SAN MARCOS, Texas – San Antonio ties propel the Texas State volleyball team to a tight 3-1 victory (25-21, 24-26, 25-21, 25-20) over I-35 rival UTSA Thursday night at Strahan Arena. The win puts the Bobcats over .500 (6-5) and ends a three-match losing streak at home.
 
"That was scrappy. Anytime Texas State and UTSA get into a volleyball match that is what you will see," said head coach Karen Chisum. "I am extremely proud of the grit we showed in every game. What was really fun is that [Lauren] Teske, Jill Slaughter and Emily [DeWalt] are all San Antonio kids, and Kenedi [Rutherford] transferred from there [UTSA], so they played with and against those girls for years. There was some incentive for them personally and extra competitiveness and I am proud of their performances. It was fun."
 
Despite being outhit by the Roadrunners (6-5) .201-.159, the Bobcats came out on top winning the battle in total kills (53-50), assists (51-47), digs (71-64), blocks (8-6), and aces (7-3). Texas State improves to 59-14 all-time vs. UTSA and extends its winning streak in the series to three dating back to last season.
 
Freshman outside hitter Lauren Teske led the Maroon and Gold with a career-high 13 kills and was followed by sophomore outside Kenedi Rutherford, a UTSA transfer, who notched 11 kills and three blocks. Senior outside Cheyenne Huskey also got in on the fun and logged her third consecutive double-double this season with 10 kills, 16 digs, and matched a career-high with five aces. Sophomore setter Emily DeWalt posted her 25th career double-double with 41 assists and 10 digs, while also chipping in one ace, and sophomore middle blocker Jillian Slaughter recorded a match-high six blocks to go along with six kills in the victory. DeWalt, Slaughter, and Teske are all from the San Antonio area.  
    
UTSA was led by sophomore outside Kirby Smith who turned in a match-high 15 kills in addition to eight digs, two blocks and one ace. Her classmate and fellow outside hitter Hannah Lopez had a double-double with 14 kills and 11 blocks, and senior libero Emily Ramirez led all players with 24 digs. Freshman setter Courtney Walters finished with 20 assists, six digs, and one ace, while sophomore setter Mia Perales recorded 19 assists and five digs. Senior middle Kara Teal led the Roadrunners with three blocks.  
 
 Set 1
The Roadrunners opened set one with an 8-3 run to force the Bobcats into a timeout and held their largest lead at 15-8. Texas State would respond with a 7-0 run, however, and ultimately tied the match late at 20. Slaughter found the floor for two consecutive kills to give the home team a 22-20 advantage and the Bobcats went on the win the opening frame, 25-21.
  
Set 2
With the momentum on TXST side after the comeback in set one, the Cats jumped out in front of the Roadrunners for a 13-7 lead. UTSA battled back and tied the set at 14 before the Bobcats looked as if they would pull away with a 19-16 advantage. UTSA was persistent, however, and tied the match on two separate occasions before stealing the second stanza, 26-24.
 
Set 3
There were 10 ties between the teams prior to the media timeout where Texas State took a 15-13 thanks to a kill by Teske and an attacking error by the visiting club. Out of the timeout, Koenen registered an ace, and although UTSA did not let the set get too far away, TXST capitalized by scoring four of the final six points with three of them coming from Roadrunner errors.
  
Set 4
UTSA made an early push to force a fifth set with a 7-2 lead that prompted a Bobcat timeout. TXST scored three quick points out of the break and later tied the frame at 11 highlighted by two solo blocks from Slaughter. The Maroon and Gold took their final lead of the night after Huskey's kill ignited a 4-0 run to bring the count to 18-14 and the Bobcats never let off as they closed the set and match with a 25-20 win.
 
The Creeds & Crests Classic will continue with three matches tomorrow and will conclude with a 7 p.m. contest featuring Texas State and George Washington.
 
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