Lobos to Host Utah State, Boise State in MW Action
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – New Mexico Volleyball returns to the Johnson Center this week for its first Mountain West home games of the year against a pair of teams undefeated in league play – Utah State (9-4, 2-0 MW) on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. and Boise State (6-6, 2-0 MW) on Saturday at 1 p.m.
The Lobos (9-4, 1-1) split their first two games on the road last week, downing Nevada in a five-set battle (25-18,19-25,26-24,20-25,15-7) on Thursday before suffering their first loss in a true road game this season at Fresno in four sets (23-25,24-26,25-21,19-25) on Saturday. They still boast the fourth-highest overall in percentage (.692) among MW teams heading into matchups with two of the four remaining unbeaten teams this week. Utah State is a preseason favorite to win the conference.
Prior to UNM’s loss to the Bulldogs on Saturday, the Lobos had won 12 of their last 14 sets – 10 of those sets by at least five points – and five of their last six matches, holding 10 consecutive opponents below .200 hitting. They rank No. 5 in the nation in digs per set (17.62) and No. 11 in opponent hitting percentage (.145), both of which lead the conference.
Head Coach Jon Newman-Gonchar’s Lobos are picked to finish fourth in the Mountain West Coaches’ Poll – the highest they’ve been slated to finish in Newman-Gonchar’s five seasons at the helm in Albuquerque.
UNM is in the hunt for a third consecutive winning season and MWC Tournament berth, going 17-12 overall and 8-10 in conference in 2022 en route to a fifth-place finish. Newman-Gonchar has posted a 62.7% win percentage over the last two seasons, with 20 wins in 2021 marking the most for the program since 2013.
NEW MEXICO (9-4, 1-1 MW) vs. UTAH STATE (9-4, 2-0 MW) – Sep. 28, 6:30 p.m. MT
Live Stats | Stream (MW Network)
NEW MEXICO (9-4, 1-1 MW) vs. BOISE STATE (6-6, 2-0 MW) – Sep. 30, 1 p.m. MT
Live Stats | Stream (MW Network)
ALL-TIME SERIES
UNM is 10-13 against Boise State all-time, but haven’t defeated them since 2021, when they won in four sets at the Johnson Center on Oct. 9. Both of the matchups between the two teams in 2022 went to five sets.
The Lobos are 23-14 against the Aggies all-time (23-9 since 1908) and swept the regular season series againt them in 2022 before falling in straight sets in the opening round of the MWC Tournament. UNM has won five of its last seven meetings with USU.
NATIONALLY SPEAKING…
The Lobos rank No. 5 nationally in digs per set (17.62), in no small part thanks to the efforts of Angela Crosetti (4.73 digs per set), Uxue Guereca (3.21), Melissa Walden (2.80), Kali Wolf (2.42) and Kaitlynn Biassou (2.68). Crosetti ranks No. 40 nationally in that category.
UNM is holding opponents to .145 hitting, good for No. 11 nationally. They’re also No. 56 in the nation in blocks per set (2.44).
Guereca ranks No. 46 in kills per set (3.94) and No. 57 in points per set (4.45) nationally. Elizabeth Woods is No. 45 in blocks per set (1.28).
FIVE-SET BATTLE IN RENO
New Mexico Volleyball came away with a hard-fought five-set road win (25-18, 19-25, 26-24, 20-25, 15-7) in its Mountain West opener against Nevada on Thursday evening, getting double-doubles from four different Lobos and closing with a blistering fifth frame to close out in dominant fashion after the Wolfpack (4-8, 0-1 MW) tied it up in set four to make things interesting.
Nevada snapped UNM’s streak of 10 consecutive set wins by tying things up in the second set and reached set point in the third before the Lobos surged ahead late to take a 2-1 lead, but it wasn’t until UNR forced a decisive fifth that UNM finally took control. The Lobos held the Wolfpack to -.136 hitting in the final set while hitting .320 themselves in the same span, connecting on nine kills and closing on a 4-0 run.
