The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Texas A&M
No. 2 Volleyball sweeps past No. 25 Texas A&M
10.28.2009 | Volleyball
Oct. 28, 2009
COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- The No. 2 Texas Volleyball team downed No. 25 Texas A&M, 3-0, Wednesday night in front of a record crowd of 3,856 at Reed Arena. The 25-18, 25-14, 25-20 victory improved the Longhorns to 17-0 on the year and 12-0 in Big 12 play, while the Aggies dropped to 13-6 overall and 6-5 in league action.
With tonight's victory, Texas earned a half-point in the annual State Farm Lone Star Showdown and now holds a 1.0-to-0 lead in this year's standings. This marks the sixth year of the Showdown, the all-sports athletic competition between Texas and Texas A&M. In order to win the Showdown, a school must acquire 10.0 points during the year.
Texas claimed an early edge in the first and a pair of kills from senior All-America outside hitter Destinee Hooker lifted the Horns to a 14-10 edge. A 4-1 UT run capped by freshman opposite hitter Bailey Webster's third kill of the set pushed the lead to 17-11. The Horns kept the heat on with a second 4-1 rally and grabbed a 22-14 lead on a double-block by sophomore middle blocker Rachael Adams and senior All-America setter Ashley Engle. Two late kills by junior All-America outside hitter Juliann Faucette allowed Texas to close out the frame 25-18.
In the second, Texas overcame an early deficit and went on a 14-3 run headlined by four kills and a solo block from Hooker that extended the UT lead to 19-9. A block and a kill on consecutive points by Webster pushed the tally to 22-11 before a kill by junior middle blocker Jennifer Doris and back-to-back kills from Adams closed out the stanza 25-14.
The Horns jumped out to a quick 7-0 start in the first behind the strong serve of sophomore defensive specialist Sydney Yogi. A pair of kills by Adams moved the edge to 9-1 before a stout Texas A&M rally shrank the Texas advantage to 16-13. The Longhorns turned on the heat down the stretch, using a pair of Faucette/Doris/Adams triple-blocks and two kills by Hooker to capture the set 25-20.
Hooker headlined the offense in the match with 13 kills, while Faucette and Adams each recorded 10 kills. Engle recorded her fifth assist/dig double-double of the year and her 34th of her career with her 34-assist and 13-dig effort.
Texas returns to action on Friday, Oct. 30 when it plays host to No. 8 Nebraska. First serve is set for 6 p.m. on FSN.
POST-MATCH NOTES
- Texas' win over Texas A&M was its 11th straight win over the Aggies and improved its all-time record against A&M to 65-22.
- The Longhorns have now won 26 straight regular-season matches tying for the longest streak in program history
- Texas' 17-0 start to the 2009 season marks the second-best season-opening streak in school history.
