Wed July 23, 2008
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Top-Ranked BYU Escapes No. 6 UC Irvine in Five-Game ThrillerFeb. 15, 2008
IRVINE, Calif. --- Top-ranked BYU and sixth-ranked UC Irvine were locked in a five-game battle that saw the Cougars wrestle away a 30-28, 32-34, 30-22, 28-30, 28-26 win from the Anteaters in a Mountain Pacific Sports Federation match at the Bren Events Center. Four UCI players reached double-digit kills with Jon Steller leading the team with 18. Freshman Kevin Carroll added 14 kills and Kevin Wynne knocked down 13 while pacing UCI with five total blocks. Brent Asuka topped the team with 15 digs and setters Ryan Ammerman and Anthony Spittle totaled 40 and 26 assists, respectively. BYU outside hitter Ivan Perez led all players with 27 kills while Jonathan Charette added 17. Russell Holmes totaled 15 kills and led the team with nine blocks. Andrew Stewart had the team-high with 13 digs while Brian Congelliere totaled 69 assists and 11 digs for a double-double. The two teams kept the contest close in game one until BYU managed a three-point lead at 20-17 on consecutive kills and a Cougar block on UCI's Cory Yoder. The Anteaters chipped at the lead and tied the game at 23-23 on a kill by Cole Reinholm. At 27-27, a Holmes kill was followed by a UCI attack error to give BYU game point and Perez would connect with Congelliere for the game-winner. BYU looked to have the second frame under control, jumping out to a 16-9 lead on three straight Anteater attack errors. However, UCI used a pair of three-point rallies to close to 24-23 late in the game and force a BYU timeout. UCI knotted the score at 28 points apiece on a cross-court shot from Reinholm and claimed the lead at 31-30 on a Perez error. The two sides traded points until at 32-32, Ammerman delivered a solo block on Trent Sorenson and Perez followed with a shot that fell wide as UCI tied the match. The Cougars jumped out ahead in game three at 10-6 and would not relinquish the advantage. The Anteaters closed the margin at 17-15 on a kill from Steller but BYU answered with a 4-1 run (21-16). At 24-20, BYU rattled off five consecutive points and it was Perez again who came up with the game-winning kill. UCI trailed early in game four 15-11 but would rally again to catch the Cougars at 20-20 on a kill from Aaron Harrell. Holmes answered with a shot down the middle and Sorensen denied Harrell at the net for a 22-20 lead but UCI scored the next three points (23-22), capped by a Harrell service winner. Following a BYU timeout, the Cougars scored three unanswered points to lead 26-23 but the Anteaters responded with a three-point run of their own to tie the match at 28-28. Reinholm hit high off the Cougar hands to give UCI game point and Charette's cross-court attempt went wide to force a fifth set. It was BYU with the early lead in the fifth game, prompting the side change at 8-5. Sorensen and Perez paired up to deny Reinholm on the ensuing play for a 9-5 advantage. A pair of UCI kills and a service ace by Reinholm closed the gap to 9-8 and UCI took the lead at 11-10 on three consecutive Anteater kills. At 11-11, a bad set by UCI and back-to-back attack errors put BYU at match point (14-11). Following a BYU service error, Spittle delivered a solo block on Stewart and Carroll followed with the kill to tie the match at 14-14. Neither team was able to get the upper hand with the lead changing six times. Finally, down 26-25, BYU went to Perez on three straight plays as the Cougars came out with the win. The win lifted BYU to 10-0 and 5-0 in MPSF action while UCI dropped to 8-7 (5-5). The two teams continue conference action Saturday at 7:00 p.m. in the Bren Events Center. |
