Uncategorized

Roadrunner volleyball brings home two victories for the weekend, moves to 12-3 for the season

Patrick Martinez

October 5, 2016

UTSA freshman Kara Teal is set up to spike the ball. UTSA finished with a total of 72 kills, Teal having seven of them. Photos by Ethan Pham, The Paisano

UTSA volleyball (10-3, 1-0 C-USA), coming off a spectacular seven-game winning streak, hosted the North Texas Mean Green (7-10). North Texas, coming off their win against Florida International, came out pumped.

The Mean Green started with two unanswered points. UTSA fought back. A service error on North Texas, a block by Antonela Jularic and a hit by freshman Kara Teal boosted UTSA into a 14-12 lead.

A spike by junior Marijeta Runjic ended the first set with UTSA winning 25-20. Runjic ended the set with five kills on 12 attacks while Jessica Waldrip tallied 11 assists for the set.

North Texas started the second set on fire, once again going up 2-0 and then climbing to a 9-4 lead. It took the whole second set for UTSA to claw their way back to a 22-21 lead.

Thanks to an ace by senior Daniella Villarreal and a spike by senior Dajana Boskovic, UTSA took the set 25-22.

With neither team going down without a fight, intensity from both teams sharpened in the third set. Just as North Texas was starting to pull away with a commanding 23-20 lead, the Roadrunners scrapped their way back to tie it 24-24.

UTSA women’s team awaits a serve from North Texas. The Roadrunners had six aces to UNT’s five.

Both teams refused to give up as they traded leads until the Mean Green pulled away and stole the third set, 31-29.

The momentum stayed with North Texas throughout the fourth set, and there was no keeping the Mean Green from a 25-16 win.

“They (Mean Green) picked up their pace, and we got frustrated. We just have to stay focused and work on our serves,” Head Coach Laura Neugebauer-Groff said on the 20 missed serves of the night.

“We let them (North Texas) get back in the game. Our energy was down,” said Boskovic.

UTSA snapped out of the slump in the fifth set with a 15-9 win.

“We just got together as a team and did what we do every day,” stated Runjic.

“We pulled each other together. It was ugly, but we got the win,” stated sophomore Shelby Williams.

On Sunday, Oct. 2, UTSA went on to defeat UTEP 3-2 in a thrilling victory. The Roadrunners are now on their ninth consecutive win as they head to Huntington, W.Va. to play Marshall on Sunday, Oct. 9.