STEPHENVILLE – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros volleyball team earned its third Western Athletic Conference (WAC) win in a row Saturday with a 3-1 (23-25, 25-16, 25-21, 25-21) victory over the Tarleton State (TSU) Texans at Wisdom Volleyball Gym.
UTRGV (14-9, 8-2 WAC) was paced once again by junior
Claudia Lupescu and freshman
Nadine Zech offensively. The outside hitters tabbed 14 kills each, with Zech hitting .429 and adding two blocks. Lupescu had 10 kills, three blocks and one ace for her first double-double of the season. Junior right side
Perris Key recorded a career high seven blocks and her seventh double-double with 12 kills, 10 digs and one ace. Junior setter
Luanna Emiliano dished out 45 assists and had nine digs, a season-high tying four aces and three blocks.
The Texans (11-12, 2-7 WAC) saw
Rajini Fitzmaurice and
Emma Burke record 11 and 10 kills, respectively, while Burke added four blocks.
Megan Hodges had 34 assists, 13 digs and two aces.
UTRGV got off to a good start in the first set, maintaining a five-point lead with good variety in the attack and tough serving. But the Texans settled in and made a run midway through the frame, using a 4-0 run with an ace and help from some UTRGV errors to take their first lead at 16-15.
Great play on the net from junior middle blocker
Margherita Giani and Lupescu helped UTRGV tie the set at 17-17, then the teams swapped points until another run put Tarleton State at set point, up 24-20. The Vaqueros ripped off three straight points with a kill from Key and some TSU errors, but
Allison Bryant slammed down a kill to secure the set for the Texans, 25-23.
After Tarleton State hit .400 to win the opening set, UTRGV's defense took over the match to clinch the comeback win. Giani and senior middle blocker
Luisa Silva Dos Santos tallied five and six blocks, respectively, to contribute to UTRGV's 14 total blocks – the second-best blocking performance this season. Adding to the strong defensive performance was junior libero
Kiaraliz Perez, who had 18 digs. The Texans were held to hitting clips of .065, .132 and .105 in the final three sets as the Vaqueros defense took over.
The Vaqueros again started hot in the second set to the tune of a 5-0 lead behind a pair of aces from Emiliano. Giani and Lupescu were solid to lead the block and Key was efficient with her swings, putting down plenty of sharp kills, to help UTRGV lead 12-6.
Like the first set, the Texans found a rhythm midway through the second frame. Rallies were long as both defenses made good plays and the teams showed solid effort. Zech's powerful swing and a strong net presence put UTRGV in control and on top, 19-12. Key and Perez recorded aces and the Texans struggled with attack errors down the stretch, allowing UTRGV to take the set, 25-16.
Tarleton State took the early lead in the third set, but a pair of big blocks by UTRGV knotted things up at 5-5. An ace and some Vaqueros attack errors allowed the Texans to regain the lead at 12-8, and they stayed narrowly on top as the teams exchanged scores.
Zech threw down a booming kill to spark a 5-0 run for UTRGV backed by tough serving from sophomore Sharyland Pioneer alum
Natalie Reyes, who recorded an ace, to take a 19-17 lead. Tarleton State continued to battle, but the Vaqueros maintained control down the stretch to win the third, 25-21, and take a 2-1 lead in the match. Key's offense, Emiliano's serving and a consistent block pushed UTRGV to the set win.
The fourth frame was the most evenly-contested of the match. Emiliano distributed the ball well among her effective pins, thanks to great passing, to aid a 4-0 run that put the Vaqueros on top by two. Zech was dominant in the frame, swinging hard from the outside to put UTRGV up 17-14, but the Texans went on a run to tie the frame.
Great defense from Bento led to a hard kill from the right side by Giani to spark another Vaqueros scoring run, backed by Emiliano's fourth ace of the match, for the late 22-19 lead. The Texans committed several costly attack errors as they tried to force a fifth set, while the Vaqueros played clean to secure the victory.
The Vaqueros end the first round of WAC play in third place in the conference standings. They'll return to the UTRGV Fieldhouse for a massive match against unbeaten Stephen F. Austin at 6:30 p.m. Thursday.
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