RIO GRANDE VALLEY –The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros volleyball team earned a comeback victory over the Northwestern State (NSU) Demons Thursday, winning 3-1 (19-25, 25-16, 25-16, 25-20) in a Southland Conference (SLC) match at the UTRGV Fieldhouse.
UTRGV (7-8, 3-2 SLC) had another strong offensive showing with four student-athletes reaching double-digit kills. Senior outside hitter
Claudia Lupescu led the way with 21 kills on .395 hitting and had 10 digs, three aces and three blocks for her second consecutive double-double and sixth of the season. Senior right side
Perris Key notched a season-high 11 kills on .381 hitting with three blocks and sophomore
Nadine Zech added another 11 kills. Senior outside hitter
Ilana De Assis had 10 kills, seven digs and three blocks.
Sophomore setter
Isabella Costantini tabbed 48 assists and eight digs. Sophomore libero
Celianiz Cabranes earned her fourth consecutive 20+ dig match, recording a match-high 21 digs with five assists.
NSU (6-7, 1-3 SLC) got 10 kills and eight digs from
Teresa Garza, while
Samaya Wesson and
Reaghan Thompson had eight kills each. Thompson added 12 digs and
Ashlyn Svoboda had 16.
Northwestern State looked sharp in the opening set, hitting .379 as a team with just two attack errors as a variety of offensive weapons got involved. The Vaqueros took an early 6-2 lead, but the Demons used a 5-0 run to jump on top and create momentum they rode to a 25-19 set win. UTRGV fell behind by eight and showed nice fight to get within five, then killed off two set points, but the Demons had enough insurance to hold on.
It was UTRGV's turn to create a large lead in the second set. Behind junior Sharyland Pioneer alum
Natalie Reyes's tough serving, the Vaqueros used a 5-0 run to get their energy up. The pins were aggressive and sharp, cutting the attack errors in half compared to the first set and hitting .361 in the frame. Lupescu had six kills in the second set and UTRGV tallied three blocks, including a solo block for Key, to take the 25-16 win.
The Vaqueros continued to roll in the third set. The block was active and service pressure increased to help UTRGV go up 13-7 before Northwestern State went on a run to get within one point. Sophomore defensive specialist
Isa Bento made a great pancake dig to keep a long rally alive that was capped by a kill from sophomore Brownsville Veterans Memorial alum
Elise Fourt to stop the Demons. The Vaqueros found a rhythm again and caused NSU to commit five consecutive unforced errors, getting UTRGV to set point. A second ace from Lupescu in the frame secured the win, 25-16, and the 2-1 advantage in the match.
The fourth set was arguably the tightest of the match. UTRGV was in control early, but the Demons used a 5-1 run to jump on top, 13-12, and force the Vaqueros to talk it over as their play became sloppy. The timeout worked wonders and UTRGV went on a 5-1 run of its own for a 17-14 lead.
Key took over down the stretch, showing her hops to get up and slam down hard-hit balls from the right side. She tabbed three straight points for the Vaqueros, then when the Demons made a late push, it was Key who fittingly threw down a sharp shot to reach match point. Lupescu drilled a back row attack into the deep corner of the court to clinch the win, 25-20.
The Vaqueros complete their homestand at 2 p.m. Saturday with a match against Texas A&M-Commerce. Visit
UTRGVTickets.com to purchase tickets for Vaqueros volleyball matches. UTRGV Athletics has a
clear bag policy which will be enforced for spectators attending all athletic events hosted by UTRGV.
Support UTRGV Volleyball |
Become a Fan on Facebook |
Follow us on Twitter |
Follow us on Instagram |
Follow us on YouTube
