UTSA reports

    Senior Jennifer Emelogu and juniors Connie Picard and Meagan Daniel all reached double-digit kills as the UTSA volleyball team swept Northwestern State, 30-22, 30-24, 30-18, Friday night in front of 342 fans at the Convocation Center.

    With the loss, the Lady Demons fall to 5-8 and 3-3.

    Picard and Daniel had 12 kills apiece and Emelogu chipped in with 11 to lead a UTSA offense that hit .292 with 49 kills for the match. Picard improved her season hitting percentage to .338 with a .458 night, moving her average to .438 in conference play. Emelogu also topped the .400 mark with a .421 performance, while Daniel hit .324.

    Picard led a solid Roadrunner net presence with four block assists while Daniel and Emelogu added three and two, respectively. Junior DeeDee Strickland turned in her eighth double-double of the season with a match-high 36 assists and 12 digs, while junior Erin McMillan contributed nine digs and three service aces.

    Whitney King led Northwestern State with six kills and Rachel Ford recorded a match-high 14 digs.

    UTSA broke open a close game one at 13-12 with an 8-2 run in building a 21-14 lead. After the Demons creeped to within five at 24-19 on a kill by King, the Roadrunners answered with a 6-3 run to close out the frame, 30-22, behind two kills from Emelogu and one from Hildebrand.

    Five kills from Picard in game two helped the Roadrunners overcome an early 14-9 deficit and take a 30-24 decision. An ace by McMillan tied the score at 14-14 and after five more ties, a kill by Daniel and another ace by McMillan gave UTSA a 22-20 lead. From there, the Roadrunners took advantage of three attack errors and a service error in taking the 2-0 lead into the intermission.

    Game three was all Roadrunner, as they blitzed to a 9-3 lead out of the gates and never looked back. The Demons got as close as six at 20-14, but UTSA answered with a 10-4 run to clinch the match in three.

    UTSA continued its winning streak on Saturday against Louisiana-Monroe. Daniel and Brittany Hildebrand recorded 19 and 13 kills, respectively, to lead the UTSA volleyball team to its fourth straight win with a 26-30, 30-24, 30-14, 30-18 victory over Louisiana-Monroe.

    With the win, the Roadrunners improve to 8-6 overall and 5-2 in the Southland Conference. The Lady Indians fall to 6-10 and 2-5.

    Daniel turned in her seventh double-double of the season with 19 kills, her 11th double-digit match of the year, and 11 digs, while Hildebrand pitched in with 13 kills to lead a UTSA offense that hit .260 with 72 kills for the match. Redshirt freshman Victoria Prior came off the bench to post nine kills, one shy of her career high, and three blocks. Junior Connie Picard added eight kills and two blocks, while seniors Julia Hunter and Jennifer Emelogu registered seven kills apiece.

    Junior DeeDee Strickland directed the offense with 56 assists and four kills, while junior Erin McMillan and freshman Audrey Hiser posted 24 and 10 digs, respectively.

    Eveta Gambrah led ULM with 10 kills and Sei Hee Hwang turned in a match-high 26 digs.

    It was the Lady Indians who got off to the hot start, speeding out to a 10-4 lead to start game one. UTSA fought back to tie it at 14-all and took a 15-14 lead on an ace by McMillan. That would be the only lead of the game for the Roadrunners, who kept it close late at 26-25 before a 4-1 run gave the Indians the 1-0 lead in the match.

    ULM took the early lead in game two, as well, getting off to a 5-2 start, but UTSA rallied to take a 12-8 lead, one they would not relinquish the rest of the game.

    After the Indians crept to within two at 13-11 on a kill by Brittany Winters, the Roadrunners reeled off a 4-0 run to take an 18-11 advantage. From there, ULM would get not closer than four as UTSA evened the match with a 30-24 decision.

    UTSA looked like a team on a mission after the intermission, putting ULM away early in game three. Daniel and Hunter staked the Roadrunners to an 11-3 lead out of the gates and never looked back as UTSA out hit ULM, .415 to -.028, in the 30-14 whipping.

    Game four was more of the same as the Roadrunners quickly dispatched the Indians, 30-18, behind six kills from Prior and four from Hildebrand and Picard.

    The Roadrunners return to action Tuesday, Oct. 11, when they host rival Texas State at 7 p.m. at the Convocation Center.