In a disappointing start to the I-35 showdown, UTSA women’s volleyball suffered a 3-1 match defeat to Texas State on Wednesday at the Convocation Center. The loss served as the Roadrunners’ third of the season, and dropped them to a 15-61 record against Texas State.
“You know, I give credit to Texas State,” head coach Carol Price-Torok said. “It’s disappointing to lose but it was a fun one at home.”
While there was no shortage of stellar play in UTSA’s home opener against Texas State, countless errors and mistakes unfortunately hindered the Roadrunners in their 3-1 loss. The team’s inability to perform in clutch moments seemed to plague them throughout the night, as multiple leads were squandered throughout the course of each set.
“We were a little too error heavy at the end of some of those sets,” Price-Torok said when asked about the team’s late game blunders.
Though UTSA managed to only give up one more error than the Bobcats, each of the 22 recorded errors seemed to come at an inopportune time. Such was the case in the match’s opening set, in which the home team found themselves surrendering a nine point lead due to subtle mistakes and questionable blunders. The troubles continued for the ‘Runners, as they became increasingly unable to stop the snowballing momentum of Texas State.
Winning three out of the four sets, the opposing team continued to capitalize on small UTSA mistakes. Whether simple miscommunications or overshoots on serves, the minor errors soon snowballed as the ‘Runners went on to lose two consecutive sets to end the night.
“We have tools to finish those matches,” outside hitter Caroline Krueger said after the game. “I think we can learn how to finish out, we’ll have it soon.”
Despite the disappointing loss, UTSA proved to be a club capable of dominance and excellence. The team matched Texas State in virtually every statistical category, and managed to keep nearly every set within six points. Players such as Krueger, Mia Soerensen and Franco Martina contributed heavily to the match, combining for 34 out of the 50 total team kills. The high offensive output shined within the game’s second set, in which the Roadrunners held off the Bobcats for a 25-19 victory. While the victory served as the team’s only win for the night, it showcased the high level potential the newfound team has going forward.
