SAN ANGELO, Texas (September 6, 2025) – The University of Texas Permian Basin volleyball team picked up its first win of the 2025 season on the final day of the Kathleen Brasfield Invitational. The Falcons began the day with a 3-0 (25-13, 25-9, 25-15) defeat against No. 23 Colorado Mesa University before coming back to the court to earn a 3-0 (26-24, 25-13, 25-20) victory over the University of Arkansas at Monticello.
 
Match 1 (UTPB 0, No. 23 Colorado Mesa 3):

• Missing one of their top players in Ashlee Macias, UTPB hit .037 percent overall, including -.138 percent (6 kills, 10 errors) in the opening set, and had nine reception errors.
• CMU hit .456 percent, including .577 percent (15 kills, 0 errors) in the second set; more than doubled the Falcons in points (56-25), kills (42-20) and assists (39-19); and recorded nine service aces.
• It was the fewest number of kills (20), assists (19), digs (26) and blocks (3), and was the lowest hitting percentage for UTPB during the CJ Allard era. In addition, CMU's .456 hitting percentage was the Falcons' highest hitting percentage allowed during the Coach Allard era.
• Freshman Makenna Grimes led UTPB with seven kills while sophomore Kierra Freeman had 10 assists and junior Isabel Rodriguez had seven digs.
• CMU was aided by an 8-0 run starting with a UTPB service error to break up a 4-4 tie in the first set, and later added a 6-0 run, again starting with a UTPB service error, to take a 10-point lead (21-11).
• After a kill by Nickilah Whatley to give UTPB its first lead of the match (1-0 in the second set), CMU scored 11 straight points, including four points on a service ace.
• It was the first-ever meeting between UTPB and CMU.
• It was also the second-year in a row under Coach Allard the Falcons have squared off against a team ranked No. 23 in the country at the Kathleen Brasfield Invitational.
• For the first time in 20 years, the Colorado Mesa University volleyball team enters the season with a new head coach. The Mavericks were picked second and received a pair of first-place votes in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference's Preseason Coaches' Poll. The Mavs went 23-6 overall and were 12-2 in RMAC play last year, taking second place in the conference standings behind MSU Denver.
• The Mavericks wrapped up the 2024 season ranked 23rd in the final AVCA NCAA Division II Poll and were picked in that same spot in the 2025 preseason poll. The Mavs have now been amongst the nation's top 25 in 42 straight polls, dating back more than three seasons.

 
Match 2 (UTPB 3, Arkansas-Monticello 0):

• The first set featured a combined 16 attack errors and eight service errors between the two teams, including four service errors by each team and at one point, five straight service errors.
• The second service ace of the opening set by I. Rodriguez followed by a kill by Grimes tied the score at 16-16, but UTPB was unable to take its first lead since 1-0 as UAM won the next two points on Falcon attack errors.
• UTPB would tie it again at 20-20 after back-to-back kills by Whatley and then finally took the lead (21-20) on a UAM attack error.
• Another kill by Whatley made it 22-21 UTPB, but kills by Annie Hudson and Sophia Grubbs on the next two points gave UAM back the advantage (23-22) and forced a timeout by the Falcons.
• Whatley's fourth kill in the latter stages of the first set tied it again at 23-23, and then tied at 24-24 after both an attack error and then a kill by Grubbs from UAM, a kill by Kimaya Webb assisted on by Freeman gave the Falcons set point.
• UTPB earned the first-set win thanks to a solo block by sophomore Lauren Demuth on an attack by Jalen Scroggins.
• Whatley finished the first set with six kills on .600 percent hitting while I. Rodriguez got off to a great start with 13 digs and Freeman distributed eight assists.
• After being able to close out the first-set win, UTPB jumped out to a 7-1 lead in the second set while UAM combined for three attack errors and a bad set within the first six points of the set.
• UAM totaled 12 attack errors and hit -071 percent in the second set as UTPB won 11 of the last 14 points of the set and took it by a final score of 25-13.
• UAM was much more competitive in the third set, leading 9-6 and 16-14. Down 16-14, UTPB went on an 8-0 run featuring four kills and two solo blocks by Sydney Bradley to make it 22-16 Falcons.
• Bradley would finish off the match with her sixth kill of the third set.
• Whatley led the Falcons with 10 kills for the match and hit .360 percent while Bradley had seven kills. Grimes and Webb both totaled six kills.
• Freeman totaled 16 assists. Senior Canyen Rodriguez added 11 assists, all in the third set.
• I. Rodriguez finished with 28 digs. Freshman Kyndall Torres added 10 digs, her highest total four matches into her collegiate career.
• It was the first matchup between UTPB and UAM since 2016, and was the Falcons' first win in the series against the Cotton Blossoms.

Coach's Quote:

• "What a great way to end a really poor opening weekend. We knew we wanted to go into next week with some momentum and we took the necessary steps to get the job done against Monticello. We were led again by Iz (Isabel Rodriguez) who gave us so many offensive opportunities this afternoon averaging over nine digs per set." – Head Coach CJ Allard.

 
Next Up: UT Permian Basin will be heading to California for the Biola/Vanguard Kick-Off Tournament. The Falcons will open the tournament against Biola University (Calif.) at 9 a.m. Pacific Time / 11 a.m. Central Time on Friday, September 12.