SAN ANTONIO — Junior McKenzie Adams registered 24 kills and 14 digs to lead UTSA to a 25-20, 21-25, 25-16, 30-28 victory against San Jose State on Saturday afternoon at the Convocation Center and it was the first-ever Western Athletic Conference (WAC) win in Roadrunners Athletics history.
UTSA (7-4, 1-1 WAC) put together a furious rally in the fourth set to close out the Spartans (4-7, 0-2 WAC).
Adams, who recorded her seventh double-double of the season, netted 14 of her two dozen winners in the final two frames. Junior Brandy Huskey posted her seventh double-double of the campaign with 42 assists and 15 digs, while senior Whitney Walls chipped in with 11 kills. Junior Paige Hamilton paced the defensive effort with 19 digs.
San Jose State had two players earn double-doubles, including Krista Miller, who posted a match-high 20 digs to go along with her 12 winners. Hanah Blume added 17 stops and 12 kills, while Alex Akana turned in a team-high 15 winners.
Adams led the Birds to a win in the opening panel by netting six winners and connecting for a .333 hitting percentage. UTSA broke a 14-all tie when Samantha O'Connell's serve went wide. The Roadrunners then used a quick 3-1 spurt to increase their lead to three (18-15). The two clubs played even for the next 10 tallies, but a pair of back-to-back Spartans attack errors gave UTSA the victory.
San Jose State used a pair of strong offensive performances by Miller and Mary Alice O'Reilly in the second panel to even the match. The Spartans led from start to finish and the Roadrunners were unable to recover. Miller slammed home four winners, including the last two tallies for the visitors, and hit at a .400 clip, while O'Reilly converted three of her six swings into points and hit .500.
UTSA had its strongest showing in the third set when it hit .344 and committed only three attack errors. Adams again set the tone with seven kills, while Walls added four.
The Roadrunners, who limited San Jose State to a .079 hitting percentage, raced out to an 11-5 advantage. UTSA continued to push the tempo and increased the lead to 22-13 after a Walls winner. Adams and Walls each tallied a kill in the next four tallies, and after the Spartans managed to pull to within eight, the Birds finished off the panel on a winner by sophomore Dempsey Thornton.
The Roadrunners pulled off an improbable comeback in the fourth set to close out the match.
San Jose State jumped out to a 10-1 lead, but UTSA then flipped the momentum with a 10-2 run of its own. Following a Spartans timeout, the Birds fell behind by five and San Jose State maintained the five-point advantage until it was 24-20. However, the Roadrunners rattled off a 4-0 run that tied the frame. The two clubs then split the next eight points before back-to-back winners by Walls and Thornton finished off the triumph.
UTSA will continue its four-match home stand on Tuesday, Sept. 18, when it welcomes Houston Baptist (8-7) to the Convocation Center. First serve is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. The Huskies swept the Roadrunners last Monday.