By Morgan Davenport
Louisville fell to Kentucky, losing their second top ten match up so far this season, also in five sets.
Set one started off strong for the Cardinals, playing well from the beginning. Hannah Kenny had an ace giving the Cards the lead early on. There were a lot of lead changes through this set but the Cardinals came up to make it set point and win the match on a kill by Payton Petersen.
The Cardinals took set one 25-21, hopefully starting the game off strong.
The second set was a bit of a different story.
Kentucky gained momentum right away, and unfortunately Louisville’s defense just could not keep up. It still seems as though the back row is stuck in quicksand, making the defense slow to react to anything they recieve.
Setter Nayelis Cabello had twelve digs on the night, playing incredible defense and taking every ball that came her way with ease.
The Cards had a hitting percentage in the negatives for the set, having only nine kills and eleven errors.
Kentucky took set two 25-21, after a three-point run from the Cardinals.
While this was the battle of the bluegrass, this was also a battle of the Purdue transfers. Louisville’s Chloe Chicoine and Kentucky’s Eva Hudson and Lizzie Carr all made the move to the bluegrass state, looking for a new beginning.
Set three was the Cardinal comeback. This was Louisville’s best set offensively, actually swinging and keeping rallies going.
This was an extremely close set, both teams going point-for-point the whole time. Louisville fought hard and took the third 26-24, on a kill by Chloe Chicoine.
Set four was when the wheels fell off for the Cardinals. Kentucky got a quick lead on Louisville. Coach Dan Meske put in setter Molly Wilson once again, resting Cabello for the set. Wilson had three assists and two digs for set four.
The Cards just simply could no longer keep up with the Wildcats and dropped set four 25-12.
The fifth and final set was the same pace for the Cards. The momentum was unfortunately gone and Kentucky took a quick lead.
The Louisville defense just couldn’t hold up to the power Kentucky was bringing to the court. Hannah Sherman played extremely well, trying her best to put a block up on everything she could.
Cara Cresse, Hannah Sherman, and Nayelis Cabello had 21 blocks for the match, Sherman having 11.
Unfortunately, Louisville fell to the Wildcats in the fifth, 15-7.
While this was not the best match the Cardinals have ever played, they still are a strong team. Their biggest weakness is their defense and that is something they can work on. By the start of conference play, they will be ready.
The Cardinals will face Western Kentucky next on Monday at the KFC Yum! Center.
