Nov. 5, 2010
Photo Gallery
OREM, Utah - On Senior Night in Orem, the Utah Valley women's volleyball team swept Texas-Pan American 3-0 (26-24, 25-19, 25-20) to conclude its regular season home schedule Friday night.
"When we decided to go to a four-year program it's given us an opportunity to spend more time with the girls," said UVU head coach Sam Atoa. "When you spend a lot of time with them, it is hard to see them go."
Four UVU seniors were honored for their contributions to the program before the match started. Seniors Kayli Doxey, Lanni O'Reilly, Dani Robison and Kathleen Stevens were given flowers and posed for pictures during the pre-game ceremony.
"It is hard not to be emotional and to remember to go out and have fun," said Doxey. "It's been a good four years, I have had a chance to play a lot on this court. This is a great school and a great program, so it's been a good night."
The Wolverines may have needed an opportunity to shake off some of the early emotions from Senior Night after starting the first set in a 12-8 hole. Six straight points would give UVU a 17-16 lead, but the set continued to stay close. With the score at 25-24, freshman Brookelyn Campbell recorded a service ace to win the set, 26-24.
In the second set, that saw nine ties and six lead changes, the Wolverines were able to pull away after a 5-0 run put them ahead 20-14. Texas-Pan American was never able to comeback from the deficit and UVU won the set 25-19. As a team, the Wolverines had a .464 attack percentage in the second set.
The early set issues that plagued UVU in the first two sets were not present in the third as the Wolverines jumped out to an 8-2 lead. But the Broncs wouldn't go away easily, tying the score at 10-10. UVU did not let the set slip away as it went on to score nine of the next 13 points, ultimately winning the set 25-20.
In her final appearance in the Activity Center, Doxey recorded 16 kills, six digs and hit .433 for the night. Robison had 11 kills and a .769 attack percentage, while Stevens and O'Reilly contributed 14 and six digs respectively for the Wolverine defense.
With the win, the Wolverines are now 16-1 all-time against UTPA. UVU also finished with a 10-2 home record in 2010.
"You have to do whatever you can to protect your home court," added Atoa. "You have fans, friends and family that come and I think it is important to take advantage of that."
The Wolverines will head back out on to the road to face NJIT on Nov. 11 at 5 p.m. MT and to Chicago State on Nov. 13 at 1:00 p.m. MT to conclude their regular season. The Great West Conference Championships will begin on Nov. 19 in Chicago.
