Houston, Texas - February 1, 2026 - LOVB Madison ended its road trip with a loss, falling to LOVB Houston in three sets (25-19, 25-17, 25-22) Sunday night.
“We didn't execute our game plan. We weren't in the right spots on defense. We talked about serving tough and we got them in some trouble, but we just have to serve tougher in this league if we're going to survive,” said head coach Matt Fuerbringer, “we've been on a nice little road trip here, a bunch of games, so we're excited to go home and, kind of start fresh again.”
We talk a lot about playing with a certain character, and we continue to do that. As a coach I’m proud of the girls for the way they’re fighting, we just got to be a little bit better and improve on the skills we work on everyday, and we’re going to get there,” said head coach Matt Fuerbringer.
Madison got off to a slow offensive start, struggling to fully capitalize on Houston’s errors as both teams traded points early. Strong pressure from the service line by LOVB Houston kept Madison out of rhythm, holding them to just 31% in-system and limiting offensive flow in the opening set.
Houston continued to limit Madison’s offensive opportunities throughout the second with their service game. A late timeout sparked a brief surge from Temi Thomas-Ailara, who helped pull Madison back within two, but Jordan Thompson quickly shut the door, finishing with 10 kills in the second set alone.
Madison brought renewed energy in the third set with Claire Chaussee helping put points on the board. A brief 6–0 run by Houston was halted by a timely tool from Callie Schwarzenbach, but the push wasn’t enough as Madison fell in straight sets for the first time this season.
Next up, LOVB Madison returns home to face a red-hot LOVB Salt Lake at the Alliant Energy Center on Thursday, February 5, at 7:00 p.m. Central. Tickets are available for purchase, or fans can watch the match on ESPN+.
