COMMERCE, Texas – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) #2 Vaqueros volleyball team saw its magical run come to an end Sunday in the title match of the Southland Conference (SLC) Championship, falling 3-0 (25-15, 25-19, 25-23) to the #1 Stephen F. Austin (SFA) Ladyjacks at East Texas A&M's The Field House.
Junior setter
Isabella Costantini led the Vaqueros (22-8) with her 10
th double-double, totaling 26 assists, 11 digs, two kills and one ace. Sophomore outside hitter
Martina Franco and senior right side
Valentina Sarti Cipriani both had nine kills. Franco also tabbed seven digs and three blocks. Junior outside hitter
Nadine Zech had a career-high five blocks with seven kills. Redshirt sophomore Harlingen High alum
Julianna Bryant had four blocks and three kills.
Ilana De Assis led SFA (23-7) with 15 kills, seven digs and two aces.
Caroline Kahle recorded 15 digs and four assists.
Jayden Flynn had 20 assists and seven digs.
The first set was controlled early by SFA. The pace was fast and the Ladyjacks were efficient, opening up a 17-6 lead after outscoring the Vaqueros 10-1. Costantini's tough serving helped UTRGV get some momentum. She put SFA on its heels, and the free balls over led to a pair of hard kills by Cipriani on the right side as UTRGV scored five unanswered points. SFA's defense gave UTRGV trouble late, leading to an influx of attack errors as the Ladyjacks won the set, 25-15.
Set 2 was back-and-forth as both teams played fast. Zech had a solo block and used an up-tempo set from Costantini to record sharp kills. SFA's serving helped it create the first bit of separation with a 12-7 lead. Bryant launched a kill on the slide and Franco had a back row kill to help the Vaqueros get within three, but the Ladyjacks got to set point at 24-16. UTRGV killed off three set points with kills from Franco and Zech and a block by Bryant and Zech, but SFA took the 2-0 lead with a 25-19 set win.
The third set was as competitive a frame as one could as for. UTRGV showed its fight and opened up a 7-3 lead with incredible play on the net. The Vaqueros had six of their nine blocks in the third as they battled to keep the match alive. The rallies were long and electric as the teams swapped scores. Franco and Bryant combined for a block, then Zech had a solo stop to even things up at 20-20.
Emotions were high as both teams were ripping powerful swings at each other and playing fast, aggressive defense. SFA reached match point up 24-21, but UTRGV's net presence kept the Vaqueros alive as Franco and Snead combined for a block then the pressure forced an attack error. SFA finished the sweep with a kill for the 25-23 set win.
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