Open Announce

Lobos Sweep Cowgirls Behind Team Effort

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.— The term team effort was applicable on Thursday night at the Johnson Center as the New Mexico volleyball team had three Lobos finish with seven kills and one player with eight kills, getting the upper hand against the Wyoming Cowgirls in straight sets (25-21, 25-23, 25-19).

Kaitlynn Biassou led with eight kills, while Avital Jaloba, Uxue Guereca and Kali Wolf tallied seven apiece and Elizabeth Woods finished with six.

Setters Melissa Walden and Alia Rasmussen shared the duties with Walden finishing with a team-high 17 assists and Rasmussen 13 assists and Alena Moldan and Guereca led in digs with 14 and 13, respectively. At the net, the Lobos outblocked the Cowgirls 10.0-7.0 with Woods finishing with a match- and season-high seven assisted blocks and Guereca having two solo and three assisted blocks.

New Mexico’s win over Wyoming snapped a seven-match losing streak dating back to 2017, with the last home win occurring on Sept. 26, 2013, both times happening in three sets.

The Cowgirls opened the match with the first two points before kills by Jaloba and Biassou provided the first of six ties in the set and a Guereca solo block switched the lead to UNM. A Guereca and Woods block pushed the Lobos ahead 7-4 and a Jaloba kill extended the lead to four at 11-7 before Wyoming rallied to tie the set at 12 and took a 14-12 lead. Another Guereca solo block evened the set at 14 and Guereca recorded a kill on the next play to put UNM back in front. Consecutive Guereca kills kept the Lobos in front at 18-16, to which the Lobos pushed the lead to four at 21-17 on a Woods and Kassie McGill block. Wyoming narrowed the lead to two at 21-19, but a Woods kill and McGill kill restored the four-point lead. A kill by Wolf provided UNM set point at 24-20 and after fighting off a set point, a Cowgirl service error closed the set in a 25-21 Lobo win.

Guereca, Wolf and Jaloba each recorded three kills in the first set to lead New Mexico, while the Lobos outhit Wyoming .188 to .056.

The second set had three ties between the teams, although the Lobos never trailed in the closely contested 25-23 win. Biassou opened the set with a kill, with ties occurring at one, two and three before the Lobos pulled away. Back-to-back kills by Woods, followed by a Guereca service ace doubled UNM’s lead at 6-3, and a 3-0 Lobo run midway through the set allowed the Lobos to take a 13-7 lead. Wyoming got as close as 22-21, 23-22 and 24-23 in the set, but a kill by Walden and eventually a kill by Wolf secured the Lobo lead and the set.

Wolf, Jaloba and Biassou contributed three kills apiece in the set, with Jaloba hitting at a .600 efficiency, with Guereca also adding seven digs and a service ace.

Set three was another closely contested frame, with Wyoming and New Mexico having six ties after UNM pulled ahead 10-7 and Wyoming answering with a 3-0 run of its own. After a Wyoming kill to tie the set at 11, UNM scored the next three points on a Biassou kill, a Guereca kill and a Cowgirl attack error. Wyoming closed back within one at 14-13 but a Wyoming attack error on the next play kept the Lobos in front as part of an eventual 3-0 run to push the Lobos to a 17-13 lead. Another 3-0 run that included a Biassou kill, a Woods and Walden block and a bad Cowgirl set aided the 20-14 New Mexico advantage, which grew to a seven-point margin at 24-17 on a successful challenge that led to a McGill kill. Wyoming fought off match point twice before a Wolf kill and unsuccessful Wyoming challenge closed the match at 25-19.

Three again was the magic number as Biassou, Guereca and Woods each finished with three kills in the final set, while Moldan recorded eight digs and Woods three assisted blocks. UNM also outhit Wyoming .205 to .054 in the set.

The Lobos improve to 16-6 overall, 7-4 in the Mountain West with the win, and head into Saturday’s match against Colorado State on a two-match winning streak.  First serve is set for noon at the Johnson Center.