Southern Miss split a pair of home games against UTSA and UTEP Oct. 11 and Oct. 13 to improve to 11-9 overall and 2-3 in Conference USA play.

Southern Miss could not find an answer for UTSA early in the first set. The Eagles posted 16 kills while UTSA collected 18 to win the set 25-18.

UTSA would start off hot once again and take an early lead in the second set. Southern Miss chipped away at the lead to get within one before a Roadrunner timeout. After both teams traded points back and forth, the Eagles finally ended the set with a 26-24 win.

Not straying from the previous two starts, the Roadrunners began the third set on a hot streak again and Southern Miss was easily defeated 25-12.

The fourth set was a struggle for both teams until UTSA found rhythm and doubled up Southern Miss’ score. The theme would continue until the end when the Roadrunners pulled away with a 25-15 win.

The UTSA victory maintained their unblemished C-USA record at 5-0. The win over Southern Miss was the school’s seventh straight and improved its record to 13-6.

Southern Miss’ fortune would be more favorable in the next game against UTEP. The Eagles maintained a slim lead throughout the first set before going on a 9-3 run to close it out 25-17.

The second set featured both teams trading points early until the Eagles extended their lead 21-16. Following a Miners timeout, UTEP attempted to make a comeback before Southern Miss sealed the set 25-20.

Despite UTEP getting a head start over Southern Miss in the third set, the Miners would give up a 5-1 lead and allow the Eagles to tie the set at 5-5. After trading points and a UTEP timeout, Southern Miss would finish with a 25-19 win and sweep the Miners.

The Miners loss drops the school to 4-2 in C-USA play and 10-7 overall.

Southern Miss will be on the road against 18-2 (4-1) Tulane and 7-13 (1-4) Louisiana Tech Oct. 18 and Oct. 20.