Strong Serving Lifts Volleyball over Texas A&M-Commerce

The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros volleyball team served up 13 aces Saturday as they defeated the Texas A&M-Commerce (AMC) Lions in a Southland Conference (SLC) sweep, 3-0 (25-15, 25-19, 25-19), at the UTRGV Fieldhouse.

The 13 aces for UTRGV (8-8, 4-2 SLC) matches the second-most single-match total this season. Senior outside hitter Claudia Lupescu and junior Sharyland Pioneer alum Natalie Reyes set new single-match career highs serving five and four aces, respectively. Lupescu also had eight kills and eight digs.

Sophomore outside hitter Nadine Zech led the Vaqueros with 15 kills on .500 hitting. Senior outside hitter Ilana De Assis added eight kills, four digs and two aces, and senior right side Perris Key recorded seven kills. Sophomore setter Isabella Costantini dished out 32 assists with six digs and two aces. Sophomore libero Celianiz Cabranes had 14 digs.

AMC (6-13, 3-4 SLC) was led by Reese Fetty’s eight kills. Gracie Campbell and Kitana Tuufuli had six kills each. Jade Smith tabbed a match-high 15 digs.

The Vaqueros dominated the opening set, playing with great energy to win it 25-15. They were sharp on the attack, hitting .500 as a team with zero attack errors in the set. Costantini distributed the ball nicely among her offensive weapons and had the Lions defense scrambling. Pressure from the service line was a big factor, too, as UTRGV served seven aces in the first set.

AMC took an early lead in the second set as the teams went back-and-forth through the first 20 points. Behind great serving from Reyes, which included three consecutive aces, UTRGV went on a scoring run to get in control up 20-13. Cabranes was electric as she covered the court, diving and passing well to keep the Vaqueros rolling. The Lions made a late push, but Key and Zech came up big to secure the set, 25-19, for UTRGV.

The third set started in a similar fashion, with a slow open from the Vaqueros and Commerce jumping on top. UTRGV quickly responded with a 7-0 scoring run behind tough serving from Assis and production across the net from the Vaqueros hitters. The Vaqueros went up by 10 at 19-9 as Zech got hot, recording nine kills in the frame. The Lions went on a 5-0 run late, but Zech and Co. came through to secure the sweep, 25-19.

Up next for UTRGV is a Thursday match at Northwestern State at 6:30 p.m.