HUNTSVILLE — UTSA dominated both its opponents and the Roadrunners won their first two matches of the season in three sets on Friday during the opening day of the Bearkats Invitational.
UTSA will take on tournament host Sam Houston State at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday before concluding play at the two-day event five hours later against Tulane.
UTSA 3, Montana State 0
UTSA won its second straight season opener as the Roadrunners dominated Montana State in three sets (25-17, 25-16, 25-23).
Antonela Jularic paced the squad with 11 kills and was one dig shy of a double-double with nine digs. Meanwhile, Megan Slan added a career high nine kills, to go along with five blocks and a .900 hitting percentage.
The Roadrunners held their opponent to a minimal hitting percentage in each of the three sets while the team hit no lower than .243 in the last frame.
In the first set, the Roadrunners were off to a slow start but picked up the pace after rattling off five points to jump to a 6-3 lead over MSU. UTSA managed to keep the Bobcats at a distance and never looked back taking the first 25-17.
Momentum continued in the following frame as the Roadrunners held a commanding 7-2 lead. Montana State (1-1) attempted to make it a game as they came within two, 10-8, on four straight points. A kill from Jularic snapped the streak and the Roadrunners were back on track to win 25-16.
The Bobcats continued to battle in the third set and even took a lead for the first time in the match at the 19-18 mark on a kill from Natalee Godfrey. An 8-1 run bumped the Bobcats lead to 22-18 but was suddenly snapped on a serving error. After each team traded points, the Roadrunners closed out the set on six straight points to win 25-23.
Eli Svisco led MSU with seven kills and Chase Doughty added six winners.
UTSA 3, Prairie View A&M 0
In the second match of the day, UTSA dominated once again defeating Prairie View A&M 3-0 (25-13, 25-13, 25-14).
The Roadrunners set a program record hitting a .573 clip (49-6-75), surpassing the previous mark of .536 set back in 2013 against Mississippi Valley State. The team hit above .600 in two of the three sets played against the Panthers.
Dajana Boskovic tallied 16 kills with five digs and a .565 hitting percentage in her season debut, while Marijeta Runjic added nine kills and a .900 hitting percentage.
Despite playing back-to-back matches, the Roadrunners made quick work of its opponent. A serving error by PVAMU (0-2) put the Roadrunners on the board first and UTSA then jumped to a 9-2 lead on a kill by Kasey Kiefer.
The Roadrunners continued to roll through the Panthers in the opening set and won on a bad set by the Panthers, 25-13.
The second set followed in similar fashion. UTSA led by 10 or more points halfway through the frame and secured the win on back-to-back kills from Kylie Schott and Tessa Dahnert, respectively.
UTSA improved to 2-0 on the season after taking the third set over PVAMU, 25-14. The Roadrunners hit .667 (17-1-24) and registered five service aces.
Jasmine Lewis paced the Panthers with nine kills and three digs.