LAREDO, Texas – Texas A&M International University claimed its first victory of the year in a Heartland Conference battle, sweeping Oklahoma Panhandle State, 3-0 (25-19, 25-16, 25-17), in emphatic and dominating fashion. The Dustdevils (1-11, 1-5 Heartland) held the Aggies (0-12, 0-7 Heartland) to an anemic -.008 hitting percentage and allowed them to score just 29 points through the three sets.

TAMIU, on the other hand, saw five score more than five points and six different players recorded a kill. Junior outside hitter Tasmin Apple and senior outside hitter Alex Ciszek co-led the Dustdevils with eight kills. Both Apple and Ciszek scored eight points, along with Lizzie Prieto, but it was senior defensive specialist Sophia Quinones led the team with nine points.

"I really liked that our team really stuck to all of our process," TAMIU coach Marlon Sano said. "Despite everything that was going on, we kept focus and were able to not get caught up in anything else. There were some points that OPSU did some really good things and put stress on us, but when the time was right we were able to counter their pressure with our own strong play."

Prieto singlehandedly transitioned the Dustdevils from defense to offense with 29 assists. As a team, TAMIU recorded 33 assists – with no other player recording more than one.

"I actually thought everyone on the team played really heads up; I'm not sure any individual stood out or played that much better than anyone else," Sano said. "I felt that everyone executed their responsibility and did a really good job. That's something we've really worked on: executing in unity with strong defense, communication and accountability."

It was the Dustdevils defense that silenced the visitors, polishing a .913 reception percentage, including three players – Koral Wright, Ciszek and Samantha Gonzalez – with perfect 1.000 percentages. As a team, the Dustdevils recorded just two receiving errors.

Freshman libero Alejandra Bustamante dug out 23 Aggies attacks, followed by Ciszek's 16 and Quinones' 11. Prieto completed seven digs and Wright managed six digs despite limited playing time.

The Dustdevils now face four consecutive road matches, starting with a visit to Dallas Baptist and Arkansas-Fort Smith on Oct. 2 and 4, respectively.

"The goal is now to continue to get better and continue to minimizing our hitting errors while maximizing our kills per set," Sano said. "Right now, DBU has been struggling, so hopefully we catch them while we are on the way up. We always play UAFS really tough with exciting and competition.

"We just have to keep our concentration as we move forward."
 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Adam Geigerman,
Sports Information Director and Promotions Specialist
956-326-3007
AdamS.Geigerman@TAMIU.edu
www.GoDustdevils.com