8/31/03
No. 16 Long Beach State 3, No. 23 Texas 1
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| Bethany Howden |
LONG BEACH, Calif. -- The 23rd-ranked Texas volleyball team dropped its second match of the season to No. 16 Long Beach State, 3-1 (30-26, 26-30, 30-27, 30-22), in the final game of the Mizuno Invitational hosted by the 49ers at The Pyramid. Junior outside hitter Bethany Howden (Austin, Texas/Westlake) paced the Longhorns with 22 kills in the four-game match.
Junior All-American outside hitter Mira Topic (Kastela Kambelovac/Vladimir Nazor) recorded 20 kills and 16 digs. Sophomore libero Erin Larson (San Antonio, Texas/Ronald Reagan) also recorded 16 digs, which far outpaced her entire total from the 2002 season (13).
Long Beach State unlocked a 15-15 tie in the first frame behind Melanie Fleig, who served four straight points to push the 49er lead to 19-16. Topic netted five kills in the set for the Longhorns. UT had a 13-9 lead, until Long Beach State went on a 6-2 run to tie the score at 15. LBSU won the game, 30-26.
The Longhorns rebounded with a second-game win, 30-26. UT went up 4-1 early, but Long Beach battled back to tie the match at 4-4. The two teams played evenly until the Beach was able to take a 19-17 lead later in the match. From that point, Texas went on a 7-2 run to take control of the game. Howden led the attack with seven kills, while Topic added five. Freshman opposite Jessica Curtis (Marietta, Ga./Kennesaw Mountain) recorded the game-winning kill.
The Longhorns took leads early in both the third and fourth games, but the 49ers rallied to tie the score in both frames. Both teams kept the score close and were tied often. Late-game runs by LBSU earned the hosts both games as UT was unable to mount a charge at the end. Howden and Topic kept UT in the game with a combined 31 kills through the third set. Both teams struggled offensively, registering below a .160 hitting percentage apiece. As with the team's first game of the season - a 3-0 loss to St. Mary's (Calif.) - Texas played three freshmen and used a short bench, rotating in two defensive specialists.
"Looking at the tournament from a glass half-full perspective, we did a lot of great things," head coach Jerritt Elliott said. "We executed our game plan and had excellent opportunities (against LBSU), but we just weren't as consistent as we needed to be. The chances were there but we didn't take advantages of them. The freshmen came in and did a great job and weren't intimidated in this big-game situation. There were a lot of positives this weekend and we'll build on those positives as the season continues."
"We are looking forward to opening our home schedule on Tuesday. This team is excited to return home to the friendly confines of Gregory Gym."
Texas returns to action on Tuesday, Sept. 2 when Texas State (formerly Southwest Texas) comes to Gregory Gym for a 7 p.m. contest. Fans who bring a ticket stub from Sunday's football game against New Mexico State will be admitted free. Also, fans can take advantage of the "Two for Tuesday" promotion: fans who purchase one ticket will receive another one free.
