? Auburn/Louisiana Tech box score
? Louisiana Tech/Texas A&M box score
? UTSA/Auburn box score
SAN ANTONIO ? Auburn swept UTSA by scores of 30-19, 30-18 and 30-32 on Friday night to complete a two-win opening day on Friday at the UTSA Classic. The Tigers improved to 8-2 on the season with the pair of victories, while the Roadrunners saw their 2007 record fall to 3-6.
The Tigers came out firing in the first game, hitting .600 on the strength of 16 kills and just one error on 25 attacks. Outside hitter Rachel Shanks led the way with six winners. The second frame saw four ties and a lead change in the early going, but Auburn reeled of 17 of the final 21 points after falling behind 14-13 to take a commanding 2-0 lead into intermission. UTSA gave the Tigers all they could handle in the third and final stanza, as they rallied from an early nine-point deficit (15-6), but the Tigers fought off a match point by the Roadrunners at 30-29 and scored the final three tallies of the match for the victory.
Freshman outside hitter Kendra Rowland had a team-best 14 kills for the Roadrunners, while junior libero Audrey Hiser recorded a match-high 17 digs.
Outside hitter Jessica Glover led Auburn with a match-best 16 winners. Shanks (11) and middle blocker Whitney Jacob (10) also were in double figures, while setter Nicki Gerig handed out 38 assists.
The Tigers won the first match of the tournament, defeating Louisiana Tech in four games (30-21, 30-23, 17-30, 30-27). Outside hitter Jelena Sekulic paced Auburn with a match-high 16 kills and 18 digs. The Lady Techsters were led by outside hitter Shannon Phillips, who recorded 14 winners, and libero Brittney Nakamura, who posted a match-best 20 digs.
Texas A&M improved to 8-0 on the season, its best start in school history, when it swept Louisiana Tech in the second contest of the day (30-24, 30-16, 30-18). Outside hitter Mary Batis swatted a match-high 17 kills, as the Aggies hit .418 as a team. Phillips had a team-high 13 winners for the Lady Techsters (5-6).
UTSA returns to action on Saturday when they play Louisiana Tech at noon and Texas A&M at 7 p.m.