Close but not enough: Houston volleyball’s losing streak hits seven

As Houston volleyball lined up on the court, Cougar paws raised after a 3-2 loss to UCF, tears welled in many players’ eyes. It was the byproduct of a seven-match skid, the Cougars’ longest losing streak since 2016.

It was a sudden shift from the dancing on the bench and energy that powered 16 blocks, the team’s most in a match since 2022, which carried Houston into the fifth set. 

But the questions remain. How did Houston, up 2-1, lose the fourth and fifth sets? How did a team that went on a 10-point run in the second let that set slip away? How could the Cougars battle UCF to 13 ties in the first set, only to give up five straight points to fall behind?

When asked what his message to the team would be after the match, coach David Rehr said, “I haven’t gotten there yet,” adding, “I have a long tunnel to walk up and kind of put that thought together.”

Lately, that tunnel has seen more tears than cheers.

With the match on the line and the decisive fifth set tied at 15, Houston senior setter Lottie Scully served the ball out of bounds before redshirt senior Barakat Rahmon committed an attack error to end the match. It was a set that saw the Cougars surrender the first four points before climbing back to take a 14-12 lead.

Across the sets, redshirt senior middle blocker Kellen Morin recorded 10 blocks, Houston’s first double-digit performance in the category since 2024, and recorded a career-high seven digs and six kills. 

Senior outside hitter Bre Reid led all of Houston’s attackers with 19 kills, marking her ninth match of the season with double-digit kills.

Senior libero Alana Torres-Rivera led the team with 23 digs, her fourth 20-plus dig performance of her career. 

It still wasn’t enough.

“Every match, we are getting a little bit better, so we just have to learn to finish them now,” Rehr said. “We didn’t finish the third set against Arizona. We didn’t finish the fifth set here, so we’ve got to work on it.”

After securing two set wins, the Cougars unraveled in the fourth, allowing UCF to string together eight unanswered points and build a 12-3 lead. By the time the Knights reached 20, Houston had managed just 11 points. UCF went on to close the set 25-17, allowing Houston to score consecutive points only six times.

From a set standpoint, the closing challenges continued.

In the first set, the Cougars traded blows with UCF in a back-and-forth battle marked by the aforementioned 13 ties. 

But with the score knotted at 23, Houston faltered: senior outside hitter Avery Shimatis committed an attack error, and senior outside hitter Reaghan Thompson followed with a kill to cap a five-point UCF run and take the set, 25-23.

The second set unfolded differently but revealed the same flaw. Rahmon and Reid ignited a 10-point Houston surge with dominant net play and relentless attacks, propelling the Cougars to an 11-3 lead they never relinquished. Still, Houston had to manage a late 8-4 UCF push, led by junior outside hitter Avah Armour, before closing out the set 25–21.

In the third, Houston strung together seven straight points to build a nine-point lead, its largest of the match. But even at set point, the Cougars stalled, allowing UCF three chances before senior outside hitter Alyssa Gonzales sealed it 25-20 with a kill.

“It’s a balance of holding ourselves accountable and saying, ‘Hey, this is what we need to work on going into practices,’” Torres-Rivera said. “But we also have to be proud of the hard work we’ve physically put in. Now it’s about getting smarter and being more prepared for the next game.”

Houston, who is 1-8 in conference play and has gone 3-7 since winning its first five, has the weekend off and plenty of time to prepare before it heads to face West Virginia on Wednesday, Oct. 30.

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