FOLEY, Ala. – Old Dominion volleyball's season came to a close on Thursday as the Monarchs fell 3-0 to fourth-seeded Louisiana in the second round of the 2023 Sun Belt Championship.
"Hats off to Louisiana," said head coach Fred Chao. "They played hard and didn't give us a chance to get much going. They won the serve and pass battle and they made amazing defensive plays the entire match. But the growth we made throughout the season kept us fighting until the end, and I am so very proud of our team for that. A big thank you to our seniors Teresa Atilano, Kira Smith, Olivia De Jesus and Tessa Mati."
Louisiana 3, ODU 0
The Ragin' Cajuns (19-12) raced out to a 5-1 lead to start the opening set. Alice Munari responded with a kill and Kate Kilpatrick followed with a service ace, but the Monarchs (14-17) struggled to string points together as UL pulled away, 19-8. After De Jesus and Elisa Maggi combined for a block, Louisiana committed an attack error and Myah Conway scored a kill to cut the deficit to 19-11. However, Louisiana earned four of the next five points and took the set by a score of 25-14.
Atilano assisted De Jesus to secure the first point of the second set, but UL answered with a 5-0 run. An Atilano kill and a Louisiana attack error helped the Monarchs get back to within a point at 6-5. The Ragin' Cajuns outscored the Monarchs 9-2 to extend its lead 18-10. ODU was able to narrow the gap 19-15 thanks to multiple UL errors, a block by Conway and Bailey Burgess, and a kill and an ace from Conway. That was as close as ODU would get though as Louisiana claimed another set, 25-16.
A pair of Conway kills highlighted a 3-0 ODU run to start the third set. The sides traded the lead a couple times before a pair of UL errors and an ace by Atilano gave the Monarchs the momentum and a 12-10 advantage. Up 15-14 later in the set, a kill from Mati opened up a 5-0 run. Louisiana trailed 22-16, but scored eight unanswered to pull ahead 24-22. The teams then traded 3-0 runs as the Ragin' Cajuns won the set and the match with a 27-25 decision.
ODU was led offensively by Conway, who posted a 12-kill, 11-dig double-double and added three blocks and one ace to her totals. Munari followed with six kills and Atilano contributed 23 assists with eight digs, two kills and an ace. Kilpatrick served the other ace for the Monarchs and led the team with 13 digs. At the net, De Jesus tallied five blocks and Burgess had two.
"We have a lot to feel good about moving forward, and we are grateful for all the support along the way," added Chao.
Volleyball Falls to Louisiana in the Second Round of the Sun Belt Championship
