Lobos Dominate Aggies in Straight Sets, Complete 2-0 Rivalry Week
LAS CRUCES, N.M. — New Mexico Volleyball left no doubt in its second matchup of the week with in-state rival New Mexico State on Thursday night, dismantling the Aggies (4-6) in straight sets (25-19, 25-21, 25-13) to seal a 2-0 season series.
The Lobos rallied from a 0-5 hole to start the opening set and didn’t look back, outblocking NMSU 15-4 and committing only 11 attack errors on the match to the Aggies’ 33. The Lobos opened with .125 hitting in the first and improved with each passing set while holding NMSU to -0.28 hitting on the match — the fourth match in a row in which UNM has held an opponent below the .200 mark.
It’s the first time the Lobos (7-3) have beaten the Aggies twice in a row since 2014, and the first time beating them multiple times in the same season since 1990. This week’s matches were the first meetings between the two programs since 2019.
“Extremely proud of this team’s fight,” said UNM Head Coach Jon Newman-Gonchar, who remained undefeated against the Aggies with the win. “We talked about showing up and bringing our best selves to each and every point — showing up is indeed what this team did.
“To go 2-0 against a very powerful NMSU team is a testament to the power of showing up and bringing it every point,” he said. “We’re thrilled to be heading into conference play next week and to continue to learn, grow and improve!”
It’s also UNM’s first road win over NMSU since 2013 and the only the fourth match in program history — and first since 2009 — in which the Lobos turned the Aggies away in straight sets on the road.
The Lobos did so with a similarly balanced attack to their four-set win at home on Tuesday, led by Lauryn Payne (9 kills), Kialah Jefferson (7 kills), Elizabeth Woods (6 kills) and Jada Bouyer (4 kills). Jefferson finished with the second-most digs (8) while serving up three of UNM’s five aces, with Woods hitting for a match-high .545 average without a single attacking error.
🔙2⃣🔙 ACES for @kialahjefferson 😳
She’s up to three on the night 😳😳
Lobos up 11-2 in the third 😳😳😳 pic.twitter.com/3UFa43NDLj
— New Mexico Volleyball (@UNMLoboVB) September 20, 2024
Liepa Lavickyte led the Lobos at the net with one solo block and seven block assists for a career-high 4.5 TB, with Jada Bouyer (1 BS, 5 BA), Elizabeth Woods (1 BS, 4 BA) and Lauryn Payne (4 BA) all finishing with multiple.
Falanika Danielson and Madison Blanco served up an ace each as well, with Danielson leading the Lobos with 14 digs in total. Madeleine Miller produced 21 assists while adding three kills, six digs and two block assists to round things out.
ALL-TIME SERIES
With two wins this week, UNM is now 32-46 against their rivals to the south all-time in a series that dates back to 1974. The Lobos improve to 5-5 over their last 10 matchups with NMSU after having lost their last three meetings with the Aggies prior to the rivalry’s nearly five-year hiatus.
This story will be updated.
