UT Arlington made program history on Saturday, claiming the school's 1,000th win in a 3-0 sweep over Houston Baptist on the final day of the Hilton Maverick Invitational.
"Getting our 1,000th program win is a big tribute to the former and current coaches and players," UT Arlington coach Diane Seymour said. "It's great to be a part of the 1,000th win."
The win moves the Mavericks to 10-2 this season, while the Huskies fall to 4-6.
Taylor Gross capped off an excellent weekend in the final match as she put up 11 kills and also recorded seven blocks, earning All-Tournament honors. Qiana Canete joined Gross on the All-Tournament team, as she wrapped up Saturday's match with her seventh double-double of the season, recording 13 kills and 10 digs. Briana Sharratt was the final member of the Mavs roster to claim All-Tournament honors, as she finished the final game with seven kills and seven blocks.
As a team the Mavericks hit .265, while the Huskies hit just .117. UTA also out-blocked HBU 12.5-9.
After trailing 2-0, the Mavs gained control of the first set by going on a 9-1 run that put UTA up 9-3. With Houston Baptist having cut the lead to five points later in the set, the Mavericks responded with a 7-2 run that was capped off with a block by Gross and Sharratt. UTA closed out the opening set by scoring five of the last seven points, with Canete getting the finishing kill.
Gross spurred the Mavericks offensively in the first frame with six kills and a hitting percentage of .556. Canete also did her part as she notched four kills and a hitting percentage of .444. UTA hit .441 while holding the Huskies to a hitting percentage of .162.
UTA stormed out of the gate in the second set, recording eight of the first 10 points. After the Huskies cut the lead down to two points at 9-7, the Mavs answered back with a 4-1 run which was finished with a block by Sharratt, Koch and Hannah Baptiste. With the score set at 15-11 in favor of UTA, HBU came back to take the lead at 16-15. The Mavericks then finished off the Huskies as they scored back-to-back points to take the second frame 25-23.
Canete paced UTA in the second set with six kills and five digs. Baptiste also helped contribute in the set as she recorded four kills with a hitting percentage of .375. The Mavericks notched a hitting percentage of .227 while holding the Huskies to just .104.
With the third set tied 7-7, UTA took control with a 10-3 run which was finished with a kill by Sharratt that put the Mavs up 17-10. The Huskies then came back with a run of their own as they tied up the match at 24. The Mavericks then closed out the final set and the match with back-to-back points from a Canete kill and a Caitlyn Cooney ace.
Sharratt and Baptiste guided the Mavs through the final frame as they each recorded four kills.
"We were very sharp today," Seymour added. "Right now what we want to see from our team is how quickly we can turn the energy back on after a lull, and we did a good job of doing that today."
The Mavericks will return to action Tuesday as they open up Sun Belt Conference play on the road at Texas State, Match time is 6:30 p.m.
2014 Hilton Maverick Invitational All-Tournament Team
Kali Fluke, TSU
Megan McStravick, HBU
Olivia Mesner, FGCU
Whitney Masters, FGCU
Qiana Canete, UTA
Taylor Gross, UTA
Briana Sharratt, UTA
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