ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Senior Chantale Riddle has been named this week’s Sports Imports/AVCA Division I National Player of the Week after averaging 4.62 kills per set and helping the Lobos to two tough road wins against Boise State and Utah State. This is the first national honor in head coach Nelson’s era and ninth honor in Mountain West volleyball history.
“Chantale had a great week,” said Nelson. “She really led our team to a couple of crucial road victories. She had been amazing all year both on offense and defense and has great numbers across the board. I am happy for Chantale and even happier for our team as you cannot receive an honor like this without great team support. This is a really awesome honor for her as she winds down her senior season.”
She hit .382 in the two matches, averaging 4.62 kills per set and 5.31 points per set. She averaged 2.75 digs per set and 1.00 blocks per set. She totaled 37 kills for the two matches in 76 attempts to along with 22 digs.
Against Boise State on Thursday, she collected 19 kills in 39 attempts and was one dig away from a double-double. She hit .410 for the match. She added 21.5 points and three blocks.
In Saturday’s 3-1 win over Utah State, Riddle tallied 18 kills in 37 attempts with a .351 hitting percentage. She added 13 digs for her 11th double-double of the season to go along with five blocks.
With her 37 kills over the week, Riddle is now just 65 kills away from becoming UNM’s all-time kills leader. Former player Tania Gooley, who is being inducted into UNM’s Hall of Honor, currently holds the record of 1,579. Riddle has a total of 1,515 kills in her career. Riddle is also 106 kills from the Mountain West record of 1,620 set by Utah’s Kim Turner (2000-03).
On the season, Riddle is averaging 3.72 kills per set which ranks second in the Mountain West. She ranks first in points per set at 4.65 and third in blocks per set at 1.36. Riddle is hitting .257 for the season.
The Lobos are 16-9 on the season and 8-4 in conference place. They return home to Johnson Center this week to take on UNLV Thursday at 7 p.m. and San Diego State on Saturday at 1 p.m. The Lobos will be honoring Hall of Honor inductee Tania Gooley on Saturday at half time. Tickets are available at GoLobos.com or by calling 505-925-LOBO.