Box Score
The University of Texas of the Permian Basin settled in after a 26-24 nailbiter win first set, winning the following two sets of the match by at least eight points in a three set, 26-24, 25-15 and 25-17 Heartland Conference victory at Oklahoma Panhandle State Thursday night.
UTPB needed to rally late in a first set that saw neither team stretch too far ahead of the other until a three point UTPB rally put the Falcons up 21-17. OPSU responded by scoring five of the next six points, retaking the lead at 23-22 and two points later found itself serving for match point. An attack error by OPSu and kills from
Jamie Rodell and
Keeley Brogdon led to three straight Falcon points as they took the opening set 26-24.
UT-Permian Basin ran out to an 8-3 lead in set two, and a four point run including two straight kills from
Melissa Lusk and one from
Hannah Rebb pushed the UTPB lead to 13-7. The Falcons were able to hold off any attempts by the Aggies to close the gap too far, only getting to within three points at 14-11. UTPB scored four in a row to run the score to 23-14, and after an OPSU point scored the final two points of the set to take a 2-0 lead with a 25-15 second set win.
Set three started out in UTPB's favor as a pair of three-point runs from the Falcons gave them an early 8-4 advantage. A six point run featuring three UTPB kills helped UTPB stretch its lead out to 14-7. Both teams played the remainder of the set evenly, including back-to-back three point streaks that saw the Aggies close the lead to three points before UTPB's three point run took it back out to six. A kill from
Morgann Davis on match point gave the Falcons a 25-17 set win to lock up the win.
Rodell led all players on the night with 12 kills, hitting a season-high .647 on the night with just one error in 17 total attack attempts.
Danae Eckart led UTPB with 18 digs as
Hannah Rebb added 15, and
Ariel Fralick paced UTPB with 15 assists.
UTPB returns home early next week, hosting University of the Southwest at 7 p.m. Tuesday, October 16.
