AUSTIN — UTSA dropped its final two matches at this weekend's Time Warner Cable Texas Invitational on Saturday. The Roadrunners fell to Santa Clara in five sets (25-17, 18-25, 23-25, 26-24, 16-14) in the morning before dropping a four-frame decision (27-25, 19-25, 25-22, 25-18) to No. 8 Texas in the event's final match.
Sophomore McKenzie Adams was the Roadrunners' lone representative on the all-tournament team after leading all players with 48 kills and a .443 hitting percentage.
UTSA wraps up non-conference play with four-set loss at No. 8 Texas
AUSTIN — Sophomore McKenzie Adams had 15 kills, but it wasn't enough to vault UTSA past No. 8 Texas in Saturday's finale of the Time Warner Cable Texas Invitational (27-25, 19-25, 25-22, 25-18).
The Roadrunners (6-8) posted a six-point victory in the second set to tie the match, but the Longhorns (6-3) pulled away after intermission to wrap up the tournament championship.
Adams was UTSA's lone representative on the all-tournament team after leading all players with 48 kills and a .443 hitting percentage.
Freshman Dempsey Thornton notched her fourth double-double of the season with 11 kills and 10 digs, while senior Elise Huskey and junior Whitney Walls each added 10 winners and redshirt junior Kelsey Schwirtlich dished out 45 assists.
Texas received 13 kills from Rachael Adams and Khat Bell, the event's Most Valuable Player, added a dozen.
The Roadrunners led for a majority of the first set, including 20-15 following a 4-1 run, which prompted Texas to call a timeout. The Longhorns battled back to tie the frame at 22 with a 7-2 stretch. UTSA then took two of the next three tallies to force a set point, however, Texas rallied with a 4-1 run to take the early advantage.
The Birds regrouped to pick up the program's first-ever set victory over a ranked opponent. UTSA raced out to a 9-4 lead, but after UT pulled within two (16-14), the Roadrunners managed to pull away with a 9-5 spurt. Adams racked up five kills and UTSA hit .343 to even the match.
The pivotal third set went back and forth, but the Horns claimed the advantage late. Texas broke a 15-all tie following back-to-back attack errors by the Birds. UTSA was able to cut the lead to one at 22-21 after Walls netted her third kill in the set. However, UT responded with a 3-1 run to go up, 2-1.
The Longhorns used a .433 attack percentage to clinch the victory. With the set tied at 12, Texas went on a 13-6 run to earn the victory.
UTSA will open Southland Conference play on Thursday, Sept. 22, at Texas State (9-5). First serve is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at Strahan Coliseum.
UTSA falls in five sets to Santa Clara on Saturday morning
AUSTIN — UTSA had four players rack up double-digit kills, but it was not enough, as Santa Clara overcame five match points to outlast the Roadrunners in five sets (25-17, 18-25, 23-25, 26-24, 16-14) on Saturday morning at the Time Warner Cable Texas Invitational.
The Roadrunners (6-7) held a 14-10 lead in the deciding frame before the Broncos (4-6) went on a 6-0 run, which included four consecutive blocks, to pull out the win.
Senior Elise Huskey recorded a career-high 18 kills and added 11 digs for her team-leading eighth double-double of the season. Junior Whitney Walls also posted 18 winners and sophomore McKenzie Adams added a career-high 17 while hitting a match-best .517 in 29 swings. Freshman Dempsey Thornton netted her third double-double after posting 17 digs and 11 kills.
Redshirt junior Kelsey Schwirtlich guided the Roadrunners to a .274 hitting percentage with 57 assists, while senior Kelsey Jewasko tallied a match-high 24 digs and junior Megan Wimbish added a dozen.
Kaleigh Durket led Santa Clara with 15 kills and Tanya Schmidt, Katherine Douglas and Dana Knudsen added 13, 12 and 10, respectively.
The Broncos hit at a .500 clip with only one error en route to winning the opening stanza. Santa Clara received six winners from Dana Knudsen and five from Tanya Schmidt to claim the eight-point win.
UTSA evened the match after recording a .421 hitting percentage in the second set. The Birds jumped out to a 16-9 lead, but the Broncos picked up three consecutive points to pull within four. However, the Roadrunners responded with a 5-1 run, which was capped by back-to-back kills from Walls, to take an eight-point advantage. UTSA picked up three of the next five tallies, including Thornton's cross-court winner, which gave it a 24-15 lead. After Santa Clara battled through three set points, the Birds finished the panel with a block assist by Adams and Schwirtlich.
The Roadrunners carried the momentum into the third frame by racing out to a 7-3 lead. UTSA led by as much as seven before the Broncos started to mount a comeback. Behind the strength of a 7-1 run, Santa Clara fought off five set points before Schwirtlich set up Huskey for the clinching kill.
The Broncos tied the match at two after winning a back-and-forth fourth set. UTSA had match point following a Santa Clara service error, but the Broncos won the next three points to force a fifth-and-deciding frame.
The Roadrunners built an 11-7 lead to open the final stanza, which included four winners from Walls. The two clubs split the next six points before Santa Clara reeled off winning run.
UTSA will wrap up tournament play at 7:30 p.m. against eighth-ranked Texas (4-3) and the contest will be broadcast on the Longhorn Network.
