Nov. 6, 2008
Final Stats
LAS VEGAS - The UNLV Rebels (14-11 overall, 7-5 Mountain West) needed a bit of extra volleyball to knock off the BYU Cougars (11-11, 4-8) in a five-set match by a 3-2 margin. The match witnessed UNLV storm out to a quick 2-0 lead only to see BYU rally with two wins out of intermission. The Rebels trailed up until the 10-10 mark of the fifth frame, but rallied to win five of the final six points for the set and match. UNLV took the match by set scores of 25-21, 25-20, 20-25, 23-25, 15-11.
In a series that dates back to 1984, the Rebels trail historically by a 6-22 margin. UNLV has managed to reel off four wins in the last five encounters. More importantly, UNLV has now won three consecutive dating back to 2007.
UNLV out-hit BYU by a .199-to-.194 margin. The Rebels racked up 10 more kills (69-to-59), but had seven more errors (31-to-24) in the victory. The Rebels hit no worse than .170 (fourth set) and stayed within the .100s until the fifth and final frame. UNLV reeled off a .316 efficiency in the fifth to take the match. BYU, on the other hand, fluctuated between .079 (second) and .361 (third). The Cougars came out strong in the fifth with their .278.
The Rebels were led by double-doubles from Melody Nua and Sara Nehf. Nua racked up her 11th of the season and 38th of her career by combining a match-high 51 assists and 12 digs. Nehf used a pairing of 12 kills and 12 digs for her second double-double of the year and third of her career.
Erin Greenwood topped all attackers and tied her career-high in kills with 22. Coincidentally, she set her career mark against BYU on Nov. 23, 2007 in the MWC Tournament semifinals.
Cursty Jackson followed Greenwood's lead in reaching a career milestone, as she knocked down 19 kills. Jackson surpassed her previous high of 14, which she set twice earlier this season. She led all Rebels in hitting efficiency with a .400 average with only three errors in 40 swings.
Camille Cunningham led a quintet of UNLV defenders in digs with her match-high 25. Gerryn Moran (13) was next in line, whle Nua (12), Nehf (12) and Samantha Richard (12) rounded out the five-pack.
BYU had three players reach double-double status. Kiana Rogers combined 50 assists and 17 digs for her feat, while Kayla Walker and Bryn Porter used kills and digs. Walker led the Cougars in kills with 50 and pitched in 11 digs, while Porter had 12 kills and 16 digs.
Rachel Dyer joined Walker and Porter in double-digit kills with 14 of her own.
Melissa Lake was the top defender for the Cougars, as she dug out 20 UNLV attacks.
The Rebels return to action on Saturday, Nov. 8 at 1:00 pm in the Cox Pavilion against #24 Utah. The Utes come to Las Vegas following a 3-0 victory in San Diego over the San Diego State Aztecs.
