Miami volleyball’s hot streak came to an end in Dallas, TX this past Friday after falling to the No. 10 Southern Methodist Mustangs, 3-1. The Hurricanes had won their previous four matches before the loss.
The final scores of the match were 20-25, 25-20, 25-18, and 25-20. Even though the overall match did not go in the ‘Canes’ favor, it was a career night for junior Flormarie Heredia Colon who tallied a career high 30 kills along with eight digs, two blocks, and two service aces. The match leaders for the victorious Mustangs were graduate student Maya Tabron who tallied 13 kills and 13 digs and graduate student Nnedi Okammor who notched 11 kills.
The first set started off well for the Hurricanes, obtaining an early 5-3 lead off of three straight points from Heredia Colon. The first being a kill and the following two being aces. The set was tied up later at 11 a piece for each side. Thanks to many kills by Heredia Colon, the ‘Canes were able to gain a steady lead and maintained it for the rest of the set and they ended up winning the set 25-20.
After their set one win, things went downhill for Miami. The second set started out close with the score tied at seven. However, SMU then won the next three points to give themselves a 10-7 lead. The Mustangs never looked back after gaining the lead and they went on to win the second set with a flipped score from set one, 25-20.
The third set started out with a 5-3 lead for the Hurricanes after back-to-back kills by Heredia Colon and sophomore Grace Lopez. While the ‘Canes still had the lead later at 9-7, the Mustangs then went on a 5-0 run to obtain a 12-9 lead. Miami never regained the lead in set three and SMU finished off the set off a kill by senior Jamison Wheeler to give them a 25-18 set victory.
The fourth set started with a 9-8 Hurricanes lead off a kill by Heredia Colon. Unfortunately for the ‘Canes, the Mustangs went on a 5-0 run right after to gain a 13-9 lead. The Hurricanes managed to fight their way back late, tying the set at 20 a piece. However, SMU destroyed any hopes of a comeback victory, winning the next five points to get the 25-20 set win as well as the 3-1 match victory.
After the loss, the ‘Canes fall to 18-8 on the season with a record of 9-6 in the conference. As for SMU, they improved to an overall record of 20-6 with a conference record of 12-3. For their next match, the Hurricanes will hope to repeat what they accomplished against former No. 1 Texas, as they head up to Pittsburgh, PA to face the No. 1 Pittsburgh Panthers (24-1, ACC 14-1) on Sunday, Nov. 17 at 1:00 pm. Miami will then head back to Coral Gables to face the Clemson Tigers (9-17, 1-14 ACC) on Friday, Nov. 22 at 7:00 pm.