By Mitch Streufert
The University of Louisville Cardinals opened up the NCAA Volleyball Tournament Friday evening, Dec. 4, in Knoxville, Tennessee, against the 11th ranked Minnesota Gophers. Freshman outside hitter, Lola Arslanbekova, led the Cardinals with 20 kills, but the Gophers prevailed in four sets 25-20, 24-26, 26-24, 25-22.
“It was a great match that I wish we would have won,” said Louisville’s head coach Leonid Yelin. “Minnesota is a very talented team, and are well coached. We had to play our best to beat a team like this, and overall we didn’t.”
Senior outside hitter, Justine Landi, playing in her final match for Louisville, had 13 kills of her own as the Cards could not keep up with the Gophers.
“They just made fewer mistakes than we did and got a few more breaks,” said Landi. “In the end they won and we lost. It is just a sad feeling knowing I’ll never play for this team again.”
The first set was back and forth until Minnesota ran off 4 points in a row making it 18-14. After a Louisville timeout, the Cards tried to rally to get back into the set, but the closest they got to the Gophers was 19-16. The Gophers finished out the set 25-20.
In the second set, Minnesota came out with a 5-0 run, forcing Yelin to call a timeout trailing 10-4. U of L fought back to make it 20 all forcing a Minnesota timeout. The next 9 points were played evenly, but the Gophers had the edge at 25-24. On the cusp of going down 2 sets to love, Louisville stepped up behind the attacking of Lola Arslanbekova. She led the Cards to a 3-0 run to win the set 26-24.
In the pivotal third set, the Cards jumped out to a 5-1 lead and forced a Gopher timeout while trailing 15-12. Minnesota, after a 3-0 Cardinal run, called their second timeout trailing 21-17. Out of the timeout the Gophers rallied to tie it up at 24-24 on a 3-0 run of their own. The Gophers forced an attack error by Landi making the score 25-24 leading to a U of L timeout. On game point, Minnesota converted a service ace and took the set 26-24.
“Had we won that set the entire match would have been different,” said senior outside hitter Lecia Brown. “There were some questionable calls that didn’t go our way, but that’s no excuse we had to find a way to win that set. We didn’t and Minnesota did and they’re playing tomorrow, not us.”
In the final set, the Gophers jumped out to an 8-4 lead forcing a Cards timeout. Arslanbekova tried to breathe some life into the Cards with two kills making the score 10 all. The Gophers retaliated with a 4-0 run stretching their lead to 19-15. Yelin called a timeout to try and slow down the Gophers, but in the end it wasn’t enough to save the Cardinals season. Minnesota closed out the set and the match with a kill from junior outside hitter Lauren Gibbemeyer.
“I’m very proud of my team we fought hard the whole season, and tonight was no different,” said Yelin. “I just wish it would have ended differently for Justine and Lecia. It has been my pleasure to see them grow as volleyball players and young women.”
