box score
SAN ANTONIO – In a race to finish in the top four of the Heartland Conference volleyball standings, the University of Texas of the Permian Basin and St. Mary's went head-to-head with the Rattlers coming out on top with a thrilling 3-2 (24-26, 25-20, 25-19, 17-25, 15-11) win over the Falcons.
The Falcons are still a half game ahead of St. Mary's in the standings, but two losses to the Rattlers would have UTPB on the outside looking in if a tie-breaking procedure were to be used.
UTPB is now 8-16 overall and 4-4 in the Heartland standings, while St. Mary's is sitting at 8-13, including a 3-4 conference mark. The Falcons still have St. Edward's, Dallas Baptist and Newman left on the schedule, three of the best teams in the league. St. Mary's on the other hand, has Panhandle State, Newman, and A&M International left on the slate. Panhandle State and A&M-International are on the bottom end of the conference standings.
The Falcons started off on fire in the first set, jumping out to a 5-0 lead but would eventually find themselves down 24-20 after five-straight points by the Rattlers. After facing set point, UTPB got two kills by
Melissa Lusk and Jamie Rodell as well as a service error by the Rattlers to eventually tie the contest and take the first set to lead 1-0. Lusk and Rodell would finish with 10 kills each.
The second set saw the Falcons go up 8-4 after a kill by Alex Genung which capped off a 3-0 run by UTPB. The lead wouldn't last long as the Rattlers scored nine of the next 11 points to take an 11-10 lead. Both teams went back and forth until St. Mary's broke a 19-19 tie by scoring four-straight points to lead 23-19. UTPB would score just one more point in the set as the Rattlers' Allie Murray had a service ace on game point to tie the match at one game each.
In the third set, the Falcons battled back from a 13-9 deficit to eventually lead 18-17, but the Rattlers roared back to score nine of the final 10 points to take a 2-1 set advantage.
UTPB got the momentum back in the forth set as it jumped out to a 13-6 lead and never looked back. The Falcons hit an impressive .359 for the set, collecting 15 kills and made just one error in the win. UTPB scored back-to-back points on all but five occasions in the set.
In the fifth and final set, the Rattlers took control from the beginning, scoring the first six points and eventually led 10-1. The Falcons made it interesting by scoring seven of the next eight points, but St. Mary's Kirsten Chapman ended the threat by with a kill giving the Rattlers the win.
Lusk was impressive in her performance as she hit .333, committing just three errors in 21 attacks. She was also a force defensively at the net with three solo blocks and seven assists. As a team, the Falcons recorded 18 total blocks with Rodell and Terra Peil chipping in with six assists each.
Genung finished with 14 kills and 21 digs for her second double-double of the season, while Danae Eckart tallied a team-best 31 digs.
The Falcons will remain on the road when they take on A&M International on Saturday at 2 p.m.
