RUSTON, La. – Abigail Hildenbrand registered her third double-double of the season after the junior setter posted 19 assists and 13 digs in Louisiana Tech's 3-0 (17-25, 22-25, 18-25) loss to UTEP on Sunday afternoon.
 
UTEP held a 14-6 lead in the first set. LA Tech used a 4-0 run to trim the lead to four, 14-10, capped by a block from sophomore middle blocker Laura Ehieze and Hildenbrand. The Miners extended their edge back out to seven before back-to-back kills from Hildenbrand and senior right-side hitter Elena Takova trimmed the lead to 17-12. UTEP would win the set, 25-17.
 
Tech then took an early 4-1 lead in the second set following a kill from freshman outside hitter Samantha Hicks and back-to-back UTEP errors. After the Miners cut the lead to two, a block by freshman middle blocker Morgan Smith and freshman outside hitter Faith Menary followed by a service ace by Smith would give the Lady Techsters the 9-5 advantage. A 6-1 Miner run then gave UTEP the 11-10 lead.
 
The teams went back-and-forth with the last tie of the set coming at 19-19 following a Menary kill. A 5-0 UTEP run would put the Miners at set point, 24-19. The Lady Techsters rallied three straight points to trim the lead to two, 24-22, but a UTEP kill would give the Miners the 25-22 second set victory.
 
UTEP jumped out to a 7-2 lead early in the third set. Back-to-back Tech kills by Menary and senior middle blocker Emily Boylan would trim the Miners' lead to four, 11-7. However, UTEP maintained its lead and held a 10-point edge with a 24-14 set point. The Lady Techsters utilized a 4-0 run to trim the lead to six, 24-18, but a Miner kill would give UTEP the 25-18 set win and 3-0 match victory.  
 
LA Tech was led by Takova with eight kills, Hildenbrand with 19 assists, junior libero Natalie Honore with 14 digs and Smith with four blocks.
 
Overall, Louisiana Tech hit .092 (29-18-119), while UTEP hit .238 (47-17-126).
 
Louisiana Tech and UTEP will square off again inside the Thomas Assembly Center on Monday at noon (CT).
 
Keep up with the Lady Techsters by following @LATechVB on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.