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RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros volleyball team dropped their Western Athletic Conference (WAC) home opener 1-3 (26-24, 15-25, 23-25, 27-29) to the Grand Canyon University Lopes on Thursday at the UTRGV Fieldhouse in front of a crowd of 1,043.
Sophomore
Sarah Cruz led the Vaqueros (8-11, 2-3 WAC) with 18 kills and seven digs. Junior
Veronika Jandova recorded 11 kills on .471 hitting with two blocks. Freshman
Victoire Nama also had 11 kills. Junior
Debora Nazario posted her seventh double-double with 49 assists, 11 digs and three blocks. Junior
Samaret Caraballo finished with 22 digs.
Yeny Murillo led the Lopes (14-3, 4-1 WAC) with 16 kills and four blocks.
Kaira Moss recorded 11 kills and seven blocks.
Annabelle Kubinski finished with 10 kills on .667 hitting.
The Lopes jumped out to a 4-1 lead in the first set and maintained their lead until past the midway point. The Vaqueros took their first lead at 17-16 on a kill by senior
Barbara Silva. UTRGV pushed its lead to 19-16 on an error and then 22-18 on a block by Silva and senior
Talita Oliveira. The Vaqueros reached set point at 24-19 on back-to-back Silva kills before the Lopes won five-straight serves to tie the set. A Silva kill gave the Vaqueros set point again, and this time a Cruz kill ended the set.
The Vaqueros scored the first four points of the fourth set while taking a 12-6 lead. The Lopes started chipping away, taking their first lead at 17-16 on a Kubinski ace. The Lopes reached set point at 24-21 before two errors and an ace by junior
Paulina Ramirez tied the set. The Vaqueros again tied the set at 25 on a Cruz kill and 27 on a Jandova kill before the Lopes won the final two serves to end the match.
UTRGV hosts CSU Bakersfield on Saturday at 12 p.m. for Disability Employment Awareness Day. Campus groups and outside organizations will be set-up at booths outside the fieldhouse from 11 a.m. to 11:50 to provide insight about disability employment issues and celebrate the contributions of America's workers with disabilities. Fans that visit every booth will receive free popcorn. Fans can also take advantage of friends & family four-packs, which include four tickets, hot dogs, and drinks for only $25.Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased online at
UTRGVTickets.com. Fans purchasing individual tickets online prior to match day can save up to $2 per ticket. Doors open at 11.
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