EL PASO, Texas — Despite starting off strong with a narrow loss in set one, Texas State lost in three sets to UTEP in their finale of the Southwest Showdown. Texas State now sits with a 6-5 record at the conclusion of non-conference play.
Set one started off back and forth between the two sides, but the Miners went on a run midway through to give them a 15-10 lead at the media timeout. From there, a 5-1 run from the Bobcats forced a UTEP timeout. Ultimately, though, the first set took extra points to decide. After the Bobcats came back to tie things at 25 apiece, the two sides went back and forth with 10 set points to find a winner. The Miners took set point 34-32 after an MJ McCurdy attack error. Set one saw nine lead changes and 14 tied scores.
Caelyn Emmerling and Sam Wunsch led the Bobcats in set two with five kills each. They were able to help the Bobcats stay close in set two, but UTEP was able to win set two 25-23. Despite neither side having more than a three point lead ever in set two, Texas State was outhit 17-15 on kills and that was the difference in the set.
The Miners came out swinging early in set three and finished the set with 15 kills on 25 attempts for a .520 hitting percentage. That, paired with limiting the Bobcats to just eight kills and a .042 hitting percentage the Bobcats fell 25-13 in set three.
STAT LEADERS
SCORES BY SET
- 1st | Texas State 32, UTEP 34
- 2nd | Texas State 23, UTEP 25
- 3rd | Texas State 13, UTEP 25
UP NEXT
Texas State will begin Sun Belt Conference play at Louisiana on Sept. 27 and 28. These matches will be streamed on ESPN+. The Bobcats will then have their home opener on Oct. 4 and 5 vs Troy as part of Show 'Em State Weekend inside Strahan Arena.
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