ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – New Mexico Volleyball got its first Mountain West Conference win of the season upon their return to the Johnson Center on Saturday, fending off Grand Canyon in four (21-25, 25-13, 25-17, 30-28).
After GCU put down 16 kills on .500 hitting in the opening set, the Lobos held the Lopes to .000 hitting with just six kills in the second as they pulled away down the stretch. In that second set, UNM converted on all 13 sideout opportunities – their first 100% sideout rate in a single set the entire season.
UNM then piled on 33 kills in the final two sets to seal the deal and hold off a Lopes rally – Payne connected on 10 in that span, with France adding eight more, Gioia Riccato five of hers and Zoe Leonard with four. UNM hit for a match-high .298 in the third set but had to weather nine errors in the final set to put away the Lopes for good.
🏐 #MWVB Highlights from @UNMLoboVB's 3-1 win over Grand Canyon pic.twitter.com/MpNw7Q57rT
— Mountain West (@MW_OlySports) October 18, 2025
BY THE NUMBERS
Lauryn Payne paced the Lobos with 17 kills and Addison France joined her in double-digits with 10 on team-high .474 hitting, while Zoe Leonard (9 kills), Seenane Brewer (8 kills), Gioia Riccato (7 kills) and Reagan Miller (4 kills) made it six Lobos with four or more.
Madeleine Miller finished with 43 assists in total – her seventh performance of 40 or more assists this season and second in a row after finishing with 49 in Thursday’s five-set loss to UNLV.
Camila Canedo racked up 30 digs – a new career-high – for her seventh 20+ dig outing this season. Madison Blanco (11 digs) and Seenane Brewer (10 digs) also finished in double-digits. It's the most of any Mountain West player in a four-set match this season and the most in any conference matchup.
Leonard led UNM with four block assists, with Payne, Riccato, Madeleine Miller and Reagan Miller all adding a pair of block assists each as UNM finished with six total team blocks to GCU’s 11.
UP NEXT
The Lobos (9-10, 1-7 MW) return to the road for matchups at Fresno State on Thursday and San Jose State on Saturday. All of next weekend’s action on the road will be free to stream via the MW Network at GoLobos.com/Watch, with live stats at GoLobos.com/VBStats. Follow @UNMLoboVB on IG, X and Facebook for match updates and coverage, promotional information, behind-the-scenes content and more.