HOUSTON, Texas -- The University of Houston volleyball team was defeated by visiting Louisville in a Conference USA match Sunday afternoon in Hofheinz Pavilion by the score of three games to none.

With a 15-11, 15-7, 15-8 loss the Cougars have now dropped three of their last four matches heading into the Healthy Choice Conference USA Tournament this week in Charlotte, North Carolina. As the No. 4 seed of the tournament, Houston (19-8 overall, 11-5 C-USA) has a bye in the opening round and will face the winner of the DePaul/UAB match on Friday, November 17.

That will be the Cougars' next chance to record another 20-win season as Louisville out-hit UH .255 to .154 on the way to a 3-0 win Sunday. The Cardinals' two middle hitters, Stacey Mercer and Lesley Drury, combined for 29 of UL's 60 kills with a composite .462 hitting percentage. Louisville improved to 21-7 overall and 12-4 against the league.

Houston was paced by the senior tandem of Jennifer Wittenburg and Bobbi Stewart, who recorded 18 and 15 kills, respectively. The Cougars battled UL to an 11-10 score in the opening game of the match but the team had trouble with its consistency after that.

Play for the teams seeded 5th through 12th at the Healthy Choice C-USA Tournament begins on Thursday, November 16. Houston's match time Friday has not yet been determined by the league office.

Conference USA Volleyball Linescore
Louisville   15    15    15
Houston      11     7     8

Kill Leaders
Louisville: Stacey Mercer 16, Lesley Drury 13;
Houston: Jennifer Wittenburg 18, Bobbi Stewart 15;

Records
Louisville    21-7, 12-4
Houston       19-8, 11-5