UTRGV VOLLEYBALL WINS SHOWDOWN IN CORPUS CHRISTI

October 25, 2021

CORPUS CHRISTI – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros volleyball beat the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders 3-2 (20-25, 25-22, 20-25, 25-18, 16-14) as part of the South Texas Showdown, presented by Navy Army Community Credit Union, on Monday at Dugan Wellness Center.

The Vaqueros (14-7) are now within 13-6 of the Islanders (12-9) in the showdown standings after getting three points for the win. The Islanders gained one point by drawing 795 fans, a higher total than the 688 fans that attended the showdown matchup at UTRGV on Sept. 12.

Junior Sarah Cruz led the Vaqueros with her seventh double-double, recording 22 kills, 11 digs, a career-high five aces, and three blocks. This was her seventh match of 20+ kills. Sophomore Ioanna Charitonidi posted her third double-double with a career-high 13 kills and 12 digs. Freshman Luanna Emiliano posted her 16^th double-double with 49 assists and 12 digs. Freshman Edinburg North alum Evana Ramos recorded a career-high 26 digs, career-high nine assists, and career-high three aces. Sophomore Luisa Silva Dos Santos recorded nine kills and four blocks. Senior Veronika Jandova finished with nine kills and two blocks. Freshman Perris Key recorded seven kills, six digs and three blocks.

Kyndal Payne led the Islanders with 17 kills on .438 hitting. Montez Uigaese recorded 14 kills on .323 hitting. Rachel Young finished with 14 kills and four blocks.

Cruz opened the game will a kill and added an ace as the Vaqueros jumped out to a 4-1 lead. The Islanders responded with a 5-1 run to take the lead. Then, with the score 8-9, a Jandova kill sparked an 8-2 run to put the Vaqueros up 16-11. The Vaqueros went up 17-12 on a Santos kill and led 18-14 on a Charitonidi kill, but the Islanders scored the next 10 points as part of an 11-2 run to come from behind and win the set.

Sophomore Maria Eduarda Rodrigues and Cruz opened the second set with kills to help the Vaqueros build a 5-2 lead. The Islanders followed with three-straight points to tie the set. The score stayed tight for a few serves, until with the set tied at 10, the Islanders went on a 6-2 run to go up 16-12. The Vaqueros answered with three-straight points as part of an 8-1 run to go up 20-17. Then, with the Vaqueros’ lead cut to 21-20, a kill by Cruz and a block by Santos and Key made the score 23-20. Two serves later the score was 23-21, but after an attack error, a Key kill ended the set.

The Islanders jumped out to a 9-3 lead in the third set. The Vaqueros scored nine of the next 14 points to pull within 12-14 on a block by Santos and Key. The Islanders followed with a 6-1 run, but the Vaqueros answered with a 4-1 run to keep the score close at 17-21. The two teams traded points for the rest of the set.

The Islanders scored the first two points of the fourth set before a Santos kill sparked a 5-1 run to put the Vaqueros up 5-3. The Islanders scored three of the next four points to tie the set at 6. The score stayed tight for the next few serves. Then, with the score 8-9, Ramos came up with three aces to fuel a 5-0 run to give the Vaqueros the lead. The Islanders got as close as one at 16-15 when a Key kill sparked a 5-1 run to put the Vaqueros up 21-16 and push the set out of reach.

The Islanders won the first two serves of the fifth set, but after Cruz and Charitonidi kills tied the score, Cruz served up three-straight aces to give the Vaqueros the lead. The Vaqueros pushed their lead to 8-5 on an Emiliano kill and 9-6 on a Jandova kill. The Islanders scored the next three points before an error put the Vaqueros up 10-9. The Vaqueros then took an 11-10 lead on a Cruz kill before back-to-back Payne kills gave the Islanders a 12-11 lead. After a timeout, a Cruz kill tied the set at 12. One serve later, a block by Charitonidi and Santos tied the set at 13. The Islanders were first to match point before a Key kill tied the set at 14. A Jandova kill gave the Vaqueros match point, and then a Jandova block ended the match.

UTRGV is back in action on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. at Sam Houston. Fans can watch in the United States on ESPN+ or internationally on the WAC Digital Network.

The next event of the South Texas Showdown, presented by Navy Army Community Credit Union, is on Nov. 14 at 2 p.m. when women’s basketball visits Corpus Christi.