Regular season play has ended for UConn volleyball with an overall record of 13-16 heading into the Big East tournament as the no. 7 seed. Today at 12:30 p.m., they will take on the No. 2 seed Cincinnati Bearcats.
"Everyday at practice this week we have been breaking down the Bearcats so we are prepared to beat them in the first round of the Big East tournament," said senior Chauntay Mickens. "We have an advantage because we just played in Louisville this past weekend and we played Cincinnati."
Just a week ago, the Huskies lost to Cincinnati 3-0, but it has not deterred the their plans.
"We are so excited that we were given the opportunity to play in the Big East for the fourth straight year against a team that is still fresh in our minds," said senior Devon Farrell. At this point, it's less about what the other teams are doing. We are focusing on our game and minimizing errors and playing together while being ourselves."
The Huskies concluded Big East play with an even record of 7-7. In their last loss at Louisville, Mickens tallied a team-high of 13 kills. Two other players finished the afternoon in double-digits. Junior Rebecca Murray and freshman Mattison Quayle each had 11 kills. Murray leads the team offensively, averaging 2.65 kills per set, while Jessica Isaac leads the team defensively, averaging 4.19 digs per set.
Today's match will be the sixth meeting all-time between the two schools with Cincinnati having a 4-1 edge in the series. After two three-set wins over Connecticut and St. John's on Nov. 14 and Nov. 15 respectively, Cincinnati extended its home winning-streak to 27 matches. The Bearcats own the second longest home winning streak in the country, trailing only the No. 1 team in the country and back-to-back National Champions Penn State. Cincinnati Standouts include junior Stephanie Niemer, sophomore Missy Harpenau and freshman Emily Hayden.
The Huskies will have to win the match today to advance to the following rounds of the tournament that will be taking place in the Kentucky International Convention Center.
"If it's up to the team we are going to do everything in our power to be in Louisville on Sunday for the championship match," Mickens said.
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