Four different Lobos notched double-doubles – the most in a single match this season – with Uxue Guereca (23 kills, 20 digs) leading the Lobos in both categories ahead of Kali Wolf (15 kills, 12 digs), Kaitlynn Biassou (11 kills, 18 digs) and Melissa Walden (52 assists, 17 digs).
MATTHEWS BRINGS THE ENERGY
Mattison Matthews – who made her first appearance since Sep. 8 – was a crucial difference-maker off the bench for UNM. The grad senior middle finished with five kills – all five of which came in the final two sets – on just eight attempts, assisting on four blocks. She connected on back-to-back kills immediately after entering the game in the third set that ignited a Lobos rally and finished off set five with her fifth and final swing. Athina Dimitriadis (eight kills, 3.5 TB) and Elizabeth Woods (one kill, 2 TB) both rounded out UNM’s effort at the net.
SWEEPING THE ‘JACKS
In a 2-0 home-and-home week against Northern Arizona, the Lobos swept the Lumberjacks twice while hitting above .300 in both games. After defeating UNR in a five-set battles on Thursday night, the Lobos (9-3, 1-0) are winners of 11 of their last 13 sets, holding each of their last nine opponents below .200 hitting. They’d won 9 straight sets by at least five points until Nevada took set two 18-25 on Thursday night.
BIG SHOWING IN JOHNSON
With 1,047 in attendance at the Johnson Center, Friday night’s matchup was the highest-attended Johnson Center Home Opener since 2015. The Lobos have seen an increase in attendance in each season since 2019 — not counting the 2020-21 season that limited attendance due to the COVID pandemic — and UNM’s average attendance of 841 per home game last season was its highest since 2016 (1,248) and highest of Newman-Gonchar’s tenure. Over UNM’s first four home games (including three games at The Pit for the Lobo Invitational), the Lobos have averaged 909 fans in attendance per game, including over 1,100 fans at UNM’s three-set win over St. John’s on Sep. 1.
MASTERFUL MIDDLES
Athina Dimitriadis and Elizabeth Woods were uber-efficient in a pair of routs against NAU, with Dimitriadis hitting .448 and Woods hitting .353 — the two best averages on the team over that week — while combining for 23 kills and 13 of UNM’s 24 blocks in that span. Woods ranks No. 2 in the MW in blocks per set (1.28) after posting the second-highest blocks per set average in the league (1.71/s) over the first week of conference play.
EXPERIENCED ON THE OUTSIDES
Kaitlynn Biassou (2.92 kills/set, 2.68 digs/set) and Uxue Guereca (3.94 kills/set, 3.21 digs/set) have been instrumental to UNM’s performance so far this year.
So far this season, Guereca ranks No. 3 in the conference in kills per set while Biassou ranks No. 7 in service aces per set (0.38).
Biassou and Guereca rank third and fourth in their careers among active MW players in points per set, with 3.87 and 3.76 respectively. They’re also third and fourth in kills per set (3.30, 3.26).
WALDEN’S WORLD
Thursday night, Melissa Walden produced a career-high 52 assists to help UNM outlast the Wolfpack, adding 17 digs and five kills for her team-leading eighth double-double of the season. She ranks No. 4 in the MW with a career-high 9.00 assists per set and ranks No. 5 in her career among active MW setters with 7.95 per set.
A LOOK AT THE ROSTER
UNM’s nine returners combined for 70% of the Lobos’ total points last season, with 2022 All-MWC Outside Hitter Kaitlyn Biassou along with fellow 2022 starters Uxue Guereca (338 kills, 393.5 points) and Kali Wolf (228 kills, 276 points) highlighting the Lobos’ experience on the outside. The Lobos also added four freshmen and three impact grad transfers to offset the loss of middle blocker Avital Jaloba, libero Alena Moldan and setter Anilee Sher to graduation.
