Texas Border Business
RIO GRANDE VALLEY, Texas – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) volleyball team learned on Monday that freshman setter Luanna Emiliano is the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Volleyball TicketSmarter Freshman of the Week after leading UTRGV to victories over Tarleton and Abilene Christian over the weekend.
This is Emiliano’s fourth WAC Volleyball TicketSmarter Freshman of the Week honor after previously earning the award on Nov. 8, Sept. 30, and Sept. 13.
Emiliano averaged 11.00 assists, 4.86 digs, 0.57 blocks and 0.29 aces in seven sets. She started the week with 44 assists, a career-high 19 digs and three blocks in a 3-1 win over Tarleton on Thursday. Emiliano followed that up with 33 assists and 15 digs in a 3-0 win over Abilene Christian, marking her 21st double-double of the season.
For the season, Emiliano is averaging 9.93 assists per set, the fifth-highest single-season total in program history on 993 assists, the seventh-highest total and second best among freshmen. Emiliano also has 332 digs, the second-highest freshman single-season total.
Emiliano ranks second in the WAC and first in the Southwest Division in assists per set, fifth in the WAC and first in the southwest in aces per set (0.36), and 15th in the WAC and ninth in the southwest in digs per set (3.32).
Fourth-seeded UTRGV opens the WAC Tournament with a quarterfinal matchup against fifth-seeded Grand Canyon on Thursday at 2 p.m. at New Mexico State’s Pan American Center. Fans can watch in the United States on ESPN+ or internationally on the WAC Digital Network.
