Lobos Stifle Nevada in Four at Home
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – New Mexico Volleyball got back in the win column with a dominant effort at the net in Mountain West action Thursday night at the Johnson Center, dispatching Nevada in four sets (25-27, 25-20, 25-12, 25-22) to avenge a road loss to the Wolfpack earlier in the season and snap a nine-match losing streak.
With the win, the Lobos (10-13, 3-10 MW) — who haven’t lost to Nevada at home since 2017 — stayed alive in the race for a fourth-straight Mountain West Tournament bid and secured a series split with the Wolfpack.
After reaching set point first and coming up short in the opening set 25-27, the Lobos outblocked the Wolfpack 11-3 over the second and third sets as they took a 2-1 lead for the first time since Oct. 1, finishing with 18 total blocks on the match to Nevada’s 10.
UNM committed only 13 attack errors to the Wolfpack’s 32 over the final three sets, holding them to .079 hitting on the match.
“Excited for the team, a huge win on our home floor,” said UNM Head Coach Jon Newman-Gonchar, who netted the 80th win of his six-year tenure with the Lobos. “This team has had a challenging past few weeks, but they have never backed down and stayed committed to the process.
“Tonight’s result is a testament to their courage to stay big in those moments and go on the attack – We can’t wait to do it again on Saturday!”
Kialah Jefferson (14 kills) led three Lobos that notched double-digit kills in the winning effort, finishing with team-high .481 hitting while serving up three of UNM’s seven aces and picking up 11 digs for her team-leading 11th double-double of the season. Jada Bouyer (12 kills) turned in an efficient outing as well – hitting .393 on the match to go with a career-high 10 block assists – and Lauryn Payne added 10 more kills to crack double-digits for the 17th time this season.
Liepa Lavickyte notched a new career-high with 12 block assists — not only the most by a Lobo this season, but the most in a single match since 2018 and tied for third-most in a single match in program history — while producing five kills on efficient .308 hitting to lead UNM’s effort at the net. The Lobos have now finished with double-digit team blocks while outblocking opponents in back-to-back matches for the first time this season after outblocking San Jose State 14-12 in a four-set loss on the road last Saturday.
Elizabeth Woods came up with two solo blocks and four block assists while putting away three more kills. Naomi Chankoumi was productive yet again off the bench, connecting on six kills and assisting on four more blocks in the process.
Madeleine Miller produced 25 assists and picked up 14 digs for her 10th double-double of the season, serving up two aces in the process. Sohila Wafeek dished out 18 more and Falanika Danielson finished with five to go with 12 digs and an ace of her own. Madison Blanco served up another ace and finished with five digs — one of six Lobos to rack up five or more — to round out a 59-dig team effort.
THE HIGHLIGHTS
🏐Highlights from @UNMLoboVB‘s 3-1 win over Nevada! #MakingHerMark | #MWVB | #GoLobos pic.twitter.com/uqlRW8esr5
— Mountain West (@MountainWest) November 8, 2024
ALL-TIME SERIES
With the win, the Lobos improve to 20-4 against the Wolfpack all-time, with a 10-1 record against Nevada at home – UNM hasn’t lost to Nevada at home since 2017.
Coach Jon Newman-Gonchar improves to 7-1 against Nevada as UNM head coach – the Lobos are 8-2 against the Wolfpack in their last 10 meetings.
In 2023, UNM went 2-0 against Nevada in a pair of five-set matches but went 0-2 against Utah State, falling in four at home before the Aggies dispatched them in straight sets in Logan. They’d won three straight against the Wolfpack before that streak was snapped in their first meeting and are looking to snap a four-match skid against the Aggies.
UP NEXT / FOLLOW THE ACTION
The Lobos’ Saturday home matchup with Utah State (12-11, 9-4 MW) at the Johnson Center is set to get underway at 1 p.m. MT. The match will be streamed via the MW Network, with live stats, streaming and all other matchday essentials available at GoLobos.com/FollowVB.
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