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Friday • 12 p.m. 
Saturday • 11 a.m. Albuquerque, despite its lack of any discernible beaches, has been good to these sandy Lobos as they’ve won 10 straight home matches in the Duke City.
But, as they welcome three regional foes this weekend, that streak of success will be put to the test.
The University of New Mexico beach volleyball team returns to action for its only home matches of the 2018 season as it hosts Arizona State, Abilene Christian and Colorado Mesa on Friday and Saturday at Lucky 66 Bowl.
After playing their first 11 matches of the season on the road, the Lobos (2-9) are searching for some good home cooking as they face off against the Sun Devils (4-10), the Wildcats (1-7) and Mavericks (2-8).
UNM plays CMU and ACU on Friday, followed by matches against ASU and ACU on Saturday.
This week’s slate is key for New Mexico after struggling against a challenging stretch of matches to open the season. Through their first 11 matches, the Lobos played eight against teams either ranked or receiving votes in the national polls.
UNM will add another such contest this weekend, with Arizona State receiving votes in both the AVCA Coaches Poll and DiG Magazine Poll.
Nonetheless, New Mexico put up solid results during that season-opening span, battling the ranked opponents and falling by 3-2 scores in four of their losses.
Now back at home, the Lobos are eyeing some more success as they look to rely on a staunch home-court advantage.
The Lobos have played 12 home matches over the program’s first 78 matches, winning their last 10 for an all-time .833 winning percentage in Albuquerque.
UNM has only dropped two points (out of 50 total) during its home-winning streak that includes team victories over two of its opponents this weekend, Arizona State and Colorado Mesa.
And while only a few players on the still-young team have played a role in that winning streak, everyone will be counted on to produce at a high level this weekend.
Leading the charge are New Mexico’s top-seeded tandems of Maddie Irwin & Erin Martin at the No. 1 position and Eastyn Baleto & Lauren Twitty at the No. 2 position.
Those duos have tallied solid records over the first month of the season, with Irwin & Martin sitting at 5-6 and Baleto & Twitty at 4-4. However both tandems haven’t won in the same match during the eight games that both tandems have played in.
Elsewhere, New Mexico has received decent production from its other pairs, but more consistency will be key going forward.
Two weeks ago at the Hickory Point Lake Bash in Tavares, Florida, UNM’s No. 3 partnership of Chloe Crappell & Yasmin Tan earned their first victories of the season together, moving to 2-6 on the season.
Carly Beddingfield & Mercedes Pacheco also teamed up for the first time at the 4’s, while Abbey Willison & Kayla Long won a point against UNC Wilmington at the 5’s.
Across the net, the Lobos will need a team effort to continue its home-winning streak.
Arizona State enters the weekend having lost six of its last seven matches, but did earn a 4-1 win over a ranked Washington team that swept New Mexico on the opening weekend of the season.
This is the seventh meeting all-time between the Sun Devils and the Lobos, with ASU holding a 4-2 advantage in the series. Arizona State won both matches in 2017, with New Mexico claiming two contests — including one in Albuquerque — in 2016.
Abilene Christian heads into its third week of competition looking to improve the team’s first few weeks of action.
A first-year team, ACU went winless to open is season at the Cactus Classic in Tucson, falling twice to San Jose State and once to Arizona and Benedictine at Mesa. Then, two weeks ago, the Wildcats dropped three of four — including a match vs. UNM — in Phoenix.
A familiar for the Lobos — the teams have faced off against each other six times, with UNM winning all six — Colorado Mesa enters this weekend with a 2-8 record.
The Mavericks have played a challenging schedule so far, with four matches against teams ranked or receiving votes in the national polls. But CMU has fared relatively well, earning points in seven of its 10 matches.
Fans can follow @UNMLoboBeach on Twitter and Instagram to keep track of the Lobos!