· Northern Colorado box score
· SMU box score
Senior Stefanie Robbins was the lone Roadrunner named to the Mean Green Classic All-Tournament team. |
DENTON —UTSA ended its run at the season-opening Mean Green Classic with back-to-back losses on Saturday to Northern Colorado and SMU.
Northern Colorado hit .406 and posted a 26-24, 25-23, 25-18 victory in the day's first match.
Kenzie Shreeve led a balanced offensive attack with a match-high 11 kills. Ashley Lichtenberg and Taylor Smith added 10 winners apiece, while Kelly Arnold and Allison Raguse slammed home nine and eight, respectively. Setter Marissa Hughes quarterbacked the offense to the tune of 46 assists.
Northern Colorado, which improved to 3-0 with the win, jumped out to an early 10-2 first-set lead, but the Roadrunners used a 15-7 run to tie things up at 17. UTSA took its first advantage three points later and went on to extend the edge to a pair at 21-19. The Bears then scored four of the next five points to take a 23-22 lead. After the teams exchanged four consecutive points, Northern Colorado scored the final two tallies to go up, 1-0.
The Birds came out strong the next frame, jumping out to a 7-3 lead and maintained that advantage late into the set. Clinging to a 22-21 edge, UTSA saw the Bears score four of the final five tallies to take a commanding lead into the locker room.
The Roadrunners fell behind in the early stages of what turned out to be the final stanza. However, they rallied to take a 12-11 advantage, but Northern Colorado closed out the match with a 14-6 run.
Briana Mason led UTSA with nine kills, while fellow middle hitter Stefanie Robbins and outside hitter Kendra Rowland chipped in with eight each.
Libero Kelsey Jewasko had a match-best eight digs but saw her streak of double-digit performances come to an end at 17 (dating back to Oct. 3, 2008).
The Roadrunners got off to a great start in the nightcap against the Mustangs (1-2), winning the first stanza, 25-17. Unfortunately, it was all downhill from there, as SMU hit .347 the rest of the way en route to 25-11, 25-10 and 25-14 victories over the next three sets, sending UTSA back to the Alamo City with a 1-2 record.
Kendra Kahanek led three players in double figures with 13 kills, while Dana Powell and Kathryn Wilkerson contributed a dozen and 11, respectively, for the Mustangs.
The Birds were led by Rowland's double-double of 10 kills and 10 digs. Robbins, meanwhile, added eight winners and was the lone Roadrunner named to the All-Tournament team. The 2008 Southland Conference Newcomer of the Year finished the two-day event with a .306 hitting percentage on the strength of 28 kills and added a half dozen blocks.
UTSA will open its 13-match home slate on Tuesday, Sept. 1, when it hosts Prairie View A&M (0-3) in a 6:30 p.m. contest at the Convocation Center. The Roadrunners have won all 13 matches in the all-time series that dates back to 1989 and all but two have ended in three sets.