CANYON, TEXAS – UT Tyler took #17 West Texas A&M down to the wire in a 3-2 (25-12, 18-25, 26-24, 25-22, 12-15) thriller on Saturday afternoon in Canyon, Texas.
 
The five-set marathon came exactly one week from UT Tyler's 3-0 upset win over then-ranked no. 13 West Texas A&M in San Angelo, Texas at the LSC Crossover. The Patriots used double-doubles from senior Mikayla Ware and freshman Adeline Ortman to push West Texas A&M to five sets on their home floor.
 
Ware led the Patriots with 18 kills, while junior Evelyn Torres notched 17 kills in just 40 swings for a .275 hitting percentage for the match to lead the Patriot offense. UT Tyler dominated the opening set, winning by a 25-12 margin, and then forced a deciding fifth set after consecutive Lady Buff wins in the second and third sets.
 
The fifth set was decided in the final few points as both teams battled to an 11-11 tie before West Texas A&M scored four out of the final five points to escape without a second consecutive upset loss to UT Tyler.
 
The Patriots started the match on a 9-2 run, and then closed out the first set win with a 6-1 run behind an offense that hit .429 in the opening frame with 14 kills in just 28 swings. West Texas A&M cooled off the UT Tyler offense in the second frame for a 25-18 victory to make it 1-1, and then took the lead in the match with a 26-24 win in the third set.
 
The margin never expanded by more than three points for either side in that third set, as both teams held multiple leads throughout the frame. UT Tyler escaped the set point down 24-22 and tied it up 24-24, but eventually fell behind 2-1 after consecutive points from the Lady Buffs.
 
The Patriots were much more efficient in the fourth set, hitting .344 with 15 kills and just four errors to make a five-point lead at the 21-16 mark count. West Texas A&M got the deficit back down to just two with a late three-point rally to make it 23-21, but couldn't end the match before a deciding fifth set after UT Tyler was able to close out the 25-22 win.
 
Both sides flipped advantages in that final frame as UT Tyler led 5-2 and then West Texas A&M 10-8, but found the set tied at 10-10 heading down to the wire. A few key attacking errors by the Patriots eventually allowed the Lady Buffs to finish off the win on a 5-2 run.
 
Ortman had 29 assists and 12 digs, while Ware and sophomore Addison Evans led the way with 14 digs apiece. Senior Savannah Guzman chipped in 13 digs to a defensive effort that had 64 digs as a unit.
 
UT Tyler held the advantage in kills by a 61-to-59 margin, and posted a .206 hitting percentage for the match.
 
The Patriots will now finally return to the Herrington Patriot Center next weekend for a pair of matches on Friday and Saturday against Eastern New Mexico and Lubbock Christian.