RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros volleyball team will wrap up its three-match homestand on Saturday against the Houston Christian University (HCU) Huskies at 12 p.m. at the UTRGV Fieldhouse. The Vaqueros are looking for their first 4-0 start to Southland Conference (SLC) play since 2022.

In front of 2,339 fans, UTRGV (7-7, 3-0 SLC) improved to 3-0 on its home floor on Thursday with a 3-1 win over UIW. Ema Petkovic recorded a career-high 26 kills while hitting .429. Martina Franco added 18 kills with 10 digs for her third double-double while Lana Rnjak recorded a career-high tying 44 assists with 13 digs and two blocks for her fourth double-double. Celianiz Cabranes tied her season-high 19 digs, moving her into seventh in program history with 1,100 digs in her UTRGV career.

The Huskies (2-13, 0-3 SLC) have had a slower start to SLC play. On Thursday, they fell at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, 3-0. HCU has lost six straight matches coming into Saturday's contest and will rely on its defense and balanced attack to snap the skid. Bianca Byerly ranks 31^st in the country in digs this season and leads the team that ranks 22^nd in the category. Four players are averaging more than two kills per set, with Katy Barger leading the team at 2.80. Setter Enisilina Savelio has dished out 545 assists this season, which ranks 13^th in the country.

HCU leads the all-time series over UTRGV, though recency has favored the Vaqueros. UTRGV has won five straight in the series, including a 3-0 sweep that knocked the Huskies out of the SLC Tournament last season. In that five-match winning streak, the Huskies have managed to take just two sets off the Vaqueros. The last time HCU won in Edinburg was September 21, 2019. 

With four blocks on Thursday, UTRGV's Julianna Bryant now leads the conference in blocks per set at 1.06. In conference play alone, she has already recorded 58 blocks. As a team, the Vaqueros are averaging 1.98 blocks per set and will be facing a HCU team that is hitting just .141 this season.

Fans can purchase tickets for the match at UTRGVTickets.com. All tickets for UTRGV Athletics home events will use NFC scanning, therefore screenshots will not grant entry. Fans can save and access tickets for entry via Apple or Google Wallet or by logging into your account at UTRGVTickets.com.

Fans are encouraged to visit RallyTheValley.com for everything they need to know about attending home volleyball games. If you're unable to attend, the match will be streamed on ESPN+ domestically and Southland International for international fans.

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