Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

CINCINNATI, Ohio --- UC Irvine fired 11 service aces but were out-blocked and out-dug in a 25-23, 25-22, 25-23 loss to Cincinnati on the second day of the Queen City Classic.

The Anteaters (0-2) were bested at the net, 16-6 in block assists and did not have a player reach double-figures in digs as the Bearcats posted a 42-36 edge. UCI also did not help its cause, committing 16 service errors in the loss.

Allison Lee led UCI for the second straight match, hitting .321 and knocking down 12 kills to go along with eight digs and three aces. Marisa Bubica totaled nine kills while Cassidy Pickrell posted eight kills and eight digs while also delivering three aces. Shelley Anderson recorded 29 assists and converted on six of 10 attempts with a lone error to hit .500. Arden Davis led UCI with seven digs and was the third Anteater to post three aces in the match but saw that effort offset with three service errors by the libero.

The Bearcats claimed an early 4-1 lead in the first set and held off UCI, extending the lead to as many as six points at 16-10 on a kill from Ciara Hill. The Anteaters chipped at the margin and used a 5-1 run to tie the set at 20-20 on an ace by Pickrell. Victoria Dennis fired an ace to highlight a two-point switch by the Anteaters, who took a 22-21 lead. However, a service error by Anderson tied the score and UC capitalized as Alison Kimmel and Madi Lang combined for the block on Lee to give the Bearcats the 24-23 edge. The Anteaters used a timeout but the duo of Kimmel and Lang paired up again, this time on Bubica to grab the first set.

UCI and the Bearcats played a tight second frame as neither team could establish more than a two-point margin. The Anteaters took a 12-10 lead on a kill from Arielle Manz but an eventual kill by Emma Roberson and a Bearcat block saw the lead swing the other way, 22-20. A kill from Amelia Wegman gave UC set point at 24-21 and a service error by Lee ended the set as UCI fell behind 0-2.

In the third frame, Victoria Dennis served for four straight points as UCI jumped out to a 9-6 lead. However, UC answered by using a seven-point rally to take a 13-10 advantage. A pair of kills from Bubica cut UC's lead to two at 20-18 and prompted a Bearcat timeout. A service error by Emily Blair gave the Bearcats match point but a kill by Lee, paired with an attack error by Macie Pifer closed the gap to one at 24-23. However that would be all as Pickrell was unable to convert the assist and committed an attack error to close out the match.

UCI takes on Duquesne later today at 3:00 p.m. to end action in Cincinnati.

 

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