CORPUS CHRISTI – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros volleyball team fell to the Tulane Green Wave, 3-1 (25-19, 24-26, 25-23, 25-21), on Sunday at the Dugan Wellness Center to complete the Islanders Classic.
UTRGV (5-4) junior setter
Luanna Emiliano recorded her fourth double-double as she tallied 45 assists and a career-high 21 digs to go with four kills. Junior outside hitter
Claudia Lupescu and freshman outside hitter
Nadine Zech led the Vaqueros with 16 kills each, and senior
Luisa Silva Dos Santos added a season-high 14 kills on .473 hitting. Junior libero
Kiaraliz Perez tallied 14 digs.
Tulane's (4-5)
Ilayda Demirtas led all hitters with 18 kills.
Avery Burks and
Orsula Staka had 11 kills each, with six and eight blocks, respectively.
The Green Wave controlled the opening set to take the 1-0 lead. Tulane's size forced nine attack errors and it recorded four blocks as UTRGV was held to a .154 hitting percentage. The Vaqueros defense worked hard to combat the swings of Tulane, but the Green Wave opened the set on a 4-0 run and maintained a lead throughout, on top by as many as eight points. UTRGV applied pressure late as Santos and Lupescu stepped up down the stretch, but Tulane held on to take the set 25-19.
The second set was tight, with neither team leading by more than three when the Vaqueros were up 9-6. The teams swapped blows and responded when the other made a small run. Lupescu and Santos were the go-to point getters for UTRGV, and junior
Ingridy Nicoleti Fltran brought good energy off the bench.
Tulane opened up a 17-15 lead midway through the frame to force a UTRGV timeout, and Santos came out of the break with three straight points via kills for the Vaqueros to tie. A kill from Foltran got the Vaqueros their first set point, then Lupescu earned the second. An attack error from the Green Wave, held to .176 hitting in the frame, secured the 26-24 win to tie the match. Lupescu had eight kills in the set and Santos added six. Emiliano made her impact felt with assists and a handful of big digs, securing her fourth double-double two sets in.
Tulane took a tough third set, 25-23, to claim the 2-1 lead in the match. Rallies were long as the teams competed and swapped scores. UTRGV used three aces to open up a 19-17 lead late in the set, then back-to-back kills from Emiliano and Zech gave the Vaqueros some momentum. But the Green Wave closed the set well and used a pair of blocks, two of their five in the frame which resulted in UTRGV hitting just .100, to get back on top. Tulane notched a solid .364 hitting percentage in the set.
The Green Wave rode the momentum from the third set to control the fourth and secure the match with a 25-21 set win. Tulane held a five-point lead at two points of the set, but the Vaqueros did a good job of fighting when down. An ace from sophomore Sharyland Pioneer alum
Natalie Reyes helped a 4-0 run midway through the set, then a kill from Zech and a block from freshman Harlingen High alum
Julianna Bryant got the Vaqueros within two. Bryant and Lupescu combined for another block to force a Tulane timeout, but the Green Wave held on to take the 3-1 win.
UTRGV was held to a .164 match hitting percentage as Tulane recorded 15 blocks. The Vaqueros played determined defense against the solid Green Wave offense.
The Vaqueros will be back at the UTRGV Fieldhouse Tuesday at 12 p.m. for a Kids Day match, presented by Whataburger, against Incarnate Word.
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