In just their second loss out of the past 10 games, the Rams (17-6, 6-4 MEC) fell to the Wheeling Jesuit University Cardinals (21-4, 11-0 MEC) in three straight sets (25-20, 25-17, 25-21) in Mountain East Conference action Friday evening.
The Cardinals were the Rams’ toughest opponent of the season to this point, and Wheeling Jesuit showed why they are ranked in the conference. Throughout the Rams’ win streak, they were leading in most, if not all, statistical categories against their opponents. On Friday night however, the Cardinals were the team that took over, as they led four out of the six major statistical categories tracked during game action.
Wheeling Jesuit led in points, kills, assists, and digs for the match. Cardinals hitter Haley Kramer had a game-high 19 kills. Wheeling Jesuit setter Stephanie Sylvester also had a game-high 46 assists, as the Cardinals displayed their well-rounded attack.
The Rams kept the game competitive throughout, but just could not convert their effort into more points like they had during the win streak.
Sophomore setter Jessica Karcz led the Rams with 34 assists and an ace in the loss. Sophomore libero Imani Major registered a game-high 16 digs, with sophomore hitter Cambriea Hill adding 10 digs and a team-high 14 kills on the night.
Overall, it was a disappointing loss for the Rams, as this was a game in which they had an opportunity to take down a tougher opponent, but fell short.
The Rams will look for a quick rebound as they are again on the road against West Liberty Saturday afternoon, Oct. 28, at 3 p.m.
Vaughn Brewer, is a Sports Writer for The Picket. He can be reached at vbrewe01@rams.shepherd.edu
Leave a Reply