BOX SCORE

EDINBURG, Texas- The University of Texas-Pan American volleyball team opened the home half of their schedule with a 3-0 (27-25, 25-11, 25-21) loss to the Red Raiders of Texas Tech University Tuesday night at the UTPA Fieldhouse.

The Red Raiders (6-1) entered Tuesday on a five-match winning streak including a three-match sweep of their own Red Raider Invitational over the weekend. Meanwhile, the Broncs (1-7) were looking to erase a five-match losing streak in a role reversal with their Big XII rival in their first match at the Fieldhouse this season.

It was the Broncs with guns blazing in the opening set. UTPA began the match on a 5-1 run capped off by a kill from Michelle McNamee. The Raiders rallied to pull within a point at 8-7 after a Karlyn Meyeres kill. The Broncs responded with a 6-1 run to take their largest lead at 14-8. Later in the set the Broncs put themselves into a game point situation as Krysta Freitas kill from Shauna Miller to set the score at 24-18. The Red Raiders fought back with a 9-1 run to take the set opener 27-25

Despite allowing Texas Tech back into the set the Broncs coaching staff was pleased with the spark to start the match.

“I am really proud of the girls because one of the things we keyed on was to play with more energy,” UTPA head coach Brian Yale said. “We needed to come out with some fire and not be afraid of a bigger team across the net. We have good players and can play with anyone if we compete.”

In the second set the Broncs struggled to find a rhythm. After a 5-5 tie score, the Red Raiders erupted on a 20-6 run to take the second stanza 25-11.

In the third set the Broncs fought toe-to-toe to extend the match. The set featured six ties and three lead changes. The Broncs took a 16-10 lead after a Texas Tech attack error. The Raiders responded with 10-3 run with Breaan David's kill giving the lead back to the Raiders at 20-19. The Broncs tied the match twice more at 20-20 and 21-21 but could not pull the lead back in their favor.

“I could tell going into the locker room that the girls were upset and that was a good sign because we could have rolled over and play dead, but we didn't,” Coach Yale added. “We went out and took some big swings, served aggressively, and went back to the game plan. We used the break well and came out strong in the final set.”

Ijanae Holman nearly tallied a double-double by posting eight kills with nine digs defensively. Maria Kliefoth and Michelle McNamee chipped in on the offensive end with seven kills apiece. A trio of Red Raiders paced their offense as Miara Cave, David, and Amanda Dowdy each posted nine kills. Tory Vaughn led their defense with 11 digs.

The Broncs continue their road-heavy early schedule this weekend as they travel to Corpus Christi to compete in a two-day three-match tournament on the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi campus. The Broncs will play a single match on Friday when the face North Texas at 4:00 PM.