By Dan Ryan
B-CUAthletics.com
GREENVILLE, N.C. - There is a simple reason why Bethune-Cookman will look like a young team at times during the 2012 season: It is a young team.
The Lady 'Cats concluded their opening weekend at the East Carolina Classic Saturday with a 3-1 loss to host ESU (25-17,20-25,25-12,25-8) and a 3-0 (25-10,25-13, 27-25) setback to Campbell. B-CU finished the tournament 0-3.
B-CU erased a 12-3 deficit to take a set from ECU.
After Campbell controlled the first two sets, B-CU had its best hitting set of the weekend to put Campbell at set point in the third before the Camels rallied for the sweep.
At times, B-CU had four freshmen on the court with a sophomore running the offense. Welcome to "work in progress" mode.
"It is a work in progress, but I still plan on contending for the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference championship," said B-CU coach Isaac Raphael. "I'm unhappy with the losses, but I was happy to play with four freshmen and see tremendous potential. We have a lot to learn."
This day saw Raphael mix the line-up with freshman Monica Lowe starting at libero and Aubrianna Curtis full-time at setter.
Lowe had 19 digs on the day, including ten against Campbell and was B-CU's lone representative on the all-tournament team. Curtis had 21 assists and five against ECU and 24 assists, eight digs and three block assists against Campbell.
"Monica's brings a lot of energy to the game and the team fed off it," Raphael said. "Aubrianna held on and maintained her composure and made good decisions. Between the two of them, we had of a lot of effort."
Destiny Hudson had the best day offensively for the newcomers with four kills against ECU and nine against Campbell. Delicia Pierre had six kills, two service aces and four block against Campbell.
Senior Krysta Gardner played like, well, Krysta Gardner on Saturday. She registered a double-double of 10 kills and 10 digs against ECU and 11 kills against an Campbell front line that registered 20 block assists - two more than it had in a five-set win over ECU the night before - against B-CU.
"She's coming back to where we had her swinging last and understanding what we want her to do," Raphael said of Gardner. "I have all the confidence in the world in her. "She'll carry this team."
B-CU tied the ECU match at 1-1 by taking the second set.
Down 12-3, B-CU took an 18-17 lead on a Curtis service point, then pulled away from a 19-19 tie with a five-point Jennifer Jimenez service run that featured Pierre and Phlyecia Armstrong combining for three block points. Pierre registered set point with a kill off a Curtis assist.
A Hudson kill put B-CU within one point of victory in the third set against Campbell, but the Camels turned the 24-22 deficit around by scoring five of the final six points.
B-CU travels to Wyoming next weekend.
