Robin Joseph had six kills in eight attempt as Charlotte lost to Memphis |
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Volleyball Loses to Co-Leader Memphis, Splits Weekend Matches
Oct. 16, 2004
Memphis, Tenn. - The Charlotte 49ers volleyball team split a pair of Conference USA matches on the road this weekend. Following a come-from-behind, five-game win against St. Louis last night, Charlotte lost to league co-leader Memphis 3-0 (30-22, 30-28, 30-25) on Saturday night at Elma Roane Fieldhouse.
Memphis improved to 20-4 overall and 5-0 in C-USA play with its 13th straight victory. The Tigers have not lost in over a month, dating back to September 11. Nancy Nellans led Memphis with 14 kills, while Tiara Gilkey added 12.
The Tigers outhit the Niners .343 to .260, and benefited from 18 hitting and 13 service errors by Charlotte (15-8, C-USA 2-4). Lisa Newell led her team with 12 kills, while Jessica Oldenburg and Abbey Szlanfucht contributed nine apiece.
"They were super-aggressive and outperformed us tonight," head coach Lisa Marston said. "I'd say our team played hard, but not necessarily smart. We had a good win last night, and we're looking forward to getting back home with three matches next week."
The second game featured a quirky play that was a first for Charlotte coach Marston. On game point, Memphis committed an illegal libero substitution, but play was allowed to continue and each team went to the locker room following an apparent 30-27 Tigers win.
Marston challenged the substitution, the first time she has done that in her career, and the protest was upheld - leading the officials to bring both teams back out of the locker rooms to continue the second game. Charlotte won the next point to draw within one, before Memphis finally closed out the game 30-28.
Charlotte split their two matches this weekend. Last night, Szlanfucht registered a career-high 30 kills in a five-game victory over St. Louis, as Charlotte game back from two games down to take the decision.
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The 49ers return to Charlotte for three matches at Halton Arena next week. They face non-conference foe Radford on Tuesday, Oct. 19 at 7:00, and host a pair of conference matches on Friday and Saturday nights. On Friday, the team squares off against Southern Miss at 7:00 pm.
Charlotte will play a special "Dig for the Cure" match against Tulane on Saturday night at 7:00. Fans can pledge money per dig, or make a flat donation, with all proceeds benefiting the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. Niner head coach Lisa Marston started the program, which now includes all 14 C-USA schools and has a goal of raising $42,000 for the local Komen affiliates in each school's community.
