It has been a brutal string of games for the UConn Huskies women’s volleyball team as they’ve now accumulated four straight losses to start Big East play.
UConn traveled to Milwaukee to face Marquette this past Friday, taking a 0-3 loss. Again, the Huskies were led by seniors Caylee Parker and Jasmine Davis from the start, as both teams were trading points and battling. Parker and Davis finished set one combining for six kills, but Marquette took this set with a final mark of 25-18.
In set two, Marquette took an early 11-6 lead causing UConn to burn an early timeout. The Huskies came back out of the huddle hot as they cut down Marquette’s lead to one. They eventually tied the game at 20, but the Golden Eagles held strong, outscoring UConn 5-1 to grab the set victory.
The Huskies started set three with a lead that did not last very long as Marquette tied the game at nine. The Golden Eagles took a 21-12 lead, and despite UConn’s efforts, Marquette took the set 25-18 and the match 3-0.
A short trip down I-94 landed the Huskies in DePaul for their second contest of the weekend. Senior Kennaide Drake Turner led the match with 13 kills. Parker had 10 kills and 13 digs, and senior Madi Whitmire had 44 assists and 11 digs, each finishing with a double-double. Junior Taylor Pannell put up six blocks while Allie Garland had five.
UConn and DePaul traded points in the first set, but the Blue Demons went on a 6-2 run and extended that to a 15-8 lead, finishing the set 25-15.
The Huskies’ defense held up in the second set keeping DePaul at a 0.63 hitting percentage. As a result, they went on a 4-0 run to gain a 17-10 lead. UConn had five blocks, and senior Aset Baker-Falealili put up two aces to give her team breathing room. The Blue Demons made some errors and UConn capitalized on them, taking the second set 25-14.
There were 13 ties and five lead changes in the third set. Whitmire served an ace putting UConn ahead 18-15. DePaul went on a 6-1 run out of a timeout to take a 21-20 lead before Jake-Turner and Parker had a block to tie the set 23-23, but the Blue Demons took over in the end.
UConn did not give up in the fourth despite DePaul trying to run away with the game in the end. The Blue Demons took a 19-14 lead before Davis heated up with three straight kills. The Huskies had a block and used a DePaul error to get within one, 23-22. Davis and Parker tied the set 24-24 with their kills, but DePaul got two points to close out the match.
The Huskies will return home to Gampel Pavilion this weekend as they prepare to take on Creighton and Xavier.