SAN ANTONIO, Texas --- The UT Arlington volleyball team (5-4) captured the UTSA Invitational championship with a thrilling 17-25 ,25-27, 25-23, 25-18, 15-9 win over UTSA on the road inside the Convocation Center on Saturday. It was the third consecutive win for the Mavs, who have also won five of the past six heading into next weekend's UTA Invitational.
 
"This was a gutsy team win with stellar performances under pressure," head coach J.T. Wenger said. "We changed systems mid-match, and the players took it in stride and competed at a high level. I'm very proud of the team's effort this weekend."
 
Brianna Ford, who was named the UTSA Invitational MVP, tallied her third consecutive double-double with 15 kills, 17 digs, five blocks (two solo) and two aces. She was joined on the all-tournament team by Sophie Skinner, who tallied 29 assists, six digs and one kill, and Alli Wells, who had 13 digs.
 
Saturday's match began to turn late in the second set. Despite ultimately losing to go down 0-2, UT Arlington erased a 23-16 deficit and reeled off a 9-1 run to produce a set point. The host Roadrunners finished off the set with three straight points. Both teams then produced a back-and-forth third set that witnessed the hosts with a 22-19 lead.
 
The Mavs, however, scored 12 of the next 14 points to extend the match and take a 6-1 lead in the fourth. UTSA bounced back to take a 16-15 lead, but UTA once again went on a run, finishing the set on a 10-2 burst that forced a fifth. It was from there that the Mavs never really relinquished control of the match again, scoring five of the first six points, pushing the lead to 10-4 and winning the deciding set on a kill from Jalie Tritt.
 
UTA produced its best offensive performance in the final set, hitting .455 with 12 kills after not hitting above .240 in any of the previous sets. Conversely, their defense held UTSA to .158, .053 and .211 performances in the final three sets, respectively.
 
Tritt's match-clincher was her 11th kill, and she added six digs, two aces and one block. Kortney Puckett, meanwhile, notched a new career-high with 11 kills, surpassing her nine against Little Rock on Oct. 9, 2020. She hit a team-best .625 in doing so while adding five blocks and four digs.
 
In addition to Skinner's team-best 29 assists, Mollie Blank also played a key factor in the victory with 14 assists and eight digs. Kaylen Beaty, who had a pair of aces in the team's late second set rally, finished with a team-best three along with three digs. Outside of Puckett and Ford's combined 10 blocks, Nya Blair and Meredith Fisher each contributed three while Blair finished fourth on the team with five kills.
 
Ford's double-double was her sixth of the season and the 17th of her career.
 
The Mavs, who are now 2-1 in five-set matches this year, will conclude non-conference play this coming weekend inside the College Park Center against New Orleans (Friday at 11 a.m.), Prairie View A&M (Friday at 6:30 p.m.) and Lamar (Saturday at 6:30 p.m.).
 
UTSA Invitational All-Tournament Team
Brianna Ford, UT Arlington – MVP
Sophie Skinner, UT Arlington
Alli Wells, UT Arlington
Ava Camacho, UTSA
Katelyn Krienke, UTSA
Bailey Tillman, McNeese
 
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