BOX SCORE

HUNTSVILLE, Texas- The University of Texas-Pan American volleyball head coach Brian Yale did not take long to earn his first career victory as he led the Broncs to a 3-0 (29-27, 25-21, 25-23) sweep over Louisiana Tech University Friday night at Johnson Coliseum. The Broncs are now 1-1 on the season after falling to tournament host Sam Houston State earlier in the day. Coach Yale is in his first season as UTPA head coach, only Oscar Segovia earned his first win as Bronc head coach sooner than his second ever game on the sidelines.

The Broncs and Techsters battled in an incredible opening set that had the Broncs victorious in a back and forth battle that saw eight ties and three lead changes before finishing at 29-27 UTPA. The Lady Techsters picked up the first four points of the set capped off by a block by LaTech outside hitter Anne Marie Taylor. Bianca Bin's service ace for LaTech had them up by five at 13-8.

The Broncs then began their rally as the fought back on a 6-1 run to take a 15-14 advantage, their first lead of the set. The Broncs fell behind 27-26 but tallied three straight points to take the 29-27 in the extended opening set.

“I am so pleased with our play today and we accomplished our primary goal and that was to be 1-1 today,” UTPA head coach Brian Yale said. “It was a back and forth first game and I was pleased that we did not panic as things got tight especially at the end.”

The Broncs once again had to rally in the second set as they fell behind 6-2 to the Lady Techsters. The Broncs responded with nine straight points to take an 11-6 advantage. Freshman Ashten Landry had a pair of service aces during the run and junior Ijanae Holman added a pair of kills to put the Broncs on top. LaTech would tie the match three additional times but would not see the lead for the remainder of the set. LaTech committed nine errors in the second set.

In what would be the match's final set, the Broncs began with a 6-4 advantage. The third set would prove to be the most competitive with eight ties and six lead changes. Sarah Davis' kill ended the game and the match.

“This was a game I knew we could take if we played well,” Coach Yale added. “Even though they are a re-building club at LaTech, they have a lot of junior college transfers with experience. I knew that if we jumped on them early we had a great shot to win and that is what happened.”

For the second straight match Holman led the Broncs in kills with 12 and in the process added 10 digs on defense for her second straight double-double. Shauna Miller pulled in 30+ assists for the second straight match by pitching in with 33 helpers. Juri Franzen and Krysta Freitas added 13 digs apiece defensively for the Broncs.

“We are getting better every time out and our communication continues to improve,” Coach Yale said. “We feel we are well prepared and the girls are excited to play every time out.”

The Broncs get back at it early on Saturday as they face off against in-state rival Texas A&M Corpus Christi at 9:00 am. The Broncs will wrap up play in the Bearkat Invitational with Rutgers University at 4:00 pm.