BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – UTSA fell to UAB in Birmingham on Friday night at the Bartow Arena by a score of 3-1 (12-25, 20-25, 25-20, 20-25).
UTSA (7-17, 2-10) was led offensively by the duo of Hunter Coppola and Cansu Günaydin who each notched 11 kills on the night. Mekaila Aupiu also helped pace the Roadrunner offense, pouring in 22 assists. Cheyenne Hlady and Ava Camacho had big nights on defense as Hlady had a solo block and eight block assists while Camacho tallied 16 kills.
UAB (12-12, 7-5) won its fourth game in its last five, as the pair of Alex Kells and Maia Rackel were a force, each recording 16 kills to lead all scorers. Blazer setter Lidya Canturk had 49 assists on the night, the second most by any C-USA player in a four-set match this season.
First Set (UAB 25-12 UTSA)
UTSA and UAB traded early points finding themselves at a 4-4 tie which eventually turned into a 13-10 UAB lead. From that point, the Blazers ripped off a 7-0 run to double up the 'Runners and take a 20-10 lead in the first. UAB closed the first set on a 5-2 run to put things away and claim the 13-point set victory. After one, Coppola led UTSA with two kills as UAB held the Roadrunners to a negative hitting percentage.
Second Set (UAB 25-20 UTSA)
The Blazers brought some first-set momentum to the beginning of the second, claiming a 6-0 lead to start the set. The Roadrunners gradually chipped away, eventually pulling within one as the score sat at 17-16. UAB's Chloe Rodriguez played a big role at the end of the set, scoring all three of the Blazers final points to will UAB to a 2-0 lead. Katelyn Krienke and Günaydin had two kills in the second set to lead the Roadrunners.
Third Set (UTSA 25-20 UAB)
UTSA was able to regain some momentum in the third set, earning their first set victory of the night. The Roadrunners found themselves down by an early four points (8-4) before rattling off six in a row to take a 10-8 lead and forcing UAB to call timeout. The Blazers were able to come out of the timeout and force a tie, knotting the game up at 14. From there though, UTSA never surrendered the lead for the rest of the match, going on to win by five. Günaydin and Coppola again led UTSA in the set, each tallying four kills. Günaydin also had five digs in the set to lead all Roadrunners.
Fourth Set (UAB 25-20 UTSA)
The Roadrunners carried the set three momentum into the fourth, taking an early lead in the set, 10-6. The Blazers countered with a run of their own, going on an 8-2 rally to take a 14-12 lead and forcing UTSA to call timeout. The Blazers continued to streak out of the timeout, pushing their lead to 19-15 and the Roadrunners burned their second timeout. Coming out of the Roadrunners' second timeout, UAB finished the match off on a 6-5 run to win the set and the match 3-1. Coppola and Günaydin again poured in four kills for the second straight set and Aupiu had 10 assists in the set.
Up Next
UTSA will have about a week off before it's back in action next Thursday night against UTEP. Next Thursday's match is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. and will be scheduled on both CUSA.tv and Stadium Plus. The match is also senior night as the Roadrunners are set to honor three of their own, Courtney Walters, Hunter Coppola and Mia Ybarra.
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