ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.— The University of New Mexico beach volleyball season gets underway this Friday and Saturday as the Lobos travel to Phoenix, Ariz. for the GCU Tournament.
On the opening weekend to the beach volleyball season, the Lobos will face host GCU, Loyola Marymount and Arizona State at the GCU Beach Volleyball Stadium. UNM’s season starts against No. 16 Grand Canyon University at 3 p.m. MT, followed by two contests on Saturday. UNM and No. 15 LMU will compete at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday morning and before UNM closes the weekend against Arizona State.
“The team has been focused on growing their game, so this will be a chance to see just how much progress they have made,” coach Pauline Manser said.
“We want them to commit to the process and our style of play and be patient. We expect the team to improve greatly over the next three matches, and not be solely focused on whether they win or lose.”
The Lobos played all three teams last season, with UNM falling in all three. The Lobos lost 4-1 to Loyola Marymount, 5-0 to Grand Canyon and 4-1 to Arizona State and finished 9-14 on the year.
UNM’s last win against the Sun Devils was on March 19, 2016 in a 4-1 victory, the second of the season against ASU as UNM also won on March 4 by a score of 3-2.
Historically, UNM is 2-5 against Arizona State, 0-2 versus Loyola Marymount and 0-6 against Grand Canyon.