The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Israel
No. 4 Volleyball falls to Israel, 3-2 in exhibition play
08.27.2011 | Volleyball
Aug. 27, 2011
Box Score 
AUSTIN, Texas - Senior All-America middle blocker Rachael Adams produced her second stellar match of the day as the fourth-ranked Texas Volleyball team fell to the Israel National Team, 3-2 in exhibition play Saturday night at Gregory Gymnasium. The 12-25, 25-22, 25-18, 20-25, 13-15 loss wrapped up Burnt Orange Classic play for the Longhorns, but they square off again with Israel on Monday, Aug. 29 in a non-tourney exhibition match.
Adams hammered out 12 kills on 19 swings and hit .579 in the loss, while freshman outside hitter Khat Bell connected for 14 kills, chipped in six digs and registered five total blocks. Sophomore opposite hitter Bailey Webster added eight kills and three blocks and posted a .375 attack mark.
The Horns controlled the fifth set in the early going, using three kills and a block by Adams to jump out to a 10-6 lead. A Webster kill gave UT a 12-7 edge before Israel mounted an 8-1 run capped by a Tatiana Artmenko/Anna Farhi block that ended the set, 15-13.
After a rough start in set one that saw the Israelis use a 16-1 run to claim early control of the set and match, Texas bounced back in the second set, hitting .483 as a team to win the frame 25-22. The Horns trailed early in the second, but battled back behind three late Bell kills to end the set on a 6-3 run.
In the third, Texas became a force at the net with 6.5 blocks, including a triple block by senior outside hitter Amber Roberson, Webster and Adams that forced set point at the 24-17 mark. The Horns went on to close the frame on Israel's sixth service error of the match.
Texas fell behind quickly in the fourth and kept the score tight, but failed to take a lead. Anna Velikiy and Artmenko each recorded five kills in the frame and Israel took advantage of 13 Texas errors to win the set 25-20.
Texas returns to action on Monday, Aug. 29 when it hosts Israel at Gregory Gymnasium. First serve is set for 7 p.m. Central on Longhorn Network.
POST-MATCH NOTES
- Rachael Adams concluded play at the Burnt Orange Classic with a .525 attack mark and 2.92 kills per-set.
- In three matches at the tourney, Haley Cameron hit .405, connecting for 19 kills on 37 swings.
BURNT ORANGE CLASSIC ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Anna Velikiy, Israel
Tatiana Artmenko, Israel
Lilla Frederick, Pepperdine
Kellie Woolever, Pepperdine
Khat Bell, Texas
Haley Cameron, Texas
Best Libero: Morgan Springer, Ole Miss
Most Outstanding Player: Rachael Adams, Texas
POST-MATCH QUOTES
Head coach Jerritt Elliott
Opening statement: I'm pleased. We have a lot of new players, and we got to see pretty much everybody play. I thought we've gotten better in every match.
On establishing the team chemistry: We're still unsure of what our lineup is going to be. We want to make sure we have the right group of players who can work together. Ultimately, the tough teams are the great teams, and that's attitude and heart.
On the play of Haley Cameron: Haley has gotten more confident. She's stronger and faster. Friday night she was a little bit nervous, but she settled in and today she took some swings I'd never seen from her. I'm very pleased with the way she's performed, and she's only going to get better for us.
Senior MB Rachael Adams
On what the team learned during the Burnt Orange Classic: We have to hold our composure, even when the game is on the line. We have to believe in ourselves. We have to fight. We have to learn how to fight.
On the collective play of the middles: We're trying to move the ball around, and be good finds for our setters. We're trying to find our spots, and just continue to block the ball.
Sophomore MB Haley Cameron
On the middles anchoring the team: I think we're all doing great and settling into it because these are our first games together. We're running our offense and getting a lot of one-on-one opportunities, and our setters are great for finding us.
On earning the starting spot: It's great. The setters are doing a great job of finding me with the ball. I think all of us are working extra hard. In preseason we all just worked hard, and then before the first match Jerritt said I was a starter. I was pretty excited for that and to know that my hard work had been recognized.
