LAREDO, Texas -Â Texas A&M International volleyball (6-19, 4-14 LSC) sent their two seniors off with a bang as they took down St. Mary's (9-18, 3-15 LSC) in a five-set thriller (22-25, 18-25, 25-15, 25-19, 15-9) in the regular season home finale on Saturday.
Sophomore Mackenzie Catalina led the Dustdevils with her second-straight double-double of 17 kills and 10 digs, along with two solo blocks. Senior Annie Deininger logged 14 kills with two digs and a solo block. Senior Hannah Semon closed out her career in the maroon and silver with a career-high 32 digs, along with one assist and a service ace. Sophomore Maison Kosse finished one assist shy of her season high with 46, in addition to eight digs, a block and a service ace.
The first set was incredibly close with 13 ties and four lead changes midway through the frame. The Rattlers began to break away thanks to a 5-1 run that gave them a 19-16 lead. TAMIU was unable to tie or take the lead again, with St. Mary's taking the set 25-22.
The Rattlers carried their momentum into the second set as the opened on a 6-2 run. They eventually pushed out to a 20-12 lead. With set point at 24-13, the Dustdevils attempted to rally with a 5-0 run to cut the deficit to 24-18. Unfortunately, the comeback was not to be as St. Mary's got the next kill to go up 2-0 with a 25-18 decision.
TAMIU came out in the third set on fire as they jumped out to a 8-2 lead to start. They were able to push their advantage out to 16-9 at one point. The Dustdevils forced a fourth set by closing the frame on a 3-1 run for the 25-15 decision.
The fourth set saw St. Mary's appear to regain their footing as the went up 7-5 early. TAMIU battled back to tie things at 12-12 and eventually took the lead at 14-13. Thanks to a 6-2 run, they were able to push the lead out to 20-16. The Dustdevils forced the game to a deciding fifth set by taking the 25-19 decision.
TAMIU used the momentum in the previous set to race out to a 7-3 lead in the final set. A 5-0 run would give them match point at 14-7. Sophomore Sammantha Herrera sealed the deal with a kill three points later to give the Dustdevils the victory with a 15-9 decision.