FRESNO, Calif. — The University of New Mexico volleyball team fell in straight sets to Fresno State, 18-25, 20-25, 21-25, Saturday afternoon at Save Mart Center in Fresno.
Senior Cassie House posted 10 kills and senior team captain Julia Warren returned after a three-game absence for the Lobos (10-7, 1-3 Mountain West) vs. the Bulldogs (10-5, 1-3), but it wasn’t enough as UNM dropped its third-straight match.
“We’re really lacking any type fight or drive on the big points,” 10th-year New Mexico head coach Jeff Nelson said. “We’re not getting taken out of matches, we’re taking ourselves out late in matches.”
Although the Lobos showed fight with the return of Warren from a knee injury, they couldn’t shake off the aftereffects of Thursday’s five-set loss to San José State, coming out slowly against Fresno State before regrouping late in set one to make it a competitive match.
“We came out flat after losing that tough game Thursday night, but we got momentum back late in game one and I thought we were headed in the right direction,” Nelson said. “We talked in game two, halftime and game three that it was going to come down to some fight and desire and intensity and they were decent games, but we didn’t have that.”
House led UNM with 10 kills and added a pair of blocks, while senior Devanne Sours chipped in eight kills and two service aces.
Senior Marisa Doran, who started her second contest of the season, posted four kills for the Lobos, who hit .162 (29 kills, 16 errors, 80 attempts) on the match.
Redshirt junior Lise Rugland came off the bench in set one to dish out a team-high 20 assists as the Lobos looked to generate more offense.
However, New Mexico’s defense proved to be a source of bigger problems vs. Fresno State, as UNM managed just 15 digs Saturday. Redshirt junior libero Ashley Kelsey (six digs) led the team, but the Lobos struggled to defend against the Bulldogs, who hit .302 (45-19-86).
“When you’re fighting, you’re digging balls and that was the lowest dig output I’ve ever seen,” Nelson said. “… To me, that kind of defensive effort is inexcusable.”
The Bulldogs opened the first set by taking a quick 5-0 lead, which they expanded to 11-3 to force a UNM timeout. Fresno State would continue to score, building its lead up to 20-6, but New Mexico started to connect as Rugland entered, reeling off an 11-3 run — including seven unanswered — to cut the Bulldogs’ lead to 23-17.
However, Fresno State would grab two of the final three points of the set to win the opening frame 25-18.
The Lobos hit .261 in the set, with Doran notching three kills. The Bulldogs hit a .355 clip with 17 kills, but UNM held a slight advantage at the net, doubling up Fresno State 4-2 in blocks.
New Mexico came out with some more fire in set two, posting a 7-1 run to take an early 9-4. The Bulldogs would answer with an 8-1 run to claim a 12-10 lead, to which UNM responded with three straight points for a 13-12 lead.
After forging a tie at 14-all, Fresno State would post a 5-1 run to claim a 19-15 lead that it would not relinquish. UNM would cut the Bulldogs’ lead to three points a couple of times late, but Fresno State would come away with set two 25-20.
House had five kills in the second set, with Sours (three kills) and Victoria Spragg (two) also contributing.
The third set was a more evenly played affair to start, with both teams battling to a 6-6 tie. The Lobos would open up an 11-7 lead behind a kill by House and an ace by Warren, and the extended their advantage to 15-10.
But Fresno State started to chip into New Mexico’s lead, coming to within two points at 14-12 and 16-14. After UNM went back up by four points at 18-14, the Bulldogs went on a 9-2 run to claim the lead at 23-20. UNM would get to within two points at 23-21, but Fresno State closed out the set, winning 25-21.
Sours and House each had three kills, but the Bulldogs registered six of their 10 total blocks in the final stanza.
New Mexico returns to action Thursday as it hosts Colorado State at Johnson Center in Albuquerque.
“I just think it’s a gut-check time,” Nelson said. “We were 10-4 and now we’re 10-7.”
The match, slated to be the team’s “Jam Johnson” match with tickets priced at $2 each, is scheduled for first serve at 6:30 p.m. MT.