Sept. 17, 2005
Box Score
MONROE, La. - In a five-game battle with the Louisiana-Monroe Lady Indians, the Lamar Lady Cardinals fell short of picking up their first win of the Southland Conference season, falling 25-30, 27-30, 30-18, 30-21, 4-15.
After taking a two game lead into the intermission, the Lady Cardinals could not close out ULM, who continued to gain momentum as the match wore on.
In game three the Lamar came out flat, and the Lady Indians took advantage, handing the Lady Cards a 30-18 loss. Monroe dominated all aspects of the game, holding the Lady Cards to a .069 hitting percentage while posting a .370 hitting percentage of their own.
Game four was eerily similar to game three for Lamar, as they could not find a rhythm against the scrappy Lady Indians. Monroe again pulled away from Lamar, stretching a two-point lead at 12-10, to eight points, eventually taking the game 30-21.
The Lady Cardinals again had hitting woes in game four, only managing a .023 hitting percentage, while Monroe posted a .222 mark.
After hitting .309 through the first two games, Lamar finished with a .149 hitting percentage for the match. Games three, four and five saw Lamar hit .069, .023 and -.100.
To begin the match, the Lady Cardinals jumped on top of the Lady Indians early 14-7 lead in game one, and did not allow ULM to get any closer than three points, closing out the game with a 30-25 win. Strong defense for Lamar was big for LU, as they collected 12 digs, two each by six different players. Offensively the Lady Cardinals knocked down 18 kills with a .353 hitting percentage, while they held Monroe to 14 kills and a .250 hitting percentage.
In game two, the Lady Cardinals rallied from a three point deficit at 22-19 to tie the game at 23, and used the momentum to rally past the Lady Indians. Alyssa Parks served four straight points to give Lamar a 26-23 lead, which they parlayed into a 30-27 win, taking a two game advantage.
For the match, Lamar had four players post double digit kills, led by Buchi Okoh's 13, while Molli Abel added 12. Meagan Adams posted a double-double with 11 kills and 11 digs, while Courtney Mitchell knocked down 10 kills.
Ashley Todd passed out 52 assists for the Lady Cardinals, while Andrea Hamilton collected 11 digs.
The Lady Cardinals will be in action again Tuesday night at 7:30 p.m., for their home opener against Nicholls State.
