EL PASO – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros volleyball team was defeated 3-0 (25-14, 25-19, 25-13) Saturday by the Texas State Bobcats to close their run in the UTEP Southwest Showdown at Memorial Gym.
The Vaqueros (4-6) saw senior outside hitter
Claudia Lupescu tally a team-high nine kills with three blocks. Sophomore
Roslyn Guerra notched a career-high seven kills on .500 hitting and senior outside hitter
Ilana De Assis added seven kills with three digs. Sophomore setter
Alessia Couchond recorded 16 assists, five digs and one kill.
Texas State (6-4) had
MJ McCurdy and
Samantha Wunsch lead with 12 kills each on .455 and .556 hitting, respectively.
Ryann Torres had 32 assists and
Alyssa Ortega tabbed a match-high 14 digs.
The Bobcats took the first set 25-14 as UTRGV struggled to find any rhythm early on. The Vaqueros were held to .037 hitting while Texas State's offense was efficiently hitting at a .458 clip. Serve-receive was an issue for the Vaqueros as the Bobcats opened up a 10-point lead and rolled to the end of the frame.
UTRGV came out determined in the second set. Lupescu led the charge on the net, recording two blocks, one with Fourt, to aid a small run that trimmed the deficit to 12-8. The gritty defensive effort – which included four Vaqueros blocks – slowed down the Texas State attack, holding the Bobcats to a match-low .226 hitting percentage in the frame, but the Bobcats took control late and won it, 25-19.
Texas State secured the match in the third with a 25-13 set win. Guerra played well, putting down five kills in the frame and assisting with the serve-receive. But Texas State's efficient offense forced some passing issues for the Vaqueros, and though they battled while out of system, they couldn't gather enough momentum to close the gap.
The Vaqueros begin Southland Conference play Sept. 28 at 2 p.m. against Stephen F. Austin at the UTRGV Fieldhouse. Visit
UTRGVTickets.com to purchase tickets for the match. A clear bag policy will be in place for all spectators. Current UTRGV students get in free with a valid student ID.
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