TYLER, TEXAS – UT Tyler volleyball claimed a 3-2 (25-22, 23-25, 25-22, 22-25, 18-16) win over #23 Dallas Baptist on Saturday afternoon to avenge an earlier season loss and remain unbeaten in Lone Star Conference play.

The Patriots totaled their most kills in a match in the Division II era with 77 and needed every bit of offense as all five sets came down to the final few points. Junior Kota Hartman went for 24 kills and setter Saige Rivera set the UT Tyler volleyball program record with 67 assists in the match to help manufacture an offense that kept pace with #23 Dallas Baptist step-for-step.

The first four sets were all tied at some point after the 20-20 mark and the deciding fifth set went to extra points in what was a tightly contested battle all afternoon. UT Tyler survived match point three times in that fifth and final set and ultimately used three-straight kills from the middle blocker duo of Dakota Rogers-Hurtado and Makhai Lewis to put away three straight points.

UT Tyler stands as one of three teams in the Lone Star Conference to hold a perfect 4-0 record in Lone Star Conference play after two weeks of league play. The Patriots win on Saturday avenges a 3-2 loss at the hands of DBU back on their home floor on Sept. 6^th.

Both teams posted quality hitting percentages for the amount of swings that were put forth in the match. UT Tyler hit .232 with 77 kills on 211 swings, while DBU hit .221 with 64 kills on 190 swings.

Libero Addison Evans went for 23 digs and captained a resilient back row of defense for UT Tyler that found answers for a high-octane DBU offense, especially in late stages of sets throughout the afternoon. Junior Emma Vazquez had an outstanding afternoon to contribute to that effort, going for 16 digs.

UT Tyler won the late stages of the first set with a 5-2 run to close out the 25-22 victory. The back-and-forth opening frame set the stage for what would be a back-and-forth theme throughout the match.

DBU reversed that 5-2 run on UT Tyler to even the match up at 1-1, closing out the second-set win with three straight points in the process.

UT Tyler notched their highest kill total in a set with 20 in the third, scoring their final six points of the 25-22 win via kill, four of which came from Hartman. Hartman's 24 kills on the afternoon extends her double-digit kill streak to 11 straight.

DBU fought right back once again to send the match into a deciding fifth set, closing out what was a 21-21 fourth frame with a 4-1 run to win 25-21.

That closing fifth set was a fitting conclusion to an outstanding match, as the set saw seven lead changes. DBU took the advantage first with their second three-point run coming out of the 9-9 mark, putting the Patriots ahead 12-9.

UT Tyler quickly fought back with three kills from Jackie Velzis and a service ace to jump back ahead 13-12. DBU worked themselves into match point for the first time at 14-13, but UT Tyler answered that scenario three times from that point forward to send the set into extra-points.

Lewis tied the match at 16-16 with a kill and fellow middle blocker Rogers-Hurtado put down the 76^th and 77^th kill in the match for the Patriots to claim the victory.
UT Tyler out-killed DBU by a 77-to-64 margin and also notched nine service aces in the match.

Sophomore Autumn Perry registered 16 kills and Velzis 14 kills to provide a solid chunk of the offensive output alongside Hartman. Rogers-Hurtado totaled 18.0 points in the match, putting away 12 kills, notching four solo blocks and adding a pair of service aces.

UT Tyler improves their overall record to 7-5 and will return to the road next weekend for a trip to one of the other 4-0 standing teams in Lone Star Conference play in St. Mary's. The match in San Antionio is set for a 6 p.m. start.