University of Missouri
Nebraska
Ampudia's 22 Kills not Enough at No. 10 Nebraska
11/4/2009 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Nov. 4, 2009
LINCOLN, Neb. - The Mizzou volleyball team dropped its first match in its last four after falling, 3-0 (19-15, 16-25, 16-25) to No. 10 Nebraska at the NU Coliseum Wednesday night (Nov. 4). The loss drops Mizzou to 15-10 overall and 6-7 in Big 12 play this season. Junior Paola Ampudia (Cali, Colombia) led Mizzou with 22 kills on .315 hitting, continuing her fine play of late. Over her last nine matches, Ampudia now has 166 kills on .254 hitting. With her 22 kills on Wednesday, Ampudia now has 45 kills in Mizzou's two matches with the Huskers, averaging 6.43 per set. The Tigers hit .263 in the match, their second-best clip in a losing effort this season.
Mizzou also received fine play from Nebraska native Catie Wilson (Omaha, Neb.) in the match who totaled nine kills on .474 hitting with no errors. Senior setter Lei Wang-Francisco (Shanghai, China) also had a fine match, spreading 35 assists in the loss. The Tiger back row struggled in serve receive all night, committing eight errors while collecting only 31 digs in the match - 17 of which came in the final frame - which allowed Nebraska to hit .451 in the match.
Wilson got things started after posting the first kill of the match on a slide attack from Wang-Francisco. Nebraska countered by earning a sideout and taking the next three points to go on top 4-1. Ampudia stopped the streak after firing a kill of her own past the Husker back row as she kept the Tigers close after posting three kills in the early going. But Nebraska passed the ball well and opened a 10-7 lead over the Tigers.
Mizzou battled back to within two at 13-11 but Julianna Klein (Keota, Iowa) sent a roll shot long to give the Huskers back that three-point cushion. A service error and a kill from Ampudia cut the Husker lead to one at 14-13. A kill from Nebraska's Tara Mueller gave the Huskers a two point lead at 15-13 heading into the media timeout. Nebraska took the first point out of the timeout to build its lead back to three, but Mizzou continued to hang tough.
Down 18-15, both Wilson and Rosa Medrano (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic) posted a block to keep Mizzou close, but two kills and a service ace helped the Huskers build a 21-16 lead, sealing the first frame as they won, 25-19. Ampudia led the Tigers with seven kills on .333 hitting as they hit .258 in the set. However, Mizzou struggled to slow the Huskers as they posted 17 kills on .375 hitting in the frame. Nebraska had 16 digs as opposed to only nine from Mizzou in the first set.
Mizzou's back row struggled at the onset of the second frame as the Husker serve helped Nebraska go on top early, 8-3. Wilson and Klein rallied the Tigers as they pulled back within three at 11-8. That three-point cushion was tough for the Tigers to break as each time they cut into the lead, the Huskers seemed to send it back to four points. Nebraska eventually went up six after a block and a service ace that caromed off the net in what was an unlucky break for Mizzou. That unlucky break seemed to seize the momentum for Nebraska as the Tigers struggled to regain their form as they dropped the second set, 25-16.
Ampudia did all that she could to keep the Tigers close through h the first two sets as she went into the locker room with a match-high 16 kills on .413 hitting. Mizzou hit an astounding .480 in the second set, but still lost as they once again struggled to slow the Husker attack as they hit .682 in the frame. The .480 clip is the Tigers' best hitting percentage in a losing frame this season. Nebraska continued to keep Mizzou out of system with its service in the second, adding four aces to move its match total to seven at intermission. Wang-Francisco passed out 15 assists in the set as well, but Mizzou posted only five digs as a team in the second.
Nebraska opened up an 8-4 lead on the heels of Lindsey Licht, who posted four kills, a solo block and a block assist in that span, forcing a Mizzou stoppage. Fittingly, Licht gave the Huskers the first point out of the timeout on a solo block. Mizzou hung tough and made a late charge in the set and found itself down, 19-15 late in the frame. But Nebraska reeled off the six of the next seven to win the final set, 25-16.
Mizzou returns home on Saturday to face No. 2 Texas at 5 p.m. inside the Hearnes Center. Admission is just $2 with a ticket stub from Mizzou's football game with Baylor scheduled for that day. For all the latest on Mizzou volleyball, stay tuned to www.MUTigers.com.
