Nov. 30, 2002
ORLANDO, Fla. – The University of Kentucky volleyball team closed out the 2002 season with a 3-0 loss to the Houston Cougars on Saturday, Nov. 30 in the Central Florida Thanksgiving Tournament in Orlando, Fla. Sissy Canfield led the Wildcats with 12 kills on .345 hitting. Kentucky ends the season with a 13-18 overall record and a 6-10 mark in Southeastern Conference play.
The match was the final appearance for four Wildcat seniors as Kristen Batt, Aleisha Craven, Anne Koester and Toni Lee played in their last match at UK. Batt closes her career with 1,387 kills, which ranks only two shy of third on UK’s career list. She also finishes third on UK’s career digs list with 1,087. Craven finishes her four-year stay with 985 career digs, tying her for sixth on the all-time list while playing in 432 games, which ranks eighth at Kentucky.
The Wildcats fell behind early in the first game, 8-1, forcing Braden to call a timeout. The Cats then began a steady climb back into the game, cutting the UH lead to six at 24-18 on a block by Koester and Kaplan. After a Cougar timeout, UK continued to play well and put together a 4-0 run late in the game to cut the lead to one at 28-27. Two quick points, however, would silence the UK squad, 30-27.
Kentucky looked steadier to start game two, matching Houston through 11 ties early. The Cougars then used a 7-2 run to take a 21-16 lead, forcing a Kentucky timeout. Despite solid play from Canfield, UK couldn’t close the deficit, dropping the game, 30-23, giving UH a 2-0 lead in the match.
The Cats again found themselves trying to make up ground in the third game, as UK fell behind 10-5 early. UK was able to cut the advantage to two at 14-12, but could get no closer, dropping the match on a 30-23 third game decision.
Kentucky breaks for most of the winter before playing a four-week tournament exhibition schedule in the spring. Fans can follow all of the spring action at UK Athletics’ home on the web, www.ukathletics.com.
