Texas Border Business
OREM, Utah – No. 4 seed The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros volleyball team fell to the host and No. 5 seed Utah Valley University Wolverines in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Tournament Quarterfinals 0-3 (17-25, 22-25, 23-25) on Thursday at Lockhart Arena.
Senior Talita Oliveira led the Vaqueros (14-17) with a career-high 10 kills on .526 hitting and three blocks. Junior Veronika Jandova recorded nine kills on .357 hitting. Junior Debora Nazario dished out 28 assists while junior Samaret Caraballo posted 17 digs.
Senior Barbara Silva recorded five kills and one block to finish her career with 1,242 kills, the fifth-highest total in program history, 363 blocks, including 340 block assists, both of which rank second, and a .249 hitting percentage, which ranks fifth. Oliveira finishes with a .228-career hitting percentage, which ranks 10th in program history.
Kazna Tarawhiti led the Wolverines (11-18) with 14 kills and four blocks. Makaila Jarema posted nine blocks with four kills.
The Wolverines were in control for most of the first set as, with the set tied at 4, the Wolverines went on a 7-2 run to take an 11-6 lead. The Vaqueros scored the next three points, thanks in part to a Nazario ace, but the Wolverines won the next three serves to restore their lead. The Vaqueros got as close as 11-14 on an ace by sophomore Sarah Cruz before the Wolverines went on an 8-2 run to push the set out of reach.
The Vaqueros took their first lead in the second set as back-to-back Oliveira kills made the score 9-7. The Vaqueros also led at 10-8 on a Cruz kill. That’s when the Wolverines went on an 8-1 run to take the lead. Then, with the score 16-21, the Vaqueros scored four in a row, capped by a kill by freshman Victoire Nama, to climb to within 20-21. The Vaqueros were also within 21-22 on a Nama kill and 22-23 on a Silva kill.
The Vaqueros jumped out to a 3-1 lead in set three on a Caraballo ace. They extended their lead to 8-5 on a Jandova kill. Then, with the score 9-8, an Oliveira kill and two Cruz kills put the Vaqueros up 12-8. The Vaqueros still led by four at 16-12 when the Wolverines scored five-straight points to take the lead. The two teams traded points from there, with the Vaqueros regaining the lead at 21-20 on an attack error and 22-21 on a Silva kill. The set was tied at 23 on a Nama kill before back-to-back Tarawhiti kills ended the match.
