HOUSTON, Texas – HCU capped off the Molly Howard-Gerwig Memorial Tournament in impressive fashion, rallying past UTRGV in a five-set thriller (15-25, 20-25, 25-19, 25-21, 15-13) at Sharp Gym on Saturday. After dropping the first two sets, the Huskies took three straight, including a furious finish in game five that vanquished the Vaqueros. The Huskies ended the weekend tournament undefeated and in the process ran their Sharp Gymnasium winning streak to 13 consecutive matches.
The Huskies found themselves in a early 16-3 hole to start the morning, and went on to fall by 10 in the opening stanza. Back-to-back kills by junior
Audrey Pearce capped a 6-2 start to the second set, but the Vaqueros stormed back to tie things at 11. UTRGV would rally again, as down 20-18, it rattled off the final seven points to take the game and take a seemingly commanding 2-0 lead int he match.
Back and forth went the third frame until the Huskies closed with an 11-6 spurt to take the game and cut the match lead in half. The fourth set started much like the third, as the teams traded blows for the majority of the set. With UTRGV ahead 16-15, the Huskies used a 6-0 run, taking advantage of two visitor errors and two
Grace McLaughlin service aces to take the lead for good. HCU would hold on late, knotting the match at two games apiece.
Game five saw a big opening burst by the Vaqueros, who took an 8-3 lead to the break, and then a 10-4 lead moments later. HCU wouldn't be deterred however, and two kills from
Cassidy Drapela, three blocks from
Lexie Temple capped a furious rally, erasing the deficit and turning it into a 14-11 advantage, and the Huskies held on for the thrilling win.
The Huskies (4-3) were led by junior
Sara Arroyo with 14 kills and six digs. Junior
Audrey Pearce recorded 12 kills, eight digs, and three blocks while sophomore
Cassidy Drapela added 10 kills to the Huskies offense. Sophomore
Grace McLaughlin recorded a double-double by dishing out 34 assists along with 12 digs. HCU's defense was led by senior
Kaley Feris with 16 digs, while Temple and Pearce combined for seven blocks.
The Vaqueros (2-3) were led by Ilana De Assis with 20 kills and nine digs. Nadine Zech added 19 kills to UTRGV's offense while Luanna Emiliano dished out 54 assists along with 14 digs. Kiaraliz Perez led the Vaqueros defensively with 28 digs.
HCU will return to action next Friday and Sunday, taking on Rice and Florida Gulf Coast at the Rice Invitational in Tudor Fieldhouse.
