Oct. 17, 2003
The University of Kentucky volleyball team began a night of madness at Memorial Coliseum by coming back from two games down to defeat the LSU Tigers, 3-2, on Friday, October 17. The win moved the Cats to 11-8 overall and 3-4 in the Southeastern Conference and avenged a five-set loss to the Tigers earlier in the season.
Sophomore setter Leigh Marcum set a career mark with 71 assists. Senior Sissy Canfield led the Cats with a season-high 22 kills followed by freshman Melissa Popp who put down 21. Sophomore Danielle Wallace was the defensive stopper for the Cats, leading the team with a career-high 15 digs. The Cats hit .299 for the match while holding LSU to a .218 hitting percentage.
The Wildcats exchanged the lead with LSU six times in game one until a dump by Leigh Marcum allowed UK to break away. McCaslin followed with a kill to put the Kentucky up by two, 8-6. Great blocking allowed the UK to maintain the lead. The Cats would have a six point lead, 16-10 but ball errors would bring LSU with in one making the score 18-17.
The Tigers would pull away with a lead of 24-20 due to several plays of miscommunication by Kentucky. A kill by Marcum would end a five point LSU run at 22-27. A ball error later in the game would give the Tigers the game one win, 30-26. Popp contributed six kills for the Wildcats. Julie Gagnon and Danielle Wallace had four digs each in game one.
LSU would take the early lead in game two, 6-3. A kill by Popp followed by a Wildcat block would allow UK to even the score at eight. Sissy Canfield would put Kentucky ahead for the first time in the second stanza at 11-10. LSU then went on a 5-0 run to put them up 15-11. Three consecutive kills by Canfield and Wallace would pull the Cats within one. A ball error committed by LSU would allow the match to be tied at 22. Canfield would put UK up by one with a kill at 25-24 but LSU answered the Cats with a kill of their own. Consecutive kills by Spinner, Popp, and Canfield would allow Kentucky to get to game point, 29-26. After an LSU time out, the Tigers came roaring back and tied the game at 29. After exchanging points, LSU would score two quick points to win the second game, 32-30.
Kentucky’s turned things around in the third game. The Cats would jump off to an early lead at 6-2 and eventually would lead 13-6. Four unanswered points by the Tigers would allow them to pull within 4 bring the score to 14-10. A block by Kentucky at 20-12 would give the Cats its largest lead of the game. A kill by Canfield would force the Tigers to take a time out at 26-20. Power plays by Canfield would keep UK on top and they would take game three, 30-25. The Cats would hit .317 versus the Tigers .216 in the third game.
The Tigers started out game four with an early lead, 9-5. Kentucky went on a 5-1 run to knot the score at 10. The Cats would re-take the lead and held off any Tiger attacks, winning game four, 30-27 and tying the match at two.
Kentucky brought the momentum into the fifth and deciding game. Behind the serving of Popp, the Cats would jump out to a 9-1 lead. LSU would cut the lead to 5 at 11-6, but the deficit was too much for the Tigers to overcome as UK took the fifth game and the match, 15-10.
The Wildcats return to the court on Sunday, Oct. 19 at Memorial Coliseum when they take on Arkansas.
-Go Cats-
