Nov. 19, 2005

Final Stats

"I have always said that game three is the most important game, and after getting smoked in the game two, we wanted to see if they would keep the momentum. The win in game three was crucial for us to win the match after coming out of the 10-minute break." Head Coach Bill Walton

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HOUSTON - Justine Farmer fired in a match-high 18 kills on a career-best .432 attack percentage, while Zuela Adom added 11 kills to fuel the University of Houston volleyball team to a 3-1 victory over SMU (30-19, 17-30, 30-25, 30-13) in the Conference USA quarterfinals on Friday night at Autry Court.

"It was important for us to come out strong," Farmer said. "This really helps our confidence for the rest of the tournament."

Adom matched a career-high, connecting on a .667 attack percentage with only one error in 15 swings. Houston is 9-3 this season when Adom knocks over a .200 attack percentage.

Kariny Ritter added her 11th double-double, slapping 15 kills to go along with 11 kills, while Becca Sartori chipped in nine kills in addition to matching a career-best with seven blocks. Jennifer Hohl sent over a season-best seven kills and dished out a match-high 57 assists.

Jaci Gonzalez went over the 2,400 career-dig mark, stretching out for 23 digs. Coming off the bench, Cinthia Piva reeled in nine digs and three blocks.

"We had a gameplan for our blocking that we didn't really execute very well," head coach Bill Walton said. "Thank goodness Gonzalez was back there because she ended up with every ball that came through the block."

The Cougars (17-11) came out firing on all cylinders, connecting on a .424 attack percentage in the opening game. Houston pulled out to a 16-13 advantage before turning on the jets with an 11-2 spurt. During the run, UH received kills from four different players in addition to forcing five SMU attack errors. Houston cruised to a 30-19 game one victory.

SMU (13-16) retook the momentum turning an 8-6 deficit into a 19-6 lead scoring 13 consecutive points. The Mustangs registered nine blocks en route to evening the match taking game two, 30-18.

Cinthia Piva came off the bench, adding nine digs to go along with a season-best three blocks.

Houston refocused coming out of the locker room, racking up 19 kills against only three errors for a .400 attack percentage. At 14-13, the Cougars used a 5-1 run on consecutive tip kills from Adom and Ritter to go along with three SMU errors to grab a 19-14 lead. Farmer slapped eight kills in the third game alone as Houston won game three, 30-25.

"I have always said that game three is the most important game, and after getting smoked in the game two, we wanted to see if they would keep the momentum," Walton said. "The win in game three was crucial for us to win the match after coming out of the 10-minute break."

The Cougars jumped out to an early 5-1 spread in game four on Farmer's serve, including two aces by the All-Freshman performer. Houston finished right where it started, nailing a match-best .483 attack percentage and scoring the final five points for a 30-13 victory.

Houston heads to the semifinals where it will face No. 11 Tulane. The Green Wave has won a pair of five-game decisions against No. 6 Rice and No. 3 Tulsa.

"I said this going into the tournament that Tulane would surprise folks," Walton said. "They missed nearly a month of play early on and are finally getting comfortable with each other. They have nothing to lose."

The Cougars defeated Tulane twice during the regular season. Both matches were decided in four games.

"This tournament can belong to anybody," Gonzalez said. "It doesn't matter what seed they are coming into the tournament. Everyone started again at 0-0. We have to take Tulane like we have in the past and come out strong from the very beginning."

First serve of this semifinal showdown is slated for 7pm at Autry Court. UH students get in free at the gate by showing their Cougar 1Card.

Cougar Bytes
Houston improves to 7-0 all-time against SMU ... This was the first time since knocking off TCU during the 2002 season that the Cougars have beaten an opponent three times in the same season ... UH is 4-0 all-time as the No. 2 seed and 5-1 when receiving a first-round bye at the C-USA Tournament ... This season, Houston is 7-4 in four-game matches ... The .432 attack percentage for Justine Farmer is a new career-high ... The five service aces for Farmer is a Houston C-USA Tournament record; the previous mark was four registered by Kristin Guidish against Memphis in 1997 ... Jennifer Hohl's seven kills were a season-best ... It was also the tenth time this season that Hohl has eclipsed the 50-assist mark; Houston is 8-2 in those matches ... With 57 assists, Hohl is now 28 assists shy from tying Amie Roberts (1991-1992) for No. 8 all-time in the Houston record books ... Kariny Ritter has knocked double-digit kills in the last 19 matches she has played in ... She has ripped at least 15 kills in 15 of those 19 outings ... The double-double for Ritter was her 11th on the season; second best on the squad ... With 23 digs, Jaci Gonzalez surpassed the 2,400 career digs mark ... The San Antonio native has now played in 465 career games; she is seven games away from the No. 2 spot held by Sami Sawyer (1993-1996) ... The seven total blocks for Becca Sartori equaled a career-high and allowed her to pass her total from a season ago in addition to becoming the first Cougar to surpass the century mark in total blocks on the season ... Sartori is seven block assists away from reaching the Top 10 in the Houston record books ... The Houston native is also 20 kills away from reaching the 1,000 plateau for her career.