RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros volleyball team got revenge in the South Texas Showdown, presented by Rally Credit Union, with a win over the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders in four sets (16-25, 25-21, 25-16, 25-18) Saturday in front of 1,103 fans at the UTRGV Fieldhouse.
The Vaqueros (14-9, 10-2 Southland) were paced by outside hitter
Martina Franco with 20 kills and nine digs. It is the fourth time this season she has reached 20 kills in a match. Redshirt junior Harlingen High alum
Julianna Bryant finished with 13 kills, hitting .346. Setter
Lana Rnjak collected 41 assists and nine digs. Senior libero
Celianiz Cabranes led the defense with 13 digs. Defensive specialist and Brownsville St. Joseph alum
Carmina Tijerina finished with nine digs.
The Islanders (8-15, 6-6 SLC) were led by
Kenna Buchanan with 13 kills and eight digs.
Tatum Mason followed closely behind with 12 kills, hitting .346. Setter
Virginia Van Der Werff had 35 assists.
Lauren Sandvold and
Madison Morrow led the defensive effort with 12 and 11 digs, respectfully.
Corpus had a 4-2 lead early in Set 1 before kills by Rnjak and Franco tied it. The Islanders took over the momentum, opening a 15-6 lead going into the media break. Bryant helped cut into the lead with a pair of kills to make it 16-10. Late kills by Franco would not be enough as the Islanders took the first set, 25-16.
It was a much better start to Set 2 for UTRGV as kills from Bryant and
Aaliyah Snead fueled an 8-2 start. Corpus brought it back to a four-point deficit with a kill by Herrmann. Freshman
Soukeyna Diouf scored two straight followed by two straight for Franco and the Vaqueros went up 17-12.
Following a short run for Corpus, Franco sent a ball down cross court before a serve by Cabranes took a fortunate roll off the net to make it 19-15. Two kills for Bryant were followed by a block by Bryant and Rnjak as the Vaqueros took a 23-17 lead. A tactical timeout by head coach
Todd Lowery forced a service error by the Islanders as UTRGV took Set 2, 25-21.
Set 3 was even at the start as the teams traded kills and the score settled at 5-5. Kills for Diouf and Snead sparked a 6-1 run for UTRGV as the crowd came alive. A kill by Snead started the next run before a solo block by Franco had the Vaqueros ahead 20-12. Errors got the better of the Islanders at the end of the set and Franco ended it with an ace, 25-16.
Franco opened the fourth set with four kills before Snead had two consecutive kills and a solo block to make it 7-3. Corpus countered to pull within one, 10-9. UTRGV took back control with six-straight points courtesy of kills by Diouf, Franco, Rnjak and Bryant. Franco took over late in the set with a kill and a service ace as the Vaqueros took the set, 25-18, and the match.
With the win and the 1,103 crowd, volleyball picked up four points for UTRGV in the South Texas Showdown standings. The Islanders currently lead the showdown 8.5 to 5.5 with five events scored.
The Vaqueros host East Texas A&M Thursday for senior day at 6:30 p.m. at the UTRGV Fieldhouse.
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 matches. If you're unable to attend, the match will be streamed on
ESPN+ domestically and
Southland International for international fans.
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