SAN ANTONIO, Texas (October 10, 2015) -- The Texas A&M International Dustdevils stole their 5th conference win after being down 0-2 in sets from the St. Mary's Rattlers on Saturday afternoon in a 5 set thriller (14-25, 19-25, 26-24, 25-21, 15-13). The Dustdevils move to 5-4 in Heartland Conference play, and 5-8 overall.
In the first and second sets (14-25 and 19-25, respectively), the Dustdevils found themselves within the Rattlers wrath. TAMIU spent the intermission between Sets 2 and 3 developing a plan to stop St. Mary's early offensive domination.
During Set 3, the Dustdevils sparked energy to generate offense, hitting .293 as a team, led by Senior Lizzie Prieto. Senior Madison Morris contributed 8 kills. With 5 lead changes and 12 tie scores, TAMIU prevailed to save the match in overtime, 26-24.
The Dustdevils continued their momentum into Set 4. Junior Paula Mrowczynska tallied 8 kills. With the victory in Set 4, TAMIU pushed the match to require a fifth set to reveal a winner.
In the final set, TAMIU got off to an early lead, by a margin of 5 points at one point. After the 8th point, the Rattlers weren't willing to back down without a fight. The scoring remained close, however, Freshman Ramey Gardner had other plans. Gardner contributed 5 kills on 7 swings to secure the Dustdevils' victory.
TAMIU will continue their schedule on the road, with competition against Heartland Conference foes Texas - Permian Basin and Lubbock Christian on October 15th (7PM) and 17th (12PM). Stay updated with TAMIU Volleyball at www.GoDustdevils.com, on Twitter (@TAMIUVB and @TAMIUAthletics) and by liking the Dustdevils on Facebook at /GoDustdevils.
