Fantastic Start

 The UT Arlington volleyball team opened it's season this past weekend and while the teams were not the upper echelon of the NCAA, Maverick fans could not have asked for a better result.

The Mavs traveled to Lafayette, Louisiana as a participant in the Sawyer Camillo Memorial Classic. The Mavs opened the four-team round-robin tournament against the Missouri Valley Conference's Murray State. In a theme for the weekend, the Mavs swept the Racers 3-0. The first set was tight, as UTA came out on top 26-24. The second set was also tight, 25-22 while the third was a more comfortable 25-19.

Graduate Senior Outside Hitter Brianna Ford did Brianna Ford things to get 18 kills in the three-set win. Sophomore Outsider Hitter Samantha Glenn led the team with 10 digs. Mollie Blank, the preseason Setter of the Year as a Graduate Senior, logged 34 assists. Impressively, Sophomore Outside Hitter Evyn Snook notched four aces.

The following day, the Southwestern Athletic Conference's Jackson State sat opposite the net. The end result was the same, a 3-0 Maverick win. UTA dominated the first and third sets, 25-14 and 25-18 respectively. The second set was a little closer than it maybe should have at 25-22, but the Mavs still came out on top. 

Ford again led in kills, but with half the total of the day before. Glenn did the same in digs with 11 and Blank in assists at 30. Two Mavs had three aces, Graduate Senior Outside Hitter Cansu Gunaydin and Sophomore Middle Blocker Alexis Bull.

In the tournament's nightcap, the host Ragin's Cajuns of Louisiana Lafayette played UTA close in the first set, 25-23 before the Mavs prevailed by identical 25-17 scores. It was the third 3-0 sweep in three tries. 

Ford again was the kill leader at 11, Glenn the dig leader at 13 and Blank the Assist leader at 28. Bull logged three aces again, as did Glenn. Impressively, Ford also scratched 8 blocks in the stat sheet. Graduate Senior Paige Reagor added seven. Just as impressively, Reager tallied 14 blocks on the weekend. 

For her efforts, Ford earned the Western Athletic Conference's Offensive Player of the Week award. 38 kills on the surface may not seem as high as other players in the conference, but her 4.22 kills per set is incredible.

UTAMavs.com beat me to the punch. After the Mavs beat Louisiana, I wondered when the last time UTA started the season with three sweeps. What I didn't expect was just how long - 1988. That year, they beat Prairie View A&M at home, Florida State and Penn State on a neutral court, Florida on the road and Baylor at Texas Hall to start 5-0 with five sweeps. The streak was broken by a 1-3 loss to Texas-Austin in Arlington. However, in the following match, the Mavs avenged the loss with a 3-1 win in Austin over the 'horns. 

Obviously, the talent opponent talent is not the same now as then. Murray State was picked tenth out of 12 in the preseason MVC poll. The MVC is generally a top third Division I volleyball conference, but Murray State still isn't a contender and will likely be in the bottom half or even third of DI.

Jackson State is expected to fare better in the SWAC, as they were deemed the preseason favorites. However, the SWAC is generally regarded as the worst DI volleyball conference. Jackson St. did beat the other two teams, so there is some talent on that team. There's some irony as the other two had closer sets against UTA than the Tigers, but that's why they play the game (or match in this case).

In the Sun Belt Conference, obviously UTA's old home, Louisiana was tabbed at fourth in the seven team West Division. Texas State, the traditional West VB power received all 14 first place votes for the West. UL might have a fared a little better in the top-heavy East, but by all accounts, Louisiana is a middle of the pack SBC team.

But guess what? None of that really matters in the grand scheme. In recent years, UTA would not have swept all three matches, despite their superior talent. In some years, they might not have won one of these matches. This blog is chock full of laments about their lack of consistency over the years. While some sets were close and others in the same match were not, they won nine out of nine sets. You can't ask for much more than that.

And that is what gives me a little more excitement about the team. I mentioned before the depth of experience should play a key in this year's success. Other than Samantha Glenn leading the team in digs, nothing surprised me in the stat sheet. And the defensive digs leader was the question mark going in regardless. As it stands, this past weekend's performance is about as good a start as this team could have asked for.

Up next for UTA is their first and only home tournament. On Thursday, Santa Clara comes to the CPC. They are 1-1 with a 3-1 win over Villanova and a 1-3 loss to Notre Dame. Friday, the Mavs renew an old rivalry with McNeese St, who is 1-2 with a 1-3 loss to Texas A&M, an 0-3 sweep to South Alabama and a 3-1 win over Southern University. Another former Southland Conference foe, and the only former SBC foe in the field, is set for Saturday as Louisiana-Monroe will cap the UTA Classic. The Warhawks are 1-2, sweeping South Carolina State to open the season before losing to Nicholls State in a sweep and at Alabama State in a four-set loss. 

UTA will look to continue the best start in over three decades with a 6 pm start time against the Broncos. After this weekend, UTA will not be back at the friendly confines of College Park Center until conference play in October. If they continue to play consistently as they did this past weekend, they will come in with plenty wins.