STATESBORO, Ga. - The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga dropped another tough match on Saturday at Hanner Fieldhouse against Georgia Southern, 3-0. Freshman outside Jennifer Kuroski (Acworth, Ga.) led the Lady Mocs offense registering six kills along with seven digs.
With the loss Chattanooga fell to 4-14 overall and 0-3 in the Southern Conference, while Georgia Southern improved to 3-0 in the conference and 12-6 overall.
"We played hard tonight and competed with a really good Georgia Southern team through the first half of each set," said associate head coach James Onikeku. "We just were unable to limit our mistakes, which eventually caught up with us. The main issue came when we would commit them in succession allowing our opponents to gain some confidence."
Also contributing on the offensive end was sophomore outside Heather Parman (Ooltewah, Tenn.), while a trio of Lady Mocs senior middle blocker Courtney Barnes (Franklin, Tenn.), junior middle blocker Ellie Kuhn (San Antonio, Texas) and sophomore right side Christina Teter (Signal Mountain, Tenn.) recorded three kills each.
Distributing the ball to the hitters was senior Bailee Chastain (Chattanooga, Tenn.) and freshman Tess Kosycarz (Temecula, Calif.) totaling 13 and six assists, respectively.
"At the end, Tess [Kosycarz] came in as a setter and did alright running the offense," said Onikeku. "We moved Bailee [Chastain] to right back because our ball control was shaky. She actually help stabilize our defense with some good passes."
Defensively, sophomore libero Paula Passmore (Merritt Island, Fla.) compiled 13 digs during the contest, while sophomore outside Kirsten Beasley (San Antonio, Texas) and Parman each added six and five, respectively.
As a team, the Lady Mocs notched 25 kills, but 22 mistakes proved to be costly against a talented Georgia Southern team. The Eagles were consistent recording 10 kills in each set, but limited their mistakes to 13.
The Lady Mocs jumped out to a quick 5-2 lead before the Eagles tied the first set at six-all. The two teams battled back and forth rallying point for point until, 14-14, where Georgia Southern took the next three points. The Eagles went on to take the set 25-18 and an early 1-0 lead in the match.
After the teams fought for the first 13 points, the Eagles then took a 11-8 lead, but the Lady Mocs worked their way back into the second set and came within one on a block by Barnes and Teter. Georgia Southern then cruised to the 25-17 set victory.
Following the intermission, Georgia Southern took a 3-1 lead, but a service ace by Paula Passsmortae tied the third set at four. The Lady Mocs held an 8-7 advantage following a kill by Kosycarz. Then, the teams traded points until a kill by Teter brought Chattanooga to within one, 13-12, but the Eagles rallied to a 24-16 advantage. With their backs against the wall, the Lady Mocs continued to fight scoring three-straight points on a kill by Kuroski, service ace by Kosycarz and an opponent's mistake before the Eagles closed out the match, 25-19.
"Right now, it is mainly mental because we are thinking too much about not making a mistake," said Onikeku. "Tonight, it was not just one person, but it was multiple. We just need to learn to move on to the next point. Then, we can start building up our confidence."
The Southern Rail Rivalry Matchup, a year-long series with Samford, kicks off on Wednesday at 7 p.m. inside Maclellan Gym, where the Lady Mocs will be looking to "Pack the Mac" and break the volleyball attendance record on their Dig Pink and Camp Reunion/Youth Night.
Numerous promotional activities have been scheduled for the event including giveaways of pink wristbands and t-shirts to help promote breast cancer awareness. Following the match, the Lady Mocs will conduct an autograph session on the scoring table as a part of youth night.
This is also the McDonald's Mocs Maniancs Match, where students receive double points for attending the match, and free food will be provided to the dedicated students. The Sugar Mocs, Cheerleaders and Pep Band will also be on hand to promote a frenzy environment.
