Sports can be a crazy thing. Outside of middle school and even some high school settings, the old adage of anyone can be beaten on any given day rings true. Just when you think you have a team figured out, something wacky comes along and throws a wrench in the machine.
Coming into Saturday's volleyball matches the Western Athletic Conference had exactly one of its seven teams in the top 100 of the RPI in the NCAA. That was 5-0, 14-3 overall Utah Tech. Sitting in the mid-200's (out of 348 Division I programs) UT Arlington was headed south, losing four in a row and eight of the last nine. UT, on the other hand, was heading in the other direction, having won six in a row and nine of its last ten.
The only thing that appeared in the Mavericks favor, at least from a superficial standpoint, was the match was scheduled at home in College Park Center. However, UTA was 2-2 in CPC going into the match while the Trailblazers were an impressive 5-1 in true road matches to that point. It had the ingredients for a 3-0 loss in the recipe book.
Only it didn't happen that way.
Before I do my best breakdown of the match, I didn't get to watch it. Between work and the kid's sports, Saturday's during the fall are difficult for any personal pursuits. I followed along on social media in a delayed setting.
I was aghast when I saw the score for set one. The Mavs won 25-14. I'll just say that an 11-point win was not on my bingo card in any capacity. The Mavs hit decently, but not great, getting a .266 attack percentage. What they did, they were at least not off the mark. What really accounted for everything were numerous errors. UTA only had three in that set, which isn't great, but certainly isn't bad. Meanwhile, the Trailblazers committed seven errors. The contrast, they only had seven kills in that set. That's pretty rough. Their offense scored as much for them as it gave to UTA.
Set two was a little more where I expected the entire match to be. The Mavs lost that one 17-25. Despite the eight-point win, UT still committed six errors. UTA had a match-worst ten in the set, accounting for a lot of the score differential.
Sometimes volleyball will see a 3-1 score for vastly different teams when it comes to talent levels. I thought that was the direction this match was going. Turns out, I was wrong.
In sets three and four, the Mavs played UT very evenly, having one more attack error in the third and the same number in the fourth. UTA had an attack percentage that was with .02 of UT in both sets. In fact, UTA was within one block of the Trailblazers and within four digs as well. In short, the Mavs went blow-to-blow with the conference leaders, proving they are better than their record.
UTA won the third set, 28-26. The set was very much a back-and-forth affair. UT's largest lead in that set was two at 7-5 while UTA had a lead of three twice, 4-1 and 5-2. The teens were close with few runs. With the set tied at 19-19, it could have been a very much different result when the Trailblazers grabbed three in a row and had momentum. UTA in prior matches would let the set get out of hand, though we had seen some signs of life against Utah Valley.
Instead, UTA reeled off four in a row of their own and took an unlikely one-point lead. The teams traded points and UT got two in a row. They needed three though with set point at 24-25. Again, UTA in prior matches would not have gotten the tying point, but they did on a kill from Junior outside hitter Evyn Snook. UTA got another point and had their chance to end the set at 26-25, but couldn't close out the deal. After another traded point, a UT attack error gave the Mavs an improbable 28-26 win in the set.
In the fourth, the Mavs claimed the set and the match with a 25-22 score. It was a similar back-and-forth set until late. Seemingly, the script was flipped and UTA was able to close out the set. Clinging to a slim 22-21 lead, UTA scored three of the last four to claim the match. It was two errors for the Trailblazers, one on a serve, the other on the attack that gave UTA the clinching points.
Also impressive was the 1,383 fans in attendance. I had wondered why there weren't more fans in the stands after last season's dominance. I get that there was a great deal of roster turnover as well as a new coach. But they are still the defending champs, have a great history and some familiar faces. In the four previous home matches, two didn't eclipse 500 and a third was in the 600's. UTA averaged over 1,000 last year. The two lowest numbers would have been the lowest last year and the second highest prior to Saturday's match would have been the second lowest last year. There is no question part of the reason for the upset lies with the loud fans in the stands giving a little extra boost to the Maverick players.
This week starts the second round of WAC play. In a decently anticipated rematch on Thursday, UTA hosts California Baptist. The Lancers beat the Mavericks in five sets and the Mavericks are chomping at the bit to try it again.
That will be the lone match of the week as UTA is off on Saturday.
I've mentioned there is a tier to the WAC. I am surprised to see someone crack the UVU/UT top-tier, but the Mavs did. They got out of their last-place tie. Three teams are tied for fourth at 2-4, UTA, CBU and Abilene Christian. In third is Tarleton State at 4-2. UTA is in a great spot to move up the standings with the schedule in the next three matches. If UTA wants to defend their title, they are going to have to build off Saturday's victory over the top team.
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