CINCINNATI, Ohio | Alabama State dropped its season opener on the road in the Tribute to #10 Tournament to the host team Cincinnati 3-0 (25-17, 25-20, 25-18) at Fifth Third Bank Arena on Friday night.
A'Nylah Cobb led Alabama State (0-1) with seven kills, while
Christyn Ashby added six and
Jylen Whitten five for the Lady Hornets.
Madison Beasley led the team with 14 assists, while
Emily Brooks added 12. Defensively,
Temperance Chatman led Alabama State with 17 digs.
The Lady Hornets hit .114 as a team with 30 total kills, while Cincinnati (1-0) finished the match hitting .250 with 43 kills.
SET 1 | The two teams traded points early on in the opening set with Cincinnati grabbing an early 8-6 lead before back-to-back points from Alabama State tied the match at 8-all.
Kaylen Hines brought the Lady Hornets to within 8-7 before an attack error tied it up. The Bearcats went on a 6-0 run to open the set up before Alabama State was able to end the run and trim the lead to 14-9. The Lady Hornets closed the lead to five after a kill from Cobb made it 22-17 before Cincinnati was able to put the match away. Cincinnati outhit Alabama State .294 to .107 in the opening set.
SET 2 | Alabama State jumped out to an early 4-1 lead with a pair of kills from Cobb and one from Whitten. They held the lead and pushed it to 8-4 on a kill
from Jada Rhodes, and then 10-5 on a kill from Ashby. The Lady Hornets pushed the lead to 16-10 before Cincinnati's 5-0 run to pull to within one, ending on an attack error (17-15). The two teams traded points until the set was tied at 20-all, with Cincinnati scoring the final five points of the set.
SET 3 | Cincinnati ran out to a 5-2 lead early in the third set before Alabama State closed it to 5-3 on an attack error. However, the Bearcats went on a 7-0 run to grab the biggest lead of the set at 12-3 before Alabama State went on a 4-0 run highlighted by a service ace Brooks to trim the lead to 12-7. The two teams traded points in the final set but the Lady Hornets weren't able to get any closer than five down the stretch before falling.
Up Next
Alabama State returns to play in the Tribute to #10 Tournament on Saturday against Indiana State at 3 p.m. and close out play in the tournament on Sunday against Xavier.
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