EDINBURG, Texas – Coming up short of forcing a fifth, the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi volleyball team fell 3-1 to UTRGV Tuesday night at the UTRGV Fieldhouse despite holding a statistical edge in the first of two matches in the South Texas Showdown, presented by Rally Credit Union.
"The atmosphere was great for tonight's match in the South Texas Showdown," said head coach
Steve Greene. "It's so fun to play in front of an opposing teams' vibrant crowd and band and really showcase the high level of volleyball our women are playing at. Both teams were playing at a very high-level tonight and the athleticism was really showcased throughout the match."
The Islanders (4-2) went down 1-0 in the match before responding with a dominate 25-15 set two win to knot it up before UTRGV (4-3) pulled out another 25-23 set win in the third. A&M-Corpus Christi reached set point in the fourth looking to force a needed fifth set, but the Vaqueros just slipped by in extra points (26-24) to take the match 3-1.
Despite the loss, the Islanders turned in a .259 hitting performance compared to UTRGV's .228. A&M-Corpus Christi also out blocked the Vaqueros 7-4 and registered twice as many aces at the service line.
All the match leaders wore blue, as junior
Kyndal Payne led it in kills (15), junior
Kayla White in digs (21), graduate
Belle Morgan in assists (43), and sophomore
Zoria Heard in aces (3). Payne and sophomore
Tori Arrington tied with three blocks apiece, with the former also picking up 10 digs for a double-double.
Arrington seconded Payne in kills with 14. Joining the two in double figures was junior
Leah Stolfus who nailed 11 kills without an error for a .478 hitting percentage.
"Kayla played outstanding defense against a really challenging offensive attack from UTRGV. Kyndal and Tori were so dominant on the outside and played really smart when opportunities arose," said Greene.
The match opened with kills courtesy of sophomore
Rylee Achtzehn and Arrington for a 2-0 lead, though, the teams would see eight tied scores throughout the first set. The kill by Stolfus kept the Islanders just ahead at 22-21, but UTRGV finished on a 4-1 run to take it 25-23.
The Islanders bounced back in fashion in the second set, never giving up a lead. Arrington hammered down three kills as part of a 5-0 run by A&M-Corpus Christi who took a 13-7 lead that continued to grow. Achtzehn got through for the kill to make it a 20-14 game and though the Vaqueros would reach 15, the Islanders capped another 5-0 run with a pair of service aces by Heard to take the second set 25-15 and knot the match up.
Set three was another toss up as the teams rallied for seven tied scores, though, none of them came before the media timeout as UTRGV held a comfortable 15-8 lead. The Islanders applied pressure out the break, firing back six consecutive points as Arrington scored to tie it at 17-all. Payne shot a missile three points later as the Islanders finally had their first lead of the set at 19-18 but the rally was cut short as UTRGV took another 25-23 for a 2-1 lead in the match.
The fourth set had the Islanders out ahead through a 15-11 lead off the ace by Stolfus. Back-to-back kills by Payne extended it to 17-13 before Payne attacked again to make it 19-14. UTRGV cut into the deficit, though, and tied the set back up at 21-all. The Islanders reached set point trying to force a fifth, but costly errors and UTRGV momentum reversed the score late as the Vaqueros took it in extra points 26-24 for the match win.
The Islanders will face UTRGV for the second time this week on Saturday during the Islanders Classic, presented by Schlotzsky's. The rematch will come after A&M-Corpus Christi plays Prairie View A&M on Thursday for the 2023 home opener followed by a Friday match against Weber State.
"We are looking forward to continued improvement in our next three matches and are excited to play at home in front of Islanders fan in the Dugan Wellness Center," Greene said.
Stay Social
For more information on Islanders Volleyball, follow the team on Twitter (
@IslandersVB), Instagram (
@islandersvb) and like their Facebook page (
Islanders Volleyball).
#ShakasUp
