After a disappointing Big East Conference loss to Virginia Tech, the University of Miami volleyball team (19-3) bounced back with a convincing 3-0 road win over Florida Atlantic (13-13) Tuesday night in Boca Raton, Fla.
The Hurricanes received a stellar performance from senior outside hitter Marcela Gamarra (Medellin, Colombia), who dealt a match high 19 kills to the Owls. Her hitting percentage of .486 was also a match high.
“Marcela has had several outstanding performances, but this is one of her best ones,” Miami coach Nicole Lantagne Welch said. “She just comes out to play every match.”
Miami cruised to a 30-22 final in the first game, and then took consecutive wins of 30-28 and 30-21 to seal the contest.
In the second game, the Hurricanes trailed early, but rallied for the win. Lantagne Welch pointed to that particular game as “huge” for her young team, especially in terms of rebounding from the loss to the Hokies in Blacksburg.
“This win was important for our young team,” the coach said. “We were playing on the road against a good FAU team.”
Gamarra was complemented by a solid defensive effort from sophomore libero player Jamie Grass (Manhattan Beach, Calif.), who had a match high 21 digs. Lantagne Welch described Grass’ performance as “her best (since becoming) a libero player.”
“Grass played amazing in this match,” Lantagne Welch said.
The coach also cited the superior play of sophomore setter Mallorey James (Tucson, Ariz.), who chipped in 39 assists in the swift victory.
UM was solid at the net with freshmen middle blockers Robin Lewullis (Allentown, Penn.) and Karla Johnson (Houston, Texas) combining for 11 block assists.
The Hurricanes’ next match is tonight at 7 p.m. when they face St. John’s in a conference match at the Knight Sports Complex. Sunday, they will compete against Connecticut at home at 2 p.m.
Information provided by the UM Sports Information Department.