Sept. 1, 2001
DALLAS, Texas – The Southern Methodist Invitational heated up early on Saturday morning as the Kentucky Wildcat volleyball team waged a comeback on Duke similar to that of their men’s basketball counterparts in 1998. The Wildcats (1-1) were down 2-0 in the match before waging a valiant turnaround effort falling just shy of the win as the Blue Devils took the match, 3-2.
Kentucky took an early lead in the first game before the Blue Devils waged a comeback and took a 21-14 lead forcing a UK timeout. However, after the break, Duke (2-0) remained on top of its game, building its lead to 11 before going on serve for the game, taking it by a tally of 30-18.
The Wildcats came out rejuvenated in the second game, forcing an early Duke timeout after building a quick 7-2 lead. Duke fought back, tying the game at 16 before taking a two-point lead. Kentucky would tie the game at 21 before the Devils pulled away down the stretch, taking the game 30-23.
Down 2-0 entering the third game, UK was looking for answers. Kentucky found those answers in the hands of junior Kristen Batt, who posted an aggressive offensive effort while leading the Wildcats to the 30-24 win. The Cats built an early 10-4 lead in the game, before DU came back to tie the game at 11. The teams remained close for a while, before UK pulled away down the stretch thanks to a pair of Sissy Canfield kills.
UK continued its hot play in game four, holding off a late Duke rally to take the game, 30-20. In the final tiebreak game, Duke took off to an early 5-0 lead before the Cats mounted a solid attack, canning their first point on another Canfield kill. Duke continued its aggressive play, taking the tiebreak by a tally of 15-9.
“We needed to work harder at the beginning of the match,” Coach Jona Braden said. “We weren’t getting the help from our veterans that we should have been. I’m very pleased with the way we came back in game three and showed them that we weren’t going to back down though.”
“It’s really exciting to see this kind of spirited play this early in the season. We’ve played two emotional matches in two days, and now we have to gear up for Weber State.”
Freshman Sarah Spinner earned her first start as a Wildcat after having a powerful impact on UK’s Friday night win over SMU. The Melbourne, Fla., native took advantage of her new role, charting the first double-double of her career with 10 kills and 20 digs. Freshmen Lauren Speelman and Katie Bright saw their first action at UK against the Blue Devils.
Kentucky fell to 7-3 all-time against the Devils. The Cats return to the court at 4:30 p.m. to take on Weber St.
Game Scores
Game OneDU 30, UK 18
Game TwoDU 30, UK 23
Game ThreeUK 30, DU 23
Game FourUK 30, DU 20
Game FiveDU 15, UK 9
–UK–
