UTSA Volleyball ends season with a win over LA Tech
November 15, 2022
The disappointing volleyball season ends after a 3-1 loss to UTEP on senior night and a 3-1 win over LA Tech in the season finale.
In the final home season game, the Roadrunners (8-10, 3-11 C-USA) hosted the Miners (15-11, 9-4) and lost in four sets, 3-1, on Thursday night. Cansu Günaydin led the ‘Runners with seven kills, while Kelsey Carpenter and Hunter Coppola had six.
UTSA won its only set of the night in the first set 26-24. The set featured 13 different ties, and UTEP took its largest lead at 18-14, which caused UTSA to call a timeout. The Miners took a timeout of their own with a 19-17 lead. The Roadrunners trailed 24-23; however, they managed to get three kills in a row to win the set. Carpenter had two of the last three kills, including the set-high five kills.
The ‘Runners would only get 39 kills the remainder of the match, getting outscored by 36. UTEP won the second set 25-15. The Miners came out on top 3-0 and never looked back. The score was 15-11 until UTEP rattled off a 10-4 run to win the set and tie the match 1-1. Mekaila Aupiu had six assists in the set.
The third and fourth sets carried on the momentum. In the third, UTEP led 21-10 and went on to win 25-13. UTSA had just five kills in the set.
UTEP led the fourth set 10-1; however, the ‘Runners were able to cut the lead to 12-7. The Miners went on a 13-4 run to win the set 25-11 and the match 3-1. Sara Pustahija and Torrance Lovesee had 25 kills amongst themselves for the Miners. UTEP’s Hande Yetis and Ashlynn Barnes combined for 41 assists on the night. UTEP also held UTSA to a .042 hitting percentage.
UTSA ended their nine-game losing streak on Saturday afternoon against LA Tech. The Roadrunners defeated the Lady Techsters (11-18, 4-10) in four sets. Coppola played her final game and notched a game-high 23 kills for UTSA. Ava Camacho had 20 digs on the day.
The ‘Runners won the first set 25-20 after starting out hot and taking a 12-7 lead. Coppola had a set-high five kills, while Aupiu had 13 assists.
UTSA took a 9-2 lead early in the second set, forcing the Lady Techsters to call a timeout. The Roadrunners went on to win 25-19, with Coppola leading with nine kills in the set, which was the highest in her career. UTSA also held the Lady Techsters to a .053 hitting percentage.
LA Tech led wire-to-wire in the third set after jumping out to a 9-3 lead. The Lady Techsters led 23-9, giving UTSA time to cut the lead to 23-12. However, an error on the Roadrunners ended the match 25-12 and made the series 2-1, UTSA.
A set-high seven kills for Coppola led the ‘Runners to win 25-19. After the score was tied at four, UTSA built up an 11-7 lead causing LA Tech to call a timeout. Despite the Lady Techsters cutting the lead to one at 15-14, UTSA closed on a 10-5 run to win the set and the match 3-1. Aupiu had 15 assists.
The Roadrunners now head into the offseason. With new recruits and the young players gaining more experience, UTSA looks to make a big jump in performance for the 2023 season.
