ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Devanne Sours tallied a game-high 12 kills and the New Mexico served up eight aces as a team to rout Cal State Fullerton in straight sets Saturday afternoon at Johnson Center.
The Lobos (4-1) had little trouble with Cal State Fullerton (0-5), sweeping aside the Titans 25-20, 25-14, 25-13 to set up an evening matchup with SMU tonight in the Lobo Classic title game. SMU topped Santa Clara earlier Saturday in the four-team, round-robin tournament.
“It was a great game,” New Mexico head coach Jeff Nelson said of beating Cal State Fullerton. “I thought we played relaxed. We started out a little slow but then we really picked it up. We served well and hit well on the pins.”
The Lobos dominated Cal State Fullerton statistically as they outpaced the Titans in kills (44 to 26), hitting percentage (.357 to .136), assists (41 to 25) and blocks (3.0 to 2.0).
New Mexico also relied on a huge advantage serving, with eight aces to Cal State Fullerton’s single ace. Sours, Julia Warren and Marisa Doran all had two aces apiece to lead the Lobos.
However, the Lobos received solid play from its entire roster — all 14 players that dressed saw action — including nine kills from senior middle blocker Simone Henderson and 30 assists from senior setter Hannah Johnson.
“Simone had another good game in the middle and Devanne had another good game on the outside,” Nelson said. “Hannah distributed the ball well. … We got a chance to get everyone in and shake the nerves out to be ready for the rest of the season.”
Neither team could gain much traction to open the first set, as the Lobos and Titans traded points early. Eventually, after eight ties, New Mexico began to build a lead, going up 17-13 to force a Cal State Fullerton timeout.
The Lobos then closed out on a 6-1 run to claim the first set 25-20. UNM hit .400 (14 kills, two errors, 30 attacks) in the first frame.
New Mexico continued that hot streak into the second set, bolting out to 12-2 lead. The serve contributed tremendously to UNM’s efforts as Doran and Allie Askew combined for three aces in the set. Cal State Fullerton couldn’t come within single digits for the rest of the stanza and the Lobos cruised to a 25-14 win in the second set.
UNM again hit well, registering a .382 success rate despite giving starting outside hitter Cassie House the final two sets off in anticipation of tonight’s match.
The final set started off similarly to the opening set, with both teams swapping scores until Cal State Fullerton took time down 10-7. Kills by Sours and Mariessa Carrasco sparked a run for UNM as the Lobos finished the set on a 13-3 run to secure the final set 25-13.
The Lobos return to action tonight versus SMU with an 8 p.m. first serve.