El Paso, Texas – The UTEP women’s volleyball team suffered a three-set loss to the Grand Canyon Lopes on Saturday afternoon at the Global Credit Union Arena. The Lopes dominated the opening set, racing to a 25-8 victory after scoring the first nine points and limiting UTEP to a .185 hitting percentage.
Set-by-set breakdown
In the second set, UTEP displayed a more balanced attack, improving its hitting percentage to .185 and staying within striking distance early. However, Grand Canyon responded with a decisive 5-0 run midway through the set, eventually posting a .538 hitting percentage and taking the set 25-15.
The third set saw the Miners’ strongest effort of the day. UTEP recorded 14 kills and a .190 hitting percentage, trimming a nine-point deficit to 23-21 late in the set and even fending off a match point. Despite the rally, Grand Canyon closed out the contest 25-22.
Key performers
For UTEP, Mackenzi Davis led the offense with seven kills, while Luvina Oguntimehin added six. Setter Kalia Kohler distributed a team-high 17 assists, and Elizabeth Pickett contributed the lone service ace for the Miners. On the defensive side, Landry Braziel and Hannah Crowe each recorded two blocks.
Looking ahead
UTEP concludes its regular season next week with a home series against Hawai’i on November 18-19 at Club Memorial. Both matches are scheduled for 6 p.m. Mountain Time and will be streamed live on the MW+ platform. The Miners will aim to build on the offensive progress shown in the latter two sets against Grand Canyon as they finish the season.
Grand Canyon, meanwhile, continues its strong start to the season, demonstrating depth in both hitting efficiency and defensive play. The Lopes will look to maintain momentum as they head into upcoming conference matchups.
Original reporting: El Paso News (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
