After Texas brought out the brooms against Indiana volleyball Thursday, the Hoosiers had their final match in Austin against the University of Miami for a neutral site game as Texas hosted both teams in an invitational.
The Hurricane’s offense was a problem for the Hoosiers all night, with the team recording 54 kills. Junior outside hitter Flormarie Heredia Colon led the team with 18 kills while sophomore outside hitter Grace Lopez also reached double digit kills with 11.
The Hoosiers' offense didn't perform at their usual level as they averaged 51 kills within the first three games but combined for 45 kills tonight. Junior outside hitter Candela Alonso Corcelles and junior opposite hitter Avry Tatum still delivered with 13 and 12 kills, respectively.
Senior setter Camryn Haworth was doing what she has consistently done all season, dishing 41 assists to her teammates and earning four blocks Friday for the Hoosiers.
Indiana volleyball head coach Steve Aird made some adjustments to the starting lineup, with sophomore middle blocker Ava Vickers and graduate student defensive specialist Delaynie Maple starting over freshman middle blocker Ella Boersema and senior outside hitter Mady Saris.
Miami dominated the first set, and the Hoosiers struggled to respond. The Hurricanes hit 50% and totaled 15 kills, with Heredia Colon contributing six.
Aird’s new lineup showed potential early on, with Vickers securing three kills on four attempts and committing no errors.
Miami jumped to a 13-9 lead as Indiana made four attacking errors and two service errors. The Hurricanes extended the lead to 17-11, prompting Aird’s first timeout. Despite the break, Miami pushed the lead to 22-14, forcing another timeout.
Indiana won three of the next four points, but Miami sealed the set with its fourth ace of the frame, winning 25-17.
Indiana put up a bigger fight in set two, but it still couldn’t get its offense going, hitting 27.8% while tallying four service errors.
Miami’s five errors and four service errors kept the Hoosiers in the set. However, its offense remained strong, with Heredia Colon recording five kills and Ava Carney adding four, three of which came late in the set.
Indiana had a 7-4 lead, but Miami responded with a 5-0 run to go up 9-7, forcing Aird to take an early timeout. The timeout helped, as Indiana went on a 7-4 run to take a 14-13 lead.
Both teams traded points, with the Hoosiers holding to a 20-19 lead, but Miami's late 3-0 run, capped by a service ace, led Aird to use his final timeout. Indiana couldn’t recover, and Miami took set two 25-23.
Indiana started the third set strong, hitting 42.1%, with Saris leading the way with four kills. Defensively, the Hoosiers dominated with six blocks, four of them from junior middle blocker Madi Sell.
Miami had its worst performance of the match, hitting just 3.8% in set three and committing eight errors — more than the previous two sets combined.
Indiana quickly built a 10-5 lead as Miami hit -22.2% with four attacks and two service errors, forcing the Hurricanes to call their first timeout. The timeout didn’t help, as Miami continued to make errors while Candela Alonso-Corcelles added two aces during an 8-0 Hoosier run, pushing the lead to 18-5 and causing another Miami timeout. However, Indiana was too far ahead, winning set three 25-14.
Miami's offense improved in set four, hitting 21.4%, while its defense stepped up with four blocks, three of which came early on. But the Hurricanes stopped the Hoosiers’ offense, holding them to their lowest hitting percentage of the match at 14.7%.
Indiana got off to a strong start in the fourth set, with Tatum serving three straight aces to give the Hoosiers a 6-4 lead. Despite a slight 10-9 advantage for Indiana, Miami responded with a 4-0 run, leading to Aird’s first timeout as the Hoosiers trailed 13-10.
The set stayed close, and Indiana fought back late, narrowing the gap to 19-18 with key kills from Tatum and Saris. However, Miami held onto its lead and sealed the set 25-22, denying Indiana a fifth set.
The Hoosiers head back to Bloomington where they’ll host the Indiana Invitational on Sept. 13-14, with matches against Chicago State University, the University of Southern Indiana and Ball State University.
Follow reporter Parker Rodgers (@parrod153) for updates throughout the Indiana volleyball season.
