HUNTSVILLE – At 5-0, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros volleyball team broke the program record for best start in conference play by beating the Sam Houston Bearkats 3-1 (26-24, 25-16, 23-25, 25-18) on Thursday at Johnson Coliseum.
The previous record was 4-1, set by the 2017 and 2018 teams.
The Vaqueros (16-4, 5-0 WAC) also tie the program record for best road start at 6-2, a feat previously accomplished in 2021 and 2018.
The Vaqueros remain off to their best start in NCAA Division I program history. The previous best 20-match start was 14-6 in 2018.
With 16 victories, UTRGV moves back into a tie for the most wins in the NCAA, along with Towson (16-0), Jacksonville State (16-1), Western Kentucky (16-2), and Stephen F. Austin (16-3).
Senior
Sarah Cruz led the Vaqueros with 16 kills and 10 digs for her seventh double-double. Junior
Luisa Silva Dos Santos recorded 11 kills with two blocks. Sophomore
Claudia Lupescu posted 10 kills with nine digs and two aces. Sophomore
Margherita Giani recorded eight kills and three blocks. Sophomore
Perris Key finished with eight kills and two blocks. Sophomore
Luanna Emiliano dished out 43 assists with 11 digs and three kills for her 13
th double-double. Junior
Regina Tijerina posted 13 digs with seven assists and two aces.
Catherine Krieger led the Bearkats (6-13, 3-2 WAC) with 15 kills.
Alyssa Fielder finished with 14 kills and 12 digs.
The Bearkats jumped out to a 5-2 lead in the first set before a pair of Santos kills and a block powered a 5-0 run to give the Vaqueros the lead. The Bearkats scored the next two points, but the Vaqueros answered with two in a row of their own, including an ace by graduate student
Sydney Schoen to make the score 9-7. The Bearkats tied the set at 9 before a 4-1 run, capped by an Emiliano kill, gave the Vaqueros a 13-10 lead. The Vaqueros still led by three at 15-12 when the Bearkats went on a 7-2 run to retake the lead at 19-17. The Vaqueros tied the set on a Lupescu kill, but the Bearkats won the next two serves to go up 21-19. The Vaqueros came back to tie the set at 22 and 23 on Cruz kills. The Vaqueros reached set point at 24-23 on a Cruz kill. One serve later, the Vaqueros reached set point at 25-24 on a service error and then won the set on an attack error.
Kills by Key, Lupescu, Giani and Santos helped the Vaqueros jump out to a 10-4 lead in set two. Then, with the score 11-6, the Vaqueros went on a 4-0 run, capped by an Emiliano ace, to go up 15-6. The Bearkats responded with a 6-3 run to pull within 12-18 before kills by Lupescu, Santos and Cruz made the sore 21-12. The Bearkats scored the next three points, but the Vaqueros won four of the final five serves, including a Giani kill to end the set.
The third set was tight most of the way. After leading 1-0 on a Giani kill, the Vaqueros next led at 16-15 on a block by Cruz and Giani. The Bearkats scored the next two points before the Vaqueros went on a 3-0 run, capped by a Cruz kill, to go up 19-17. The Bearkats led 22-21 when a Santos kill and a Lupescu ace put the Vaqueros up 23-22, but the Bearkats scored the final three points of the set.
The Bearkats ran out to a 9-4 lead in set four. That's when a Cruz kill sparked a 10-1 run to put the Vaqueros up 14-10. The Bearkats responded with a 3-0 run and then the two teams started trading serves until, with the score 17-16, a Santos kill and back-to-back Cruz kills gave the Vaqueros a 20-16 lead. Three serves later, with the score 21-18, the Vaqueros went on a 4-0 run, capped by a Key kill, to end the match.
UTRGV is back in action on Monday at 6:30 p.m. against New Mexico State at the UTRGV Fieldhouse. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased at
UTRGVTickets.com. Current UTRGV students receive free general admission with their student ID. All fans need to follow the clear bag policy, details of which can be found at
GoUTRGV.com/ClearBag. Doors open at 5:30 p.m.
Fans unable to attend either match in person can watch domestically on
ESPN+ or internationally on
WAC International.
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