ODESSA, TEXAS – UT Tyler volleyball continued their strong start to LSC play with a 3-0 win over UT Permian Basin on Friday night.
The Patriots are now 5-0 in LSC play, with four of those being sweeps. The Patriots held the Falcons to just a .096 hitting percentage while producing 44 kills and seven total blocks on the evening.
UT Permian Basin would get things rolling in the beginning of the first set, racing out to a 4-1 lead that would grow into an 8-4 lead. Perry and Hartman would each record kills, but the Falcons maintained their lead at 15-9 as they held off the Patriots early on.
The Patriots finally flipped the script with seven straight points as
Audrey Brandon recorded a kill and combined on a block with
Jackie Velzis while the Falcons committed five errors in the run. The Patriots poured it on, adding in another crucial block along with a pair of kills from Perry to run their lead to 22-19.
Kota Hartman connected on a kill and the Patriots took advantage of another pair of Falcons errors to close out the set and take the 1-0 lead.
That run to end the first set would carry over into the second, with the Patriots opening up a 7-3 advantage as Brandon, Perry, Hartman, and
Faith Wilkins each connected on kills while
Kaitlyn Davis added an ace. The Eagles would narrow the gap to 7-6, but an 8-0 run that stretched into a 10-3 run made it 17-9 in favor of the Patriots.
That run saw two kills each from Brandon and
Alyson Robbins, while Hartman added in a kill and a solo block. The Patriots would cruise through the rest of the set, adding kills from Brandon and Robbins while
Saige Rivera chipped in an ace and a kill herself to help take a commanding 2-0 lead.
The third and final set of the night would see the Falcons get gritty to start, taking a 7-4 lead after six errors to begin the set from the Patriots. UT Tyler clawed back in with kills from Wilkins and Hartman, but the Falcons continued to hold the lead at 10-7.
A 6-0 run from UT Tyler would right the ship, as Hartman picked up three kills in that stretch alone while Rivera added another ace and the Patriots lead 13-10. However, the Falcons would respond out of a timeout, ripping off a 10-2 run to lead by five at 20-15. The Patriots took their own timeout, but the Falcons continued to hold the offense at bay as they would lead 23-18 and be at the doorstep of forcing set four.
In a big moment, Wilkins and Hartman came up huge yet again, picking up three combined kills around a UT Permian Basin timeout as they cut the deficit down to 23-22. The Falcons got a point on an error to get to match point, but
Audrey Brandon found two huge swings and then combined with Robbins for the game winning block as the Patriots scored four straight points to take a dramatic 26-24 win and win 3-0.
Kota Hartman led all players with 14 kills on the night.
Saige Rivera dished out 31 assists and had a pair of aces, while
Anna Arceneaux led a trio of players with over 10 digs with 12 of her own.
UT Tyler will take on (RV) Angelo State on Saturday afternoon. That match will start at 2 p.m. in San Angelo, Texas.
