The University of the Southwest Volleyball Team hit the road to Desoto, TX this past weekend to take part in the RRAC West Round-Up. On Friday they took on East division-leading Xavier University out of Louisiana who entered play (6-6) overall and (5-1) in RRAC play. On Saturday Morning they took on Louisiana College who entered (4-8) overall and (3-5) in RRAC play. 
 
Against Xavier, they were unable to get in a rhythm. They played two close sets to start dropping them 25-19 and 25-21 respectively.  They dropped the third set 25-14 and lost the match 3-0 in favor of Xavier.  Saturday, they looked to bounce back against Louisiana College, and things did not start the way they were hoping. They dropped the first two sets of the match both by the score of 25-22 but were able to turn things around from there. They took the third set 25-22, followed that up by winning the fourth set 25-15, and were able to take the decisive set five 15-13. 
 
After the weekend, Head Coach Cass Smith said "We tried a new line up this weekend and through trial and error it just didn't work out to our benefit. We went back to the reliable line up and we trusted the process, had each other's backs through accountability and discipline, and got the win day 2.  We're excited about where we're sitting within the conference and are excited to better our chances moving forward to the tournament. Our setters and defense were huge in our successes this weekend and without them, we would not have been able to accomplish what we did.  A standout player is Valeria Rodriguez-Sanchez; she came out of nowhere.  I was concerned about her being undersized but she shut down some of their top hitters this weekend and got some great kills to create and maintain momentum. She's always full send and that's the mentality we endeavor to play with every day."
 
Some other Mustangs that stood out this weekend were Senior Autumn Lopez and Junior Samantha Dreibelbis. Lopez recorded 45 digs on the weekend and achieved her 1000th career dig at USW. Dreibelbis had 7 kills on 9 attempts, no errors, with a .777 percentage and 2 blocks against Louisiana College in helping the Mustangs secure the victory.
 
The Mustangs now sit at (6-2) in RRAC play and are currently sitting in second place in the West division with four games remaining. They will be on the road again this weekend as they will take on Paul Quinn College on Friday and Wiley College on Saturday as they look to clinch a spot in the conference tournament.