SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros volleyball team came up short in a 3-0 (25-18, 25-19, 25-23) loss to the San Francisco (USF) Dons Friday at War Memorial at the Sobrato Center in their second match of the USF Challenge.
Senior middle blocker Luisa Silva Dos Santos led the Vaqueros (6-6) with 11 kills on .400 hitting and had one block. Junior outside hitter Perris Key had 10 kills and 14 digs for her fourth double-double. Freshman outside hitter Giovana Ribeiro, in her collegiate debut, had seven kills on .333 hitting and four digs, and junior outside hitter Claudia Lupescu also had seven kills on .375 hitting with five digs. Junior setter Luanna Emiliano tabbed her sixth double-double with 37 assists and 10 digs. Junior libero Kiaraliz Perez tallied 12 digs.
The Dons (5-6) were led by Kennedy Muckelroy’s 10 kills on .417 hitting. Maria Petkova added nine kills, seven digs, two blocks and two aces. Setter Aylen Ayub had a double-double with 31 assists, 12 digs and five kills. Libero Abby Wadas recorded 15 digs.
San Francisco took the opening frame, 25-18. It was a tight set to start, featuring five ties and three lead changes in the early stages before a 4-0 run for the Dons gave them some separation. Santos and freshman outside hitter Nadine Zech came up with some clutch kills to keep the Vaqueros competitive, but back-to-back points for San Francisco forced a UTRGV timeout, trailing 20-14.
The Vaqueros responded with a 3-0 run backed by kills from Zech and Key and a big block by Giani and Key, resulting in the Dons needing time to regroup. They closed the set strong and ended it with a kill up the middle. UTRGV was moving around defensively but struggled to sideout consistently and was held to a .176 hitting percentage while USF hit .333 to aid the 1-0 advantage.
The Dons extended their lead to 2-0 after taking the second set, 25-19, despite good fight from the Vaqueros. The frame started tight again, then a 4-0 run for San Francisco aided by attack errors put them in control, up 10-6. UTRGV’s tireless defense led to long, competitive rallies and helped the Vaqueros find some momentum and go on a 3-0 run. Key ripped a well-placed and well-hit ball down the line to trim the deficit to 16-14.
San Francisco responded with a 5-0 run to go up 21-14, taking advantage of UTRGV’s struggles to secure the block at the outside pin and pressuring the Vaqueros into poor swings by getting hands on balls at the net. The Dons used a 3-0 to get to 24-16, then the Vaqueros rallied with a 3-0 run of their own to fight off set points with kills from Santos and Ribeiro. But an attack error for UTRGV, which was held to .091 hitting in the second set, ended the frame.
A pair of freshmen in Ribeiro and Harlingen High alum Julianna Bryant were strong to help UTRGV keep the early parts of the third set tight. Bryant recorded her first two collegiate kills, finishing both of her attacks. The Vaqueros and Dons swapped scoring plays throughout the frame that saw three lead changes, but San Francisco led from the start.
Santos had six kills in the final frame, and Ribeiro and Lupescu added four each, to help the Vaqueros battle late and once again kill off a few set points. But a big block secured the match for the Dons with a 25-23 frame.
UTRGV will wrap up its non-conference schedule with a 1 p.m. match Sunday against San Jose State to close the USF Challenge.
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