CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas -- The University of the Incarnate Word volleyball team fell, 3-1, to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Thursday night at the Dugan Wellness Center. Freshman outside hitter Bethany Clapp led the team in kills, attack percentage, aces and digs.

 
NOTABLES

• Clapp led the team with 16 kills on a team-best .361 hitting, her best attacking percentage in an SLC match this season.
• The Corpus Christi native continues to lead the SLC in kills during conference matches, improving her total to 88.
• She has now delivered 10 or more kills in each of her last eight matches.
• She also led the team with three aces and nine digs.
• Freshman setter Pilar Gonzaba contributed 33 assists, her third straight match with 30-or-more assists. She now has 132 dimes in her last three matches.
• Freshman middle blocker Carissa McGarity led the team with four blocks. She averages just over 1.0 blocks per set in conference play.
• She also added seven kills on .333 hitting.
• Sophomore libero Madelynn Miller also had nine digs to lead the team, along with Clapp.
• Senior outside hitter Autumn Lockley delivered 10 kills, her third straight contest with double-digit kills, and her sixth such match of 2018.

 
HOW IT HAPPENED
SET 1 (25-20) | UIW delivered a balanced, poised and effective attack in the first set. An excellent string of serves from Clapp sent UIW on an early run as the Cardinals seized a 6-1 lead. The Cardinals extended the lead to as many as eight due to a calculated offensive effort from multiple weapons. UIW led the whole way through the opening set, with McGarity delivering the decisive blow, notching her third kill of the set to give UIW a 1-0 lead in the match. Clapp led the team with five kills and two aces. As a team, the Cardinals hit .321 with four different players registering multiple kills in the set.
 
SET 2 (19-25) | TAMU-CC used a 7-1 run early in the set to establish a 14-10 lead. From there, both teams traded point, but the Islanders maintained their lead through the remainder of the set to tie the match, one set apiece. Eight Cardinals registered kills. Clapp and Monday led the attack with two kills each.
 
SET 3 (19-25) | Both offenses came out firing in the third, with each team hitting over .500 through the first 23 points, but miscues from UIW and a potent Islander attack gave the TAMU-CC a 15-8 lead. UIW fought its way back into the set late, but the rally fell short. TAMU-CC took a 2-1 match lead. Clapp (5) and Lockley (4) combined for nine kills.
 
SET 3 (22-25) | The fourth set was a tightly contested affair. TAMU-CC held a two-point advantage for much of the set, but with the Islanders leading 17-15, Clapp began imposing her will. She hit four kills in the next nine points to give the Cardinals a 21-20 lead. Unfortunately, the Islanders took five of the next six points to win the set and the match.
 
HEAR FROM COACH SAMANTHA DABBS
"Tonight, was a tough loss. On the road, we have to be more consistent with our attacks and our defense. And we didn't do that. Corpus is a good team that stayed steady and never let up on us after we won set one."
  
UP NEXT
The Cardinals play their fifth SLC road match of the season Saturday (1 p.m. CT) against Houston Baptist. They follow that match with four days off before another weekend slate of conference matches against SFA (Oct. 11, 7 p.m. CT) and UCA (Oct. 13, noon CT) at the McDermott Center.
 
FOLLOW ALONG
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