Aug. 29, 2008
Box Score | Photo Gallery 
DENTON, Texas - The UT Arlington volleyball team knocked off Jackson State 25-16, 25-17, 25-18, with an impressive offensive outing that produced a .383 hitting percentage in the Mavs' season opener on Friday evening at the Mean Green Volleyball Classic in Denton. UT Arlington senior Ally Wade began her senior campaign with a breakout match recording a career-high 11 kills.
"I thought they were very, very good tonight," head coach Diane Seymour said about her squad. "One thing we talked about a lot coming into this match was focusing on ourselves and creating an identity for ourselves."
After Jackson State grabbed an early 0-3 lead, UT Arlington got on the scoreboard with a JSU hitting error and a block by Bianca Sauls and Christy Driscoll. The Mavericks grabbed their first lead of the match on a kill by Wade to take a 6-5 advantage. Wade sparked the Mavs with four kills during an 8-3 run.
"When I got on the court all of the nerves went away and turned into adrenalin," Wade said. "I was really ready to get the season started."
The Mavericks led the rest of the first set, which included a 12-5 run to finish the first-set victory. Freshman Christy Driscoll added two kills and two block assists in the first stanza, while Wade paced UT Arlington with a .556 hitting percentage (5 kills).
The Mavericks recorded a .385 hitting percentage (13 kills-3 errors-26 attacks) in the first set while posting 13 kills. Jackson State was held to a .043 hitting percentage in the opening set.
In the second set, five Jackson State errors and two kills by Bianca Sauls helped rally the Mavs, who trailed 7-10 midway through the set. Following a hitting and serving error by the Mavs that brought the Lady Tigers to within three points (17-14), UT Arlington went on a 5-1 run that included a pair of block assists from Wade and freshman Emily Shearin. Wade then notched her fourth kill of the second set before Jackson State ended the second set with an attack error, giving the Mavs a 25-17 win.
"At first I was a little nervous," Shearin said. "But then I got into the match and I felt really good."
UT Arlington led the entire third and final set. UT Arlington's offense continued to shine in the third set as 11 of its opening 13 points were accounted for by kills. Shearin helped lead the Mavs in the final set with six kills and two block assists. Sauls then gave the Mavericks the season-opening victory with a kill to end the match, 25-18.
Sophomore Raegan Daniel led all players with 34 assists and Shearin collected six kills (.556 hitting percentage) with a match-high five block assists.
The Mavericks will continue action in the Mean Green Classic on Saturday at 11 a.m. against Texas Tech. UT Arlington will complete tournament action on Saturday evening with a tilt against North Texas at 7 p.m.
MATCH NOTES:
The victory gave head coach Diane Seymour her 75th career victory at UT Arlington... UT Arlington improves to 20-15-1 in season openers... The Mavericks have won four of their last five season-opening matches... Diane Seymour is now 4-1 in season openers... UT Arlington's .383 hitting percentage is the highest percentage since Sept. 16, 2006, when the Mavs posted a .456 hitting percentage against St. Francis (NY) at the Oral Roberts Classic (W, 30-12, 30-7, 30-25)... the Mavericks had five freshmen make their collegiate debut Friday evening... Christy Driscoll, Tara Frantz, Emily Shearin, Alicia Shaffer and Amanda Aguilera combined totaled 19 kills, a .515 hitting percentage (19 kills-2 errors-33 attacks), 18 digs and nine blocks.
OTHER TOURNAMENT ACTION:
In the only other match on Friday at the Mean Green Volleyball Classic, Texas Tech defeated North Texas, 25-21, 25-20, 25-17, in front of a near capacity 562 fans at the Mean Green Volleyball Center. The match featured 22 service errors as Texas Tech dominated the net with a 24-5 advantage.
Remaining Tournament Schedule:
Saturday, Aug. 30
UT Arlington vs. Texas Tech (11 a.m.)
North Texas vs. Jackson State (1:30 p.m.)
Texas Tech vs. Jackson State (4 p.m.)
North Texas vs. UT Arlington (7 p.m.)