GUERECA NAMED MW OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
After leading the conference in kills and points over New Mexico’s 2-1 weekend at the UND Classic, Uxue Guereca has been named the Mountain West’s Offensive Player of the Week for the week of Sep. 4-10.
The Mexican national by way of Guadalajara, Jalisco led the Lobos in kills (48) and points (55.0) in all three matches over the weekend as UNM was named Tournament Champions for the third straight week, including a double-double with 19 kills, 10 digs and six blocks against North Dakota in Thursday’s tournament opener. After following that performance with another double-double (18 kills, 11 digs) against Montana on Friday, she’s up to four double-doubles on the season – 27 in her career – and cracked double-digit kills in seven matches. Guereca also led the conference in kills per set (4.36) and points per set (5.0) in that same span, coming up with 7 blocks and serving up a pair of aces in a sweep of Green Bay on Saturday.
GOOD, BETTER, BEST, BIASSOU
In her fifth and final season at UNM, Kaitlynn Biassou has continued to get better each year. This year, she sees the Lobos making a similar jump.
“This is the most depth we’ve had since I’ve been here, and I’m super excited about our potential,” Biassou said. “We made it to the (MWC) tournament the last two years and lost in the first round both times. This year I want to get back and win the tournament. That’s what I’m focused on.”
Biassou put up career-high numbers for the third straight season in 2022, with 431 kills (3.68 per set) to go with 33 service aces and 504.5 points – all team-highs for UNM. The Reno, Nev. native ranked No. 4 in the Mountain West in kills and No. 3 in points per set (4.31) while also picking up 227 digs (1.94 per set) and tallying 75 total blocks.
Among active MWC players, Biassou ranks No. 3 in kills per set (3.30) and points per set (3.86).
In MWC play last season, Biassou cracked double-digit kills in 14 out of 18 conference matchups, matching a career-high twice with 26 kills vs. Wyoming (Sep. 29) and at Nevada (Oct. 15). Those two performances were the third-highest total by a MWC player in a conference game last season, with her 31 points in that Wyoming match ranking as the most in a single game in MWC action. Additionally, Biassou’s 21 kills against Utah State (Sep. 24) ranked as the second-most in a three-set match.
Biassou is also a threat at the service line, with four matches with three or more service aces — including five against Abilene Christian — and eight matches with multiple aces in a match. She’s served up 17 aces over 41 sets so far this season.
EXPERIENCE ALL OVER
A total of seven seniors (4 grad seniors, 1 redshirt, 2 true seniors) combined for 1,652 sets played entering the season — the most seniors Newman-Gonchar has ever had on a roster during his time at UNM.
Co-captains Kaitlynn Biassou, Kali Wolf and Uxue are the first trio to record at least 200 kills and 20 service aces each in the same season under Newman-Gonchar, and first since 2016.
STIFLING EFFORT
The Lobos have yet to allow a team to hit above .300 against them — San Francisco (.248) was the only team to crack .200, with four opponents hitting below .100.
UNM held 16 opponents below a .200 hitting percentage last season, with one opponent (Portland State) below .100 (.089).
In 2022, UNM held opponents to a .187 hitting percentage, which ranked No. 1 in the Mountain West. In MW matches in 2022, UNM led the league in digs per set (16.14) and finished 2nd in opp. hitting % (.188). The Lobos lead the league in both categories so far in 2023.
RECORD WATCH
With her first service ace of the match against Northern Arizona, Biassou notched her 100th ace of her career. She entered the program’s all-time Top 10 in service aces two weeks ago and is now No. 8 on the all-time list and 14 away from the No. 2 spot.
Earlier last season, Biassou became the 15th Lobo all-time to reach 1,000 career kills. Currently at No. 4 on the program’s all-time kills list at 1,444 after 28 last week, she’s 180 away from moving ahead of Chantale Riddle for the top spot with 16 matches left to play. Biassou joined the top-10 career points list against Nevada last season, and currently sits at No. 3 all-time with 1,695. She’s 215 from the top spot — also held by Riddle — and has scored at least 450 points in each of the last two seasons.