Nov. 21, 2001
Final Stats
LUBBOCK, Texas - A four-point Texas Tech run late in game five proved fatal for Baylor here Wednesday as the Bears dropped a 26-30, 30-28, 31-29, 20-30, 15-9 decision to the Red Raiders in Big 12 Conference volleyball action.
With the loss, Baylor falls to 17-11 on the season and 8-11 in Big 12 action. Tech improves to 18-12 and 9-10.
With the score tied 6-6 in the fifth game, Tech scored three straight points to take a 9-6 lead it never relinquished. The Bears stopped that run with one point, but the Raiders scored the next four to push their lead to 13-7. Baylor was never able to get closer than five points from there.
The loss marked the third straight for Baylor overall and in the Texas Tech series. It also marked the third straight five-game match between the Bears and Raiders, the only three five-gamers in the 46-match history of the series.
The Bears spoiled a tremendous outing by Tisha Schwartz. The sophomore middle blocker tallied a career-high 19 kills and match her season best with eight blocks. Stevie Nicholas led all players with 27 kills to go along with 16 digs. Tatiana Kenon chipped in with 15 kills and three blocks. Laura Daniela Lloreda led the Bears defensively with 17 digs.
Baylor opened the first game with five straight points and held the lead throughout the first half of the game, however, a five-point Tech run tied the score at 14-14. The Bears came out of a time out with four straight points to recapture the lead and force Tech into its first time out of the game. The Raiders never again got closer than two points as the Bears posted a 30-26 win.
Stevie Nicholas and Kenon led the charge for the Bears in the first game, Stevie Nicholas hit .375 with seven kills, while Kenon had five kills and hit .364. As a team, Baylor hit .245 in the opener to Tech's .122. Lloreda had seven of her digs in game one.
Trailing 4-2 in the second game, the Bears put together an 11-2 run to take a 13-6 lead. From there, Tech began to chip away at the lead and eventually tied the score at 23-23. The Raiders came out of a Baylor time out with four of the next six points to take a 27-25 lead. Side-out volleyball followed as Tech pulled out the 30-28 victory.
Baylor's attacking percentage dipped to .216 in game two, while the Raiders jumped to .255. Tisha Schwartz came alive for the Bears in game two, though, going 5-0-8 (.625) with three blocks. Kenon continued her hot hand, going 5-0-9 (.556).
After Tech built a 15-10 lead in game three, Baylor put together a 7-1 run to take a 17-16 advantage. Then, tied 24-24, Tech scored back-to-back points and held the lead until a Dana Chuha block knotted things at 29-29. The Raiders answered, though, with two straight points to win game three 31-29.
The strong defense that led Baylor to a victory in game one returned in game four. Leading 20-17, the Bears scored eight straight points to take a commanding 28-17 lead. Baylor road that momentum to a 30-20 victory. Schwartz tallied four kills and four blocks, while Stevie Nicholas had six kills.
The Bears finished the night with a .202 team attacking percentage, however, Baylor went 7-7-24 (.000) in game five. Meanwhile, Tech hit only .175 for the match but went 7-2-17 in the deciding game. The Bears out-dug the Raiders 91-90, putting five players in double figures. Baylor also had 10.5 blocks on the night, reaching double figures in blocks for just the fifth time this season.
Dana Chuha led all players with 68 assists, topping Tech's Skydra Orzen, the NCAA leader, who had 62. Chuha is now just 14 assists shy of tying Cory Sivertson's school mark for career assists of 4,846.
Kelly Johnson led Tech offensively with 20 kills, while Samantha Harvey had 15. Melissa McGehee tallied 18 kills and 19 digs, Angela Mooney had 12 kills and a team-high four blocks. Heather Hughes Justice led all players with 20 digs, one of six Raiders to reach double figures in digs.
Baylor will conclude its regular season Saturday, hosting Missouri for a 7:30 p.m. match at the Ferrell Center. The Bears defeated the Tigers in four games earlier this season in Columbia, Mo.
