The players smiled and danced before the match. They danced and smiled after being admonished by their coach for a lapse in their play. And they smiled and danced even more when the outcome was in their favor.

What a time to be a member of the UTSA volleyball team, which now appears to be at its high-flying, stuff-blocking and refusing-to-lose best.

The Roadrunners swept Tulsa 25-22, 25-22, 25-20 on Saturday in an American Athletic Conference match before more than 900 at the Convocation Center, their seventh straight win — the longest winning streak since 2016 — and second over Tulsa in as many days.

The in-season metamorphosis that has seen UTSA (15-11 overall, 8-7 in AAC) go from losing seven in a row to winning seven in a row in only a matter of weeks began on Oct. 15 in Denton. UTSA entered that contest vs. North Texas following two losses each to SMU and Rice and one apiece to South Florida, Temple and North Texas. The streak was on the cusp of being extended when North Texas rallied after losing the first two sets and falling behind 5-1 in the decisive fifth frame to tie it at 6-6.

The Roadrunners, though, regrouped and held on for a 25-22, 25-15, 17-25, 18-25, 15-10 win. They haven’t lost since and are only 1 1/2 games out of fourth place in the AAC after being picked in the preseason to finish last in the 14-team league.

“That literally meant everything,” UTSA junior defensive specialist Ellie Turner said of the win vs. North Texas. “We had girls crying because they were so excited. I think that one thing the coaches tell us to focus on is the fact that we were voted last in this conference, and to play with a little bit of a chip on our shoulder and realize that most teams aren’t preparing for us, most teams aren’t going to expect this from us, so whenever we come out, just come out with guns a blazing and do what we know we can do.”

UTSA has discovered lately that blocking might be its best strength. During the winning streak, the team has combined for 84 blocks and has limited its opponents to a combined .158 hitting percentage. The Roadrunners have had 10 or more blocks in five of the contests.

Freshman Miranda Putnicki, a 6-foot-4 middle blocker, had 11 assisted blocks and one solo block in a win vs. Memphis on Oct. 27 as is AAC’s reigning defensive player of the week.

“Blocks is something that we’re really prideful about,” UTSA senior middle blocker Alicia Coppedge said. “I think it has a lot to do with the coaching and the scouting.”

The Roadrunners’ success, however, hasn’t been just about its blocking prowess. The daily battles at the net in practice have also jump-started the squad’s offense. During the winning streak, UTSA has a .241 hitting percentage. Setter Mekaila Aupiu has guided the attack, with Mia Soerensen, Cansu Gunaydin, Caroline Krueger and Coppedge being top options.

“That’s how you get better as a team and individuals,” Gunaydin said. “We have so many good teammates, and they’re new, and at first, it was hard to play as a team. But once we got to know each other on the court and outside the court, we got so much better. That’s reflects how we play.”

In Saturday’s win, the Roadrunners used decisive runs in all three sets to prevail. In the opening frame, they used a 4-0 run to turn a 22-21 deficit into a win. In the second stanza, they reeled off a 3-0 run to break a 22-22 tie. A 7-1 flurry midway through the third set helped turn a 14-13 deficit into a 20-15 advantage that was never relinquished.

Coppedge had 15 kills and a .519 hitting percentage. Gunaydin had 12 kills and Soerensen added 10. Krueger totaled seven kills, 12 digs and three aces, Aupiu contributed five kills, 37 assists and nine digs, and Turner notched 26 digs.

The win came a day after UTSA started and finished strong, overcoming a second-set ebb for a 25-11, 25-27, 25-15, 25-14 triumph over Tulsa (13-14, 6-9). UTSA had 17 blocks and outhit the Golden Hurricanes .295 to .032.

“I feel like the communication is really good,” Coppedge said. “We don’t even have to look at each other or speak to each other, we just know. The vibe is really good. We’re all very happy and we just want to keep going our way.”

terrence@terrencesports.com
Twitter: @sa_terrence1