Sept. 19, 2014
Final Stats | Photo Gallery
ARLINGTON, Texas - Each of the previous three meetings between UT Arlington and Troy had gone five sets and Friday night's match at College Park Center was no different as the Mavericks came out on top 17-25, 25-16, 23-25, 25-12, 17-15.
The win pushes UTA to 11-3 on the year and 1-1 in the Sun Belt, while Troy falls to 9-5 this season and 1-1 in the conference.
"There's a lot of parity in the Sun Belt and we are going to see a lot of long matches this season," UT Arlinlgton coach Diane Seymour said. "I don't think it is going to be possible to go in and sweep all of your opponents so we did need this five-set victory."
Freshman OH Qiana Canete recorded her eighth straight double-double in the victory with 13 kills and a career-high 31 digs. Taylor Gross and Stacey Koch also got in the action as the two players recorded 12 kills each. Caitlyn Cooney did her part in the win as she recorded 24 digs and eight assists.
Ashley Bennett etched her name in the UTA record charts as she recorded seven blocks on the night to become the 16th UTA volleyball player to go over the 300 block mark in her career. The MB also put up nine kills and a hitting percentage of .348.
"Today I went in and just really tried to focus on playing and whatever happens, happens," said Bennett. "It's exciting to be able to reach that goal."
After dropping the opening set 25-17, UTA stormed out of the gate in the second set claiming a 7-3 lead off of a Caitlyn Cooney ace. The Mavericks extended their lead again in the set when a 5-1 run put UTA up 20-11. UTA then closed out the set when a block by Briana Sharratt and Stacey Koch gave UTA the set at 25-16.
The competition intensified in the third set with neither team holding larger than a two point lead. The Mavericks responded after trailing 22-20 by answering back a pair of kills from Ashley Bennett and Stacey Koch to tie up the set. The Trojans then took a 2-1 lead in the match as they ended the third set on a 3-1 run.
Hannah Baptiste led the Mavericks through the set as she recorded four kills and a hitting percentage of .500. Taylor Story and Caitlyn Cooney did their part defensively as they each recorded five digs in the set.
Looking to avoid dropping the match, UTA came out fast in the fourth set taking a 10-4 lead off of a Troy attack error. The Mavericks failed to look back as they cruised taking the set 25-12.
Taylor Gross led the charge in the fourth frame as she recorded a team-high five kills on six attacks with a hitting percentage of .833. Caitlyn Cooney also contributed defensively as she notched seven digs to help extend the match to five sets.
The drama continued in the fifth set as neither team led by more than three points. With the match tied at eight points, UTA put together a 4-1 run that was capped off with a block by Stacey Koch and Briana Sharratt. With the score tied at 15, UTA closed out the set 17-15 thanks to two straight points which was highlighted by a Qiana Canete kill to end the match.
Stacey Koch paced the Mavs in the final set as she recorded five kills and a hitting percentage of .556. Taylor Gross also did her part as she recorded four kills and a hitting percentage of .667.
The Mavs ended the match with a hitting percentage of .209 while holding the Trojans to just .121 hitting. UTA also held a slight advantage at the net as it recorded 13 blocks compared to 12 for Troy.
UTA will return to action on Sunday when it hosts Louisiana at College Park Center with the match slated to begin at 12 p.m.
