The Miami Hurricanes volleyball team was defeated by the Kansas Jayhawks Thursday night at the Bob Delaney Sports Center, ending their successful season in the opening round of the 2022 NCAA Division I Volleyball Championship.
Kansas took three straight sets to win the match 3-0. Each set got closer as the match went on.
The first set saw the two teams go back and forth with the score knotted up at 13-13 at one point. However, Kansas would take control, going on a 12-4 run to close out the set 25-17.
In the second set, the Jayhawks jumped ahead early with a 10-3 lead, but the ‘Canes would cut the deficit to just four points on two separate occasions; at 11-7 and 20-16. Once again, however, Kansas would step up late in the set, taking it by a score of 25-18.
In the final set, with their season on the line, Miami jumped out to a quick 5-2 advantage thanks to two kills by freshman Flormarie Heredia Colon. Still, Kansas responded with a strong end to the set, eventually taking it 25-20 along with the match.
“I can’t say enough positive things about this group,” Miami head coach Jose “Keno” Gandara said. “It’s been an unbelievable ride from the beginning. I’m super proud of their commitment to this program. We have a number of them that have been around for a while, and their impact has been incredible.”
The Hurricanes put up a valiant effort despite their loss, led by two double-digit kill performances by redshirt junior outside hitter Angela Grieve and Heredia Colon. Freshman libero Naylani Feliciano also contributed with 10 digs, which was the ninth time this season she had registered double-digit digs. Senior setter Savannah Vach, the fourth Hurricane to reach 4,000 assists in a career, added to her total with 23 in the match, bringing her career assists up to 4,061.
On the Kansas side, sophomore outside hitter Caroline Bien hit .360 to go along with her 12 kills. Other notable performances for the Jayhawks included super-senior Rachel Langs’ eight kills and 10 blocks and sophomore setter Camryn Turner’s match-high 30 assists.
“I am just really excited for the group moving forward,” Gandara said. “I know this experience right now stings quite a bit and it’s hard to put into words, but I know them. I know where they have been and what they want. I just can’t wait to get back at it and go back into this.”