ST. GEORGE, Utah - Texan Volleyball fell to Utah Tech, 3-0 (32-30, 25-16, 28-26) after hard fought match on Thursday in St. George, Utah.
Madison Frank led the Texans in kills with 11 kills while also contributing two blocks. LaNeah Lara followed with eight kills, and Madison Rice-Locket rounded out the Texan attack with five kills. Emma Burke and Alyssa Dinh led the Texan defense at the net with seven blocks, followed by Breannah Peterson, who added five blocks.
Megan Hodges set up the Texan offense with 19 assists while adding one service ace and five digs. Teya Ngyuen led the Texans with 12 digs and three service aces. Leddy Rae Guinn also added 11 digs for the Texan backrow.
Tarleton State opened the match with early defensive pressure as the Texans capitalized on a Utah Tech service error to take a 1–0 lead. Rice-Locket answered a quick response from the Trailblazers with a clean kill to bring the set to 2–1, and the Texan block came alive early as Frank and Dinh teamed up for a block to trim the deficit to 3–1. Burke and Lara added another combined stop to keep Tarleton within two at 5–3. Momentum continued to build as Frank and Dinh pressed at the net, and a Burke kill brought the Texans within striking distance at 6–5. Nguyen added a service ace at 7–5, and another ace brought Tarleton State back within one at 8–7. Lara followed with her first kill of the set to make it 14–9, while Peterson, Frank, and Burke each chipped in as the Texans continued to battle through the middle of the frame. Rice-Locket delivered a sharp kill at 17–13 before Peterson and Dinh combined for a timely block to cut the margin to 19–16. The Texans made their biggest push late in the set. Nguyen's service pressure closed the gap to 21–20, and a Burke kill brought Tarleton State within one at 21–19. Lara and Peterson kept the offense alive with back-to-back kills to make it 24–22, and the Texans forced extra points behind kills from Peterson, Burke, and Frank. Frank delivered multiple clutch swings—including the kill that tied the frame at 26–26—while Peterson added another momentum-changer to level the set at 24–24. Tarleton State continued to match Utah Tech point-for-point behind gritty defense and timely shot-making. Lara and Rice-Locket contributed late-set kills to tie the match at 27, 28, 29, and 30. Frank once again answered in the high-pressure moments, delivering kills at 25-25, 26-26, and 28-27 to keep the Texans alive. Despite the relentless fight and repeated ties through extra points, Tarleton State ultimately dropped the marathon opener 32–30—but showcased poise, pressure execution, and balanced production across the board to set the tone for the match.
Tarleton State opened the second set with an early kill from Rice-Locket. Frank followed with a kill off a Hodges set to keep the Texans level at 2–2, she continued her strong start with another clean swing, bringing Tarleton State within one at 4–3. The Texans stayed composed through early miscues, responding with a Burke kill off a Nguyen assist to lock the set at 5–5. After a service error and attack error slowed momentum, Rice-Locket delivered another kill to bring Tarleton State within 14–8 before Lara added a kill from Hodges to make it 16–11. Nguyen dropped in a service ace to cut the deficit to 16–12 and later added another ace at 16–12 coming out of a timeout. Lara continued chipping away with another kill, followed by Frank hammering down a ball from Hodges as Tarleton State trimmed the score to 13–8. A clean kill from Rice-Locket brought the Texans to 14–24 before Peterson converted a kill from Nguyen to make it 15–24. Burke stayed involved with a kill to cut it to 16–24, and a block from Dinh and Peterson earned another point at 24–16. Despite a late push behind kills from Peterson, Rice-Locket, Frank, Lara, and Burke, Tarleton State's rally came up short as the set closed at 25–16.
Tarleton State opened the final frame with momentum as Frank put down the first kill of the set off a Megan Hodges assist for a 1–0 start. Rice-Locket answered moments later with a clean swing to tie the set at 1–1, followed by a smooth kill from Dinh to pull the Texans back within one at 2–1. The Texans grabbed early rhythm behind strong swings from Lara, who connected on back-to-back kills to make it 3–1 and 3–2. Dinh added another kill from Hodges to tie the frame at 11–11 a few rallies later, while Lara chipped in with a sharp swing to even things at 12–12. Through the middle of the set, the Texans gained traction with kills from Lara, Rice-Locket, and Frank, cutting the score to 15–14 and then 16–15 as Hodges distributed the ball with balance. Nguyen contributed a service ace to tie the set at 13–13. Tarleton State showed resilience late in the frame. Frank continued to produce in big moments with a kill at 23–23 and another at 24–24to keep the set tight. Dinh's kill from Hodges brought Tarleton State within one at 23–20, and Rice-Locket followed with another to trim the deficit to 22–19. Peterson contributed a key kill to tie it at 24–24, and Frank added another big swing to bring the score to 24–23. Frank again answered under pressure to tie it at 26–26. Despite Tarleton State's repeated answers and late-set execution behind Frank, Burke, Lara, Peterson, and Rice-Locket, the Texans narrowly fell in the final moments as Utah Tech escaped with the last two points to close the match.
The Texans will head to Cedar City, Utah on Saturday where they will take on Southern Utah for their final match of the regular season.
