PHOENIX, Ariz. – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros volleyball team fell to the Grand Canyon University Lopes 0-3 (19-25, 23-25, 15-25) on Tuesday at GCU Arena.
 
Freshman Ada Bulgur led the Vaqueros (0-8, 0-6 WAC) with a career-high 12 kills on .276 hitting. Senior Veronika Jandova recorded eight kills on .438 hitting with five digs and two blocks. Senior Samaret Caraballo recorded eight kills with eight digs and two blocks. Graduate student Mackenzie Coates dished out 31 assists with nine digs.
 
Giorgia Turri led the Lopes (6-2, 6-2 WAC) with 12 kills, 15 digs and three aces. Yeny Murillo recorded 11 kills. Hannah Eskes posted 10 kills on .300 hitting. Klaire Mitchell came up with 37 assists, six digs and four blocks.
 
The Lopes jumped out to leads of 5-1 and 7-3 in the first set. A Bulgur kill, however, sparked a 6-0 run to put the Vaqueros up 9-7. One serve later, a Caraballo kill gave the Vaqueros a 10-8 advantage. The Lopes scored the next five points to take the lead. The Vaqueros won four of the next six serves to pull within 14-15 on a Bulgur kill, but the Lopes responded with an 8-1 run to push the set out of reach.
 
The Lopez led 4-1 out of the gate in set 2. Kills by Bulgur and senior Veronika Jandova brought the Vaqueros to within one. The Vaqueros pulled even at 8 on a kill by sophomore Victoire Nama. The Lopes won the next three serves to regain the lead, but the Vaqueros pulled even again at 14 on a Lopes error. The Lopes scored the next two points and the Vaqueros got to within one three times, including at 23-24, but were unable to equalize the score.
 
The Vaqueros took the early lead in set 3, going up 2-1 on back-to-back Bulgur kills. The Lopes scored the next three points to take the lead. Kills by junior Sarah Cruz and Jandova brought the Vaqueros to within 3-4 and 4-5. The Lopes pushed their lead to 13-8 before the Vaqueros went on a 5-1 run, capped by a Caraballo block, to pull to within 13-14. The Vaqueros were again within one at 14-15 on a Jandova kill, but that's as close as they got.
 
UTRGV returns on Monday at 6 p.m. and Tuesday at 12 p.m. against California Baptist at the UTRGV Fieldhouse. UTRGV Athletics is capping capacity at the UTRGV Fieldhouse at 231 fans. Single-match tickets can be purchased online at UTRGVTickets.com. Tickets for Monday's game must be purchased by 12 p.m. Monday while tickets for Tuesday's game must be purchased by Monday at 5. Doors open one hour prior to each match. For more information about match day, visit GoUTRGV.com/game-day.
 
Fans can also watch for free online at WACDigitalNetwork.com.

Support UTRGV Volleyball | Become a Fan on Facebook | Follow us on Twitter | Follow us on Instagram | Follow us on YouTube