman also had a team-high two service aces.
The Bulls will be back in action next weekend when they hit the road for a pair of MAC contests. UB travels to Ohio on Friday night and Kent State on Saturday. Both matches are set for 7:00 pm.