By Grant Morrison | Sports Writer
No. 23 Baylor volleyball went down to Houston on Wednesday and brought back a 3-1 win against the Cougars, 23-25, 25-16, 25-17 and 25-23. The Bears (12-6, 4-3 Big 12) have won every matchup against Houston since 2002.
Houston (8-10, 3-5 Big 12) had the early momentum in the match, scoring the first four straight on their way to a 7-2 lead. After a pair of Cougar errors, senior outside hitter Elise McGhee attacked right over a block into a back-corner kill. Her next attack would be called an error, but ruled a kill once head coach Ryan McGuyre raised the challenge card.
The challenge capped off a 5-0 scoring run that tied the set for Baylor, but the Cougars managed to stay just ahead behind the big swings of graduate student outside hitter Angela Grieve. Houston won the race to 20 while the Bears struggled with 17. Despite clawing their way back 24-23, the Cougars took the first set.
“That first set, we weren’t in rhythm, and that’s the challenge,” McGuyre said. “Then, the servers got a little bit tougher.”
Freshman opposite hitter Grace Carroll notched a couple of kills early in the second set, but Houston junior outside hitter Avery Shimaitis hit back relentlessly, finishing with 11 kills on the day. Leading 11-9, Shimaitis went up for a kill, and hit directly into the suffocating arms of McGhee.
After the block, Houston all but fell apart. The Bears dodged a few attacks and allowed the Cougars to self-inflict a few wounds, costing themselves 31 points in errors throughout the match. Behind the serves of senior libero Lauren Briseño, Baylor went on a 12-3 run to take the set, 25-16, outhitting the Cougars .241 to .051.
By the third and fourth sets, the Bears offense was firing on all cylinders. Sophomore outside hitter Kendal Murphy found a rhythm, leaving the court with ten kills, while adding nine digs. Junior opposite hitter Allie Sczech put up eight kills with five blocks.
“Our team was united. We knew after the first set we didn’t play like we wanted to. We talked, and knew we needed to get dirty, get gritty,” McGhee said.
The gritty Bears clawed their way back from early struggles, and kept their foot on the gas until leading 20-14 in the fourth. Houston, trying to muster up some grit of their own, mounted a valiant comeback effort. But at matchpoint, trailing 24-23, a Houston service error put the game away.
It was Baylor’s first road conference win of the season. The Bears have successfully defended the Ferrell Center 3-0 at home against conference foes, but a win on the road sparks confidence for the roster. In enemy territory, the Bears make do with what they’ve got.
“We build our own energy,” McGhee said. “[Big 12 competition] is really tough, we know we have to compete to win.”
The Bears will be back in action at 5 p.m. Friday for a rematch against No. 18 TCU (14-4, 6-2 Big 12) at the Ferrell Center.
