UTRGV ropes Roadrunners, claims first place in WAC

Eight teams have entered the Fieldhouse this year to take on UTRGV, and eight teams have been sent home with another “L” in the loss column when they were done. 

The UTRGV Volleyball Team continued the trend last Saturday by taking down California State University, Bakersfield 3-1 (25-15, 25-12, 23-25, 25-20) in a battle between Western Athletic Conference leaders who entered the match with 5-1 records. 

The Vaqueros handled the first two sets with ease as Bojana Mitrovic and Barbara Silva paced the team to jump out to a 2-0 lead. In the second set, UTRGV was down 10-8, but a Silva kill sparked a 10-0 run for the home team to seal the set 25-12. 

Mitrovic said the team was looking forward to this matchup after losing twice to CSUB last season. 

“I think we came out strong and we expected a great match,” she said. “I think we play better against the teams that are better, then, we don’t drop our level down. We owed them from last year because we lost to them both games, so we were really ready to come out here and put on a show and I think we really did.” 

The Roadrunners didn’t go quietly and played their best ball in the third and fourth sets, pushing UTRGV to up its game. Tied at 22 in the third set, CSUB went on a 3-0 run to avoid the sweep and send the match into a fourth set. 

In the fourth, UTRGV jumped out to a 6-0 run but CSUB fought back to close the gap at 21-20. The Vaqueros scored the final four points of the match to wrap up the 25-20 win and the match. 

Mitrovic posted her eighth double-double of the season with 14 kills and 10 digs, while Silva contributed 13 kills of her own. Dubravka Vukoja finished with 37 assists and 19 digs for UTRGV. 

UTRGV is now in sole possession of first place in the WAC, sitting at 6-1 in conference play and 12-8 overall. The win is UTRGV’s eighth straight home victory and keeps the Vaqueros unbeaten in the UTRGV Fieldhouse. Midway through the conference season with another seven WAC games ahead, Head Coach Todd Lowery said he is proud of his team’s growth and is looking forward to the challenges in front of them. 

 “It’s only halfway through, we have some real challenges ahead of us on the road,” Lowery said. “I guess the thing that I’m more proud of than being in first place is the growth in the team. We’re continuing to get better, I think, every night we come out.” 

UTRGV is back in action on the road at noon Saturday against New Mexico State University.