LOCATION: Reed Arena - College Station, Texas
 
SHORT STORY: The Great Danes battled against two tough opponents in Texas earning a set win and forcing Houston to 30 points but UAlbany was unable to win either match.
 
COACH JOSH PICKARD: "I'm happy to see the growth in our team today. We started the tournament flat and were able to put together some stretches of play that were positive. There is a lot to work on this week before another tough tournament [in Kansas]."
 
GAME ONE
 
SCORE: Texas A&M 3, UAlbany 0 (25-16, 25-22, 25-12)
 
RECORDS: UAlbany 3-5, 0-0 America East | Texas A&M 4-2, 0-0 SEC
 
KEY STATS

• Freshman Oren Abutbul led the team on offense with 12 kills and a .370 hitting percentage. 
• Both Abutbul and freshman Lilou Stegeman led the team's blockers with three each.
• Junior Malea Stanton tallied 19 assists as the team's main setter.
• Senior Charlotte Macken led the Great Danes' defense with 16 digs.
• On the serve, senior Regan Wright earned a team-high two service aces.

 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• In the first set, the Aggies jumped to an early 8-2 lead. The Great Danes attempted to catch up with one four-point run and one three-point run but it wasn't enough and Texas A&M took the win.
• The second set proved to be a much closer competition. The Great Danes tallied the first point with the team's going back-and-forth earning points. Texas A&M took a 12-6 lead and continued for a 22-14 edge. UAlbany fought its way back to a one-point differential with the Aggies holding the 23-22 set but Texas A&M earned the final two points for the set.
• The Aggies took the third set with a nine-point run that the Great Danes were unable to overcome.

 
GAME TWO
 
SCORE: Houston 3, UAlbany 1 (25-9, 25-21, 20-25, 30-28)
 
RECORDS: UAlbany 3-6, 0-0 America East | Houston 8-1, 0-0 AAC
 
KEY STATS

• For the second game in a row, freshman Oren Abutbul led the offense with 11 kills while freshman Anissia Wong led with a .438 hitting percentage.
• Junior Malea Stanton earned a team-high 23 assists while freshman setter, Elaina Wamhoff followed with 10.
• On the serve, senior Charlotte Macken led with six service aces.
• Four Great Danes earned double-digit digs - senior Regan Wright (14), junior Kamara Kelly (13), Macken (12), Stanton (10).
• On the net, Abutbul and freshman Lilou Stegeman followed their performance from the first game with a team-high three blocks each. Wong and Abutbul tallied one solo block each.

 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• For the first set, the Cougars took a lead and held it for the set-win.
• In the second set, Houston earned the first point but the Great Danes scored three-straight for a 3-2 edge. Continuing a back-and-forth set with the Cougars, UAlbany tallied 14 kills but it was Houston taking the 25-21 set win.
• During the third set, the Cougars worked their way to a 16-11 lead but the Great Danes came back to tie the score at 17. After a six-point run, all served by senior Charlotte Macken, UAlbany completed a 25-20 victory for the set.
• An early three-point run gave the Great Danes a 6-4 lead in the fourth set. UAlbany continued their lead with the occasional set-tying point from Houston as the set was played past 25 points. The Cougars ended up winning the match with a 30-28 set win.

 
NEXT: The Great Danes will continue on the road in Kansas for a tournament next weekend, September 17-18.