Volleyball at the Baylor Invitational (L Baylor 3-1, L Tennessee 3-2)

Winning a set against Baylor is a huge step for this program.

The University of Houston Volleyball team had its five-match winning streak snapped on Thursday night, as the Cougars fell to No. 5 Baylor by a score of 3-1 (16-25, 23-25, 25-23, 18-25).

The Cougars (5-5) showed their fight and grit all night long, having forced a fourth set after taking down the Lady Bears (6-0) in the third. Houston overcame 14 ties and seven lead changes in the third frame, with their resiliency guided them to the set victory.

Houston also matched Baylor at the net, as each team blocked 9.0 balls on the night, marking the second time this season the Lady Bears did not out blocked their opponent. The Cougars’ front line was guided by sophomore middle blocker Isabel Theut and freshman middle blocker Rachel Tullos, who each had four blocks.

On the night, Houston was led by freshman Abbie Jackson, who posted a team-best 18 kills. Junior Abby Irvine tallied her fourth double-double of the season after handing out 31 assists and recording 12 digs. Senior libero Katie Karbo tallied 18 digs on the night, moving her into third on the program’s all-time digs list with 1,916.

Another good showing against an almost ranked team. Team isn’t there yet, but you can see the signs.

The University of Houston Volleyball team suffered a heartbreaking contest against RV Tennessee on Friday afternoon, falling to the Lady Vols by a score of 3-2 (25-23, 22-25, 26-24, 15-25, 8-15).

After the Lady Vols (3-3) tied the match at 1-1, the Cougars (5-6) stormed back in the third set and scored the final four points to take a 2-1 match lead but were unable to carry that momentum into the fourth and ultimately fell to Tennessee in five sets.

Behind senior Katie Karbo’s team-high 24 digs, Houston posted a season-best 79 digs in the match. Freshman defensive specialist also helped lead the charge in the back row, tallying a career-high 17 digs.

Freshman outside hitter Abbie Jackson slammed home a team-best 16 kills to go along with her 11 digs, marking the fourth double-double of her career. She was joined by junior setter Abby Irvine as those with double-doubles today. Irvine finished the match with 30 assists and 11 digs.

University of Houston Volleyball senior libero Katie Karbo was named to the Baylor Invitational All-Tournament team on Saturday, being honored as the tournament’s Best Defender.

Karbo led the Cougars with a total of 42 digs in Houston’s two matches, having averaged 4.67 digs per set. The weekend also found the Azle, Texas, native continue to climb the ranks in Houston’s record book, as she moved into third all-time with 1,916 digs after her 18-dig performance against No. 5 Baylor on Thursday.

In Friday’s match with RV Tennessee, Karbo, behind a 24-dig outing, helped lead Houston to a season-best 79 digs against the Lady Vols. That performance became the fifth time this year Karbo has posted a 20-dig contest, which also marks her fourth in her past five matches.

The honor is the second all-tournament accolade this season for Karbo. She was named to the All-Tournament team at the UTSA Classic (Sept. 6-7) after guiding the Cougars to an undefeated weekend.

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