Spring Break
Volleyball has rocky start at Temple
Jim Thayer
Issue date: 10/1/08 Section: Sports
10/01/08 - The University of Rhode Island women's volleyball team (6-8 overall; 0-2 Atlantic 10) struggled in its first weekend of conference play, falling to both La Salle University on Friday and Temple University on Saturday.
La Salle got off to an early lead, winning the first two sets of the match. The Rams kept the first set close, always being within a few points. They kept La Salle from gaining true momentum in the match, and a last-minute rally seemed to be a little too late for the Rams. URI lost the first set, 25-20.
The second set started much like the first, being close throughout.
URI held a lead for a good part of the set, but a late push by La Salle helped the team surpass the Rams, coming back and winning, 25-22.
The Rams fought back, however, and won the next two sets. The Rams dominated the third set, as they strung together a six-point streak early on led by senior Peggy Doino.
Sophomores Lindsay Lytle and Kayla Newberg tacked on a few more kills toward the end of the game, and the Rams took La Salle with a score of 25-16.
The Rams tied the match two sets each after set four. Led by junior Caitlyn Welsh and sophomore Kalyn Klaess, the Rams took the lead in the set, 5-4, but La Salle tied it up again at 12-12, and again at 19-19 later in the game.
The Rams then strung together four points in a row, and eventually won the fourth set 25-21.
The final set saw La Salle squeak away with a victory for the set, and the match, 15-12.
A few errors by the Rams and a couple of well-placed hits by La Salle contributed to the Rams' loss.
"We gave La Salle too many opportunities," head coach Bob Schneck said. "They took advantage of every mistake we made, and we can't let that happen."
On Saturday, the Rams stayed in Philadelphia to play Temple. There, they dropped their second straight conference match, 3-1.
Rhode Island took the first set from Temple, but Temple "came back firing, and regrettably, we didn't fire back harder," said Klaess.
Temple took the final three sets and won the match in four. Welsh posted a team-high 16 kills for the Rams.
This is the 10th match this season Welsh has posted 10 or more kills.
Defensively, Doino led the team with 18 digs. This is the eighth match this season with 15-or-more digs for Doino.
Schneck said it was a tough match, describing one Temple player, Yun Yi Zhang, who "hit the ball like a surgeon." She had 24 kills and two errors during the game.
It will be a challenge going forward for the Rams starting off 0-2 in conference play, but Schneck is confident that his players will have a successful season.
The Rams have a chance to get back on the right track when they go to Brown University tonight at 7 p.m. to face the Bears.
La Salle got off to an early lead, winning the first two sets of the match. The Rams kept the first set close, always being within a few points. They kept La Salle from gaining true momentum in the match, and a last-minute rally seemed to be a little too late for the Rams. URI lost the first set, 25-20.
The second set started much like the first, being close throughout.
URI held a lead for a good part of the set, but a late push by La Salle helped the team surpass the Rams, coming back and winning, 25-22.
The Rams fought back, however, and won the next two sets. The Rams dominated the third set, as they strung together a six-point streak early on led by senior Peggy Doino.
Sophomores Lindsay Lytle and Kayla Newberg tacked on a few more kills toward the end of the game, and the Rams took La Salle with a score of 25-16.
The Rams tied the match two sets each after set four. Led by junior Caitlyn Welsh and sophomore Kalyn Klaess, the Rams took the lead in the set, 5-4, but La Salle tied it up again at 12-12, and again at 19-19 later in the game.
The Rams then strung together four points in a row, and eventually won the fourth set 25-21.
The final set saw La Salle squeak away with a victory for the set, and the match, 15-12.
A few errors by the Rams and a couple of well-placed hits by La Salle contributed to the Rams' loss.
"We gave La Salle too many opportunities," head coach Bob Schneck said. "They took advantage of every mistake we made, and we can't let that happen."
On Saturday, the Rams stayed in Philadelphia to play Temple. There, they dropped their second straight conference match, 3-1.
Rhode Island took the first set from Temple, but Temple "came back firing, and regrettably, we didn't fire back harder," said Klaess.
Temple took the final three sets and won the match in four. Welsh posted a team-high 16 kills for the Rams.
This is the 10th match this season Welsh has posted 10 or more kills.
Defensively, Doino led the team with 18 digs. This is the eighth match this season with 15-or-more digs for Doino.
Schneck said it was a tough match, describing one Temple player, Yun Yi Zhang, who "hit the ball like a surgeon." She had 24 kills and two errors during the game.
It will be a challenge going forward for the Rams starting off 0-2 in conference play, but Schneck is confident that his players will have a successful season.
The Rams have a chance to get back on the right track when they go to Brown University tonight at 7 p.m. to face the Bears.
