University of North Texas
-31,00 CUSA
Sam Houston
5-1,0-0WAC
Mean Green best Sam Houston in five set thriller
9/3/2021 7:58:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
ARLINGTON — North Texas had three players with 15 or more kills, including a team high 16 from senior Rhett Robinson in a hard-fought five set victory (16-25, 25-17, 25-17, 25-27, 15-13) over Sam Houston State on Friday night in the first game of the UTA Classic.
North Texas (3-1) handed Sam Houston (5-1) their first loss of the season after rebounding from a tough loss in the fourth set in which neither team ever led by more than three points.
"We knew it was going to be a tough go," head coach Andrew Palileo said. "But we refocused and focused on some cues and just attacked, made it simpler, got our hitters up there quicker, and I thought we played well."
The Mean Green were swinging just .038 in a first set loss before settling in with wins in sets two and three. North Texas had a chance to close out the game in the fourth set but fell victim to a late comeback from the Bearkats, which extended the match to its fifth set. The Mean Green scored the final four points of that fifth frame to claim the win.
In addition to Robinson, Sarah Haeussler had seven blocks and 15 kills along with a .438 attack percentage, a match high. Freshman Addison Corley also racked up a career high 15 kills of her own on 32 attacks.
Kaliegh Skopal accumulated 53 assists, while Henrianna Ibarra had a team high 22 digs.
Palileo was happy with the overall defensive effort.
"We got better," Palileo said. "I liked how steady we were and how easy we made it look at times. We have to continue to stay connected, stay linked up, be in sync."
North Texas returns to action on Saturday with their final two games of the UTA Classic. They'll face Tulsa at 1:30 p.m. before closing out the tournament against host UT-Arlington at 6:30 p.m.
