LOGAN, Utah — Cassie House registered a game-high 20 kills and Julia Warren tallied her team-best fifth double-double of the season, but it wasn’t enough as the University of New Mexico volleyball team fell 3-1 to Utah State Thursday night.
Despite the strong performances from two of their senior outside hitters, the Lobos (10-11, 1-7 Mountain West) couldn’t find consistency against the Aggies (8-10, 3-4) at the Wayne Estes Center in Logan, Utah. It’s the seventh-straight loss by New Mexico.
“We started the match playing better ball and even had a comeback to win game two,” 10th-year UNM head coach Jeff Nelson said. “Unfortunately, the little things hurt us in letting game one go. Cassie and Julia played very well at the pins and then our passing and serving broke down in three and four. Our middles really struggled again tonight.
“If we could get a little more output in the middle and slow our opponents down a little more we can turn this bad run. We are competing better now and need to take care of making adjustments better and quicker.”
House and Warren provided the bulk of the Lobos’ offense, logging 33 of the team’s 50 kills. House finished just a kill shy of tying her career high in kills, posting her 20 putaways on a career-high 57 attempts.
The 12th member of UNM’s 1,000-kill club, House now has 1,034 career kills, just 40 from 10th in program history.
Warren also shined, providing solid offense and defense as she played full-rotation for a second consecutive match after returning from a knee injury. Warren now has 1,088 career digs, 25 from sixth all-time at UNM.
Fellow senior outside hitter Devanne Sours added seven kills for the Lobos Thursday night, as UNM hit .184 on the night (50 kills, 22 errors, 152 attempts).
Carson Heilborn finished with four kills, four digs and 28 assists (her most assists in four matches) after initially splitting setting duties with Lise Rugland (four assists).
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| Julia Warren |
Defensively, the Lobos received 17 digs from libero Ashley Kelsey and 12 from Warren, and outblocked the Aggies 8-7.
New Mexico also held two of the Aggies’ top offensive weapons largely in check, but Utah State’s starting middle blockers, Lauren O’Brien and Carly Lenzen, combined for 22 kills on a .543 hitting percentage.
The Lobos were also solid at the service line, as Sours (season-high three aces) and Warren (two) gave UNM a 5-4 advantage.
The opening frame was close to start, with both teams playing a 4-4 tie through eight serves. Utah State would take a lead a 9-6 after a 5-1 run, but the Lobos would translate four Aggie errors into a 9-3 run as they took a 15-12 lead.
New Mexico would maintain its three-point advantage to 20-17, forcing Utah State to take its second timeout of the set. That stoppage proved to be of benefit to the Aggies as they closed the set on an 8-3 run to win 25-23.
House logged five kills in the opening set, but the Lobos only converted a .163 hitting percentage. Utah State hit at a .214 clip.
Utah State rode its momentum into the second set, leaping out to a 9-3 lead on UNM. The Lobos responded by posting a 9-2 run — featuring four USU errors and a pair of House kills — to take a 12-11 lead.
Both teams would jockey for the lead during the middle of the set, trading multiple 3-0 runs as they settled into a 20-20 tie. But strong play by Warren late, including three kills and an ace in the span of eight points, gave UNM a 23-22 lead. The Lobos would then get the first crack at set point, eventually nabbing the win 27-25 after Utah State closed with three straight errors.
House continued to provide the bulk of the Lobos offense, posting six kills in the stanza, as Warren chipped in three kills with her late spark. UNM hit .237 in the set, while limiting USU to a .128 rate.
The streaky finish to set two remained in play to open set three, as both teams reeled off stretches of consecutive points. Utah State eventually took an 11-8 lead on New Mexico, maintaining the three-point edge at 15-12 going into the media timeout.
The Aggies then went on a 7-2 run to open a 22-15 lead, and the Lobos wouldn’t be able to get closer than six points as Utah State won the set 25-18.
House and Warren both had four kills in the set, but New Mexico struggled to convert offensively, hitting just .100. Utah State was more successful with a .367 attack percentage.
Set four started evenly, with seven ties en route to a 9-9 score. However, the Aggies would gain some separation via a 9-2 run, taking a 17-11 lead. Back-to-back kills by House would bring UNM to within three points at 21-18, but Utah State scored four of the final five points of the set for a 25-19 win.
House again led the way with five kills, with Sours and Warren notching three each. Although New Mexico hit decently (.220), the Aggies converted a .382 success rate.
The Lobos return to action Sunday as they host Rio Grande Rival New Mexico State at 5 p.m. for the team’s annual “Lobos Love Pink” event benefiting the UNM Cancer Center.