But IU volleyball had 32 hitting errors, double the amount IUPUI had. The Hoosiers also had 13 service errors, opposed to just six for the Jaguars.
“When you give a team that many points and you’re not forcing them to earn a lot of points, you’re putting yourself in a deficit right away,” IU Coach Sherry Dunbar-Kruzan said.
IU (7-2) suffered its second loss of the season against IUPUI (5-7), falling in four sets Wednesday night on IUPUI’s home floor.
The IUPUI marketing team billed the game as “Pack the House” night, in an attempt to attract a large student crowd on the Indianapolis campus.
The Jaguars gym, known as the “The Jungle,” packed 752 people and was loud the entire night, Dunbar-Kruzan said.
She compared the atmosphere to a Big Ten game. The Big Ten conference is renowned as the nation’s best volleyball conference and known for its raucous crowds.
At the end of the game when IUPUI recorded an ace to win the match, students and one male who was wearing only a Speedo swarmed the Jaguar team in celebration on the court.
This was the first time the IUPUI program has ever defeated IU. Before Wednesday’s defeat, the Hoosiers had previously been 4-0 all-time against the Jaguars.
Dunbar-Kruzan expressed her displeasure with her team’s attitude during the game. She said it wasn’t so much of a volleyball issue as it was a problem with her team’s psyche.
Even though the atmosphere was loud and both team’s adrenaline levels were high, Dunbar-Kruzan said that wasn’t the reason her team didn’t perform ?accordingly.
“I don’t think (the crowd) bothered us,” she said. “Not as much as making so many errors and not having a purpose for the way we were playing.”
Senior outside hitter Morgan Leach led the team with 13 kills with an above average .308 hitting average.
The other outside hitters struggled against the Jaguar defense.
Sophomore Taylor Lebo recorded seven hitting errors and had just a .074 hitting percentage.
Junior Amelia Anderson had four hitting errors, which negated her four kills for a hitting percentage of .000.
When asked if Wednesday’s performance was a step back for her team, Dunbar-Kruzan was blunt.
“Yeah, if we don’t use it the right way, yes,” she said.
