SAN ANTONIO — The UTSA volleyball team is en route to Houston, Texas, as the Roadrunners will meet No. RV Rice for a pair of matches inside the Tudor Fieldhouse, first facing the Owls on Friday at 6 p.m., ahead of a 1 p.m. showdown on Saturday.
The Roadrunners (8-6, 1-2 AAC) opened American Athletic Conference play last time out, sweeping Charlotte on the road before falling to No. RV SMU in two contests at the Convocation Center.
Among the team's top performers, senior Alicia Coppedge averaged 1.56 blocks per set, denying 14 of the opposition's attacks across three matches. In the process, Coppedge tied sophomore Katelyn Krienke and UTSA graduate McKenzie Adams' program record for block assists in a three-setter with eight against the Mustangs. Additionally, she recorded 20 kills, with a .348 hitting percentage en route to 28 total points.
Aiding in the offense, sophomore Mia Soerensen totaled 26 kills on the week, bringing her season total to 169, a figure she's achieved while maintaining a .300 hitting percentage. Soerensen isn't the only Roadrunner to surpass 100 terminations thus far, as junior Faye Wilbricht has logged 108 and sophomore Katelyn Krienke 101.
The No. RV Owls (9-4, 3-0) remain undefeated in league play, besting UAB once and Tulsa twice across the opening week of play.
Rice enters the contests boasting the highest digs per set total in the NCAA, as the Owls average 19.38. Nia McCardell has played a significant role in the defensive success, as her digs per set mark of 5.36 represents the best in the AAC and the ninth nationally.
Danyle Courtley paces the Owls in kills, posting 169 terminations, while Emilia Weske sits second with 100. The bulk of those kills have come on the end of Izzy Rawlings sets, as Rawlings leads the squad with 260 assists, while Darby Harris completes the 6-2 tandem with 204. Additionally, Satasha Kostelecky is the team leader with 43 blocks.
Keep up with UTSA Volleyball all season long on goutsa.com, and by following the program on Facebook at /UTSAVBall, X (Twitter) @UTSAVolleyball, and on Instagram @utsa_vb.
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