Lobos Go 2-0 on Friday at UCSD Tournament
SAN DIEGO, Calif.— The University of New Mexico volleyball team went 2-0 on Friday at the UC San Diego Tournament, defeating Pacific in three sets (25-21, 25-21, 25-22) before finishing the day with a five-set victory over the host Tritons (25-21, 19-25, 25-22, 24-26, 15-12).
With the win, the Lobos have won their last three matches, two of which came in sweeps.
Between the two matches, Kaitlynn Biassou led the Lobos with 30 kills and five service aces, while Alena Moldan added 42 digs to her career tally, moving her into seventh all-time in program history in the category. Anilee Sher finished with 88 assists on the day, an average of 11.0 per set and Avital Jaloba led with eight total blocks (two solo). UNM outhit its opponents .224 to .168.
MATCH 1 vs. PACIFIC
The Lobos were led by Biassou’s 12 kills, with the senior co-captain also adding seven digs, four assisted blocks and a team-high two service aces. Sher finished with a match-high 27 assists, nine digs, two service aces and two kills. Three players finished with double-digit digs, with Moldan and Guereca tied with 12 for the team high and Wolf adding 10 to go along with seven kills, four total blocks (one solo) and a match-high three service aces. Jaloba led at the net with five assisted blocks, with the Lobos finishing with 9.0 total team blocks.
UNM got out to an 8-3 lead behind three blocks, three kills, a service ace and an error, a lead that continued to grow to 11-4 and 15-6. A Sher ace gave UNM set point at 24-15, but Pacific fought off six set points before a Biassou and Zurlinden block provided the final point for the 25-21 set win. Although there were two tie scores, the Lobos led from start to finish in the opening set.
Set two was much closer at the onset, with the Lobos scoring the first three points before the Tigers closed the gap to tie the set at five. However, the Lobos answered with a 3-0 run to regain a three-point lead at 8-5 that expanded to five at 12-7. Pacific came back to tie the set at 14 and following ties at 15, 16, 17, 18 and 19, the Lobos gained some separation with a Tiger attack error and a Guereca kill. Although Pacific came within a point two times, the Lobos continued to lead for the remainder of the set, using a 3-0 run to close the set for the same 25-21 result to take the 2-0 match lead.
Pacific was the team to take an early lead in the third set, but the Lobos kept within reach and turned a 5-2 deficit into a 6-all score and then an 8-7 lead. After ties at eight and nine, Pacific responded to take a 12-9 lead that grew to 17-12. Out of a Lobo timeout, UNM answered with consecutive blocks and a Guereca kill to close back within two, and Wolf delivered with back-to-back service aces to tie the set. UNM’s run continued on the next play on a Pacific attack error to give UNM its first lead since 9-8. Pacific tied the set at 18 for a final tie, but a Sher kill and Tiger attack error put UNM back in front for good. Like in the second set, the Tigers came within one two different times, and each time the Lobos found an answer to hold the lead, closing with Zurlinden and Jaloba kills for the 25-22 set win and the sweep.
MATCH 2 vs. UC SAN DIEGO
Four Lobos finished with double-digit kills in the win, led by 20 from Guereca, who added her fifth double-double of the season with 14 digs. Wolf also posted a double-double with 17 kills and 12 digs, while Biassou led with three service aces to go with 18 kills. Zurlinden had her best result of the season, with the freshman tallying 10 kills and adding five total blocks (one solo, four assisted). Sher recorded a match-high 61 assists, outperforming the entire Triton team total, and Moldan was one shy of tying her career high with 30 digs, the second time this season that the senior co-captain had 30 digs. With her 30 digs, Moldan moved into seventh all-time in program history in career digs.
The match started off competitive with five ties in the first 12 points before the Lobos were able to gain the four-point advantage at 10-6 in kills by Biassou, Jaloba and Guereca and a block by Sher and Jaloba. UCSD pulled within one at 10-9, at which point the Lobos answered with a 6-0 run. The Tritons answered with a run of their own to tie the set at 20, and after another tie at 21, the Lobos closed scoring the final four points of the set on consecutive Zurlinden kills, an attack error and a solo Zurlinden block.
The second set started off similar with both teams close in the first 10 points (at 6-4 UCSD), but in this set it was UC San Diego who used a run to gain the advantage of going up 15-10. The Tritons extended their lead to six at 18-12 with the Lobos unable to get any closer than five at 22-17 as the hosts took the second set, 25-19 to tie the match at one.
In the third set, there were a total of 12 ties and five lead changes with 10 ties in first 20 points. Like in the second set, UCSD took the five-point lead of 16-11, but unlike the second set the Lobos climbed back into the set and eventually tied the set at 21. From there, a UCSD attack error gave UNM the 22-21 lead and consecutive Biassou service aces provided set point for the Lobos. UCSD fought off one set point before Wolf finished the set with a kill to give UNM the 25-22 set win and the 2-1 match lead.
The fourth set was another close set with 10 ties and five lead changes, with the Lobos and Tritons ultimately needing extra points to determine the outcome. Neither team was able to achieve separation in the early stages of the set, with the largest margin a three-point difference four different times. UNM managed to close within one at 18-17 on a Guereca kill, but couldn’t find the tying point until 20-all on a Biassou kill. The Lobos pulled ahead 22-21, again on a Biassou kill before UCSD reached set point at 24-22. Kills by Biassou and Wolf fought off set point to tie the set at 24, but the Tritons forced a fifth set with the 26-24 win.
Each team exchanged points in the decisive fifth set, leading to seven ties in the first 14 points. However, the Lobos capitalized on a Guereca kill, a UCSD attack error and a Guereca and Zurlinden block to break the streak and go up 10-7. UNM’s lead stretched to four at 12-8 and again at 13-9 before UCSD closed within one at 13-12. Wolf pushed the Lobos to match point on the next play with a kill and provided the clincher with another kill for the 15-12 win.
UNM improves to 6-1 on the season with the two wins and return to the court on Saturday at 11:30 a.m. PT/ 12:30 p.m. MT to face Liberty.