Pair Of Freshmen Lead SMU To Sweep Of UTEP Friday

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DALLAS (SMU) – Senior Dana Powell had a match-high 12 kills and freshmen Savannah Myklebust and Caroline Young each finished with 10 to lead SMU to a 3-0 victory (25-20, 25-20, 25-23) over UTEP in Moody Coliseum Friday night.

The Mustangs hit .296 as a team, with Myklebust committing just one error in 24 attacks to hit .375. Young had two errors in 18 attacks to hit .444. Kelli Becerra had 23 assists and recorded eight digs to pull within one of tying Erin Pryor for fifth all-time at SMU with 1,237 in her career. Sidney Stewart had 15 digs, climbing to second all-time in Conference USA history with 2,182 in her career.

SMU (14-16, 10-8 Conference USA) led by three late in the third set trying to close out the match, but the Miners (19-12, 9-9 C-USA) cut the lead to one, 21-20. The Mustangs battled to keep UTEP from tying the score before Young closed the door with a kill to give SMU the 25-23 win and the match.

The two teams were even in the first set, staying within two points of each other until SMU went on a 5-1 run when the score was 11-10 in favors of the Mustangs to break the set open. The Miners never got within four points the rest of the way as SMU took the early advantage in the match.

In the second set, the Mustangs and Miners were again dead even with each other, but again, it was the Mustangs who managed to hold UTEP scoreless for a stretch midway through the set. With the score tied at 14, SMU scored three straight with a pair of kills by Powell and a block by Courtney Manning and Jessica Oliver to take a 17-14 lead. The Miners climbed to within one, 20-19, but SMU out-scored UTEP 5-1 down the stretch, capped off with an ace by Becerra for set point.

SMU will wrap up the weekend against UCF in Moody Coliseum on Sunday at 1 p.m. before taking on Tulsa at home on Nov. 26 at 1 p.m. in the final match of the regular season. SMU will honor its four seniors, Becerra, Powell, Oliver and Stewart, in a pre-match ceremony before the match against Tulsa.

 

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