For the second weekend in a row, the Marquette women’s volleyball team was able to win the first two matches of their weekend tournament before falling in the finale. The Golden Eagles took down IUPUI 3-0 in their first match of the Shocker Volleyball Classic. On Saturday they came out on top with a 3-1 win over Cincinnati during the morning session and then were swept by Wichita State to complete the weekend.
Redshirt sophomores Taylor Louis and Jenna Rosenthal led the Marquette offense all weekend and took home all-tournament honors for their play. Louis recorded two double-doubles to go along with an average of 4.50 kills and 2.80 digs per match. Rosenthal finished the tournament hitting an astonishing average of .455.
In Marquette’s opening match against IUPUI, Louis had a match-high 18 kills and a .444 hitting percentage, while Rosenthal followed up with eight kills of her own.
In the first two sets against IUPUI, the Golden Eagles jumped out to a commanding lead and held to secure the sets 25-16, 25-14. In the third set, the Jaguars were first to score, but Marquette quickly righted the ship and took a 10-6 lead, forcing IUPUI to call timeout. MU ended up winning the set 25-15.
“I really liked our balance tonight,” head coach Ryan Theis told gomarquette.com. “We need to get points out of multiple people and I think we did that. It was a good start for us.”
Rosenthal and Louis once again led the way in Marquette’s Saturday match against Cincinnati. Rosenthal hit .550 with no errors and 11 kills, while Louis posted a double-double with 14 kills and 11 digs.
Marquette held IUPUI to just .079 on Friday and on Saturday defense was once again key as the Golden Eagles recorded eight blocks to take down the Bearcats in four sets (25-21, 19-25, 25-20, 25-21).
In Marquette’s final match of the tournament against Wichita State, Louis and Rosenthal continued their offensive dominance, but it was not enough. Marquette ended up getting swept in three sets. Louis led the team with 13 kills, while Rosenthal recorded nine.
The Golden Eagles were able to keep themselves within striking distance early in the first set, but the Shockers got hot and took a 17-8 lead. They ultimately went on to win the set 25-14.
Similar fate struck Marquette in the second set. They jumped out to a 7-2 lead, forcing Wichita to call timeout. Marquette then extended the lead to 13-9, but Wichita stayed poised and tied the set at 19-19 and were able to outlast Marquette to win the frame 25-22.
Four errors in the final three plays haunted Marquette in the third set, as they fell 25-20. Marquette finished the game hitting just .143 with 59 digs and six blocks.
Next weekend the Golden Eagles will the travel to Kentucky to play in the Kentucky Tournament, where they will face Saint Louis, Virginia and Kentucky.
