Oct. 5, 2005
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Head coach Kelley McKee got her 10th win of the season tonight, tying her season high at New Mexico, with a 3-1 victory over Air Force in Johnson Gym. Five different Lobos put down at least 10 kills in the win.
Sophomore Samie Weber gave the Lobos a 9-3 lead early in game one with three kills. The Falcon’s Brooke Akers pulled Air Force within one at 26-25 on five kills followed by Kristina Stewart’s two aces. Freshman Michelle Miller recorded two kills and an ace, putting UNM at game point. Weber put down the winning kill two serves later, giving UNM the match, 30-27.
The Lobos were running on all cylinders in game two, winning 30-16 after hitting .524 (13K-2E-21TA). Junior Kelly Therkelsen and Weber built a 10-point lead (15-5) for UNM with three and two kills, respectively. UNM cruised from there never allowing Air Force within 10 points the rest of the game. Therkelsen and Weber were perfect, going 3-for-3 and 2-for-2 with no errors while senior Chelsea Sondrup and freshman Michelle Miller both hit .500 (3K-0E-6TA and 2K-0E-4TA) and senior Nicole Ryan hit .400 (3K-1E-5TA).
The Falcons stuck with UNM throughout most of game three, never trailing by more than four until late in the game when Ryan slammed down a kill to give Weber the serve. Weber forced four errors and snuck in an ace to spark a 7-0 Lobo run. Trailing by eight, AFA’s Rebecca Gallegos recorded two kills that lit a fire under the Falcons, who came from behind for the 31-29 win with five aces in their final six points.
The win seemed to rattle New Mexico at first but the young team shook it off and built a 10-point lead at 22-12. Six different Lobos had kills over the final eight points as UNM went on to a 30-19 win. Therkelsen, freshman Sarah Kwasigroch and Sondrup all hit .500 in game four with Sondrup recording a team-high five kills.
Sondrup hit a team-best .458 while putting down a team-high 14 kills and four blocks. Miller added 11 kills and nine digs while Ryan, Therkelsen and Weber all chipped in with 10 kills. Ryan added 11 digs for a double-double. Kwasigroch dished out 52 of the team’s 54 assists and stuffed back her first career solo block. Freshman Gayle Tripp led UNM in digs with 15.
The Lobos (10-5, 2-3 MWC) hit the road for their first Mountain West Conference road game of the season and their first MWC game ever at TCU. New Mexico takes on the Horned Frogs on Saturday, Oct. 8 at 6 p.m. MT.