FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
8/31/01
Longhorns open Jerritt Elliott era with 3-0 victory over Purdue
SEATTLE, Wash. -- Freshman middle blocker Bethany Howden (Austin, Texas/Westlake) posted a team-high 18 kills and .516 hitting percentage in her first collegiate match to guide the Longhorns to a 3-0 win (31-29, 30-25, 30-26) over the Purdue Boilermakers at the Point Huskies Invitational Friday evening at Bank of America Arena in Seattle, Wash. The University of Texas goes to 1-0 under first-year head coach Jerritt Elliott. The Longhorns are now 24-4 in season openers. Purdue falls to 0-1 on the season.
Howden recorded seven of her 18 kills in game one while committing only one error in 15 attempts. Freshman outside hitter Mira Topic (Kambelovac, Croatia/Vladimir Nazor) added 14 kills while hitting .333 in her first collegiate match. Topic also led the team defensively with 16 digs. Senior outside hitter Katia Lara (Sao Paulo, Brazil/Jucelino) collected 13 kills, including the match-winning kill in game three. Lara also recorded 11 digs and a team-leading three service aces.
The Longhorns edged Purdue in game one 31-29 on an attack error by the Boilermakers. In game two, Purdue stayed close until a service ace by senior outside hitter Gipy Duarte (Lima, Peru/Colegia Maria Renia) put UT ahead 17-16. Texas held the lead to win game two 30-25. The Longhorns took the early lead in game three and held on as they outhit the Boilermakers .241 to .102.
Purdue was led by Lyndsey Phillips and Leah Wischmeier with seven kills apiece.
The Longhorns
return to action tomorrow morning when they face No. 11 Brigham Young
at the Point Huskies Invitational. First serve is scheduled for 10:30
a.m. PST (12:30 p.m. CST). Texas then faces host Washington in the nightcap
at 7:30 p.m. PST (9:30 p.m. CST).
- UT-
