Lobo VB Continues MW Play at SDSU, GCU

New Mexico Volleyball heads on its first Mountain West road trip of the season this week when the Lobos (8-7, 0-4 MW) face San Diego State (9-6, 4-0 MW) on Thursday and Grand Canyon (8-7, 0-4 MW) on Saturday.

UNM is still on the hunt for its first conference win after a grueling start to the season at home that included four teams that are currently 3-1 or better in MW play – last week, the Lobos fell to Colorado State (9-5, 3-1 MW) in straight sets (23-25, 16-25, 20-25) before bouncing back with a strong performance against Wyoming (8-7, 4-0 MW) and ultimately falling in four (25-19, 25-27, 25-27, 14-25). 

In Coach Newman-Gonchar’s tenure, the Lobos are 6-5 against San Diego State, winners of four of their last five meetings with the Aztecs. Saturday will be the first Mountain West Conference matchup between the Lobos and ‘Lopes and the first one played at GCU – UNM is 1-2 against GCU all-time, with their last two meetings being a pair of five-set neutral losses in 2018 and 2019.

All of this 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.

at San Diego State (9-6, 4-0 MW)
Oct. 9 | 7 p.m. MT | San Diego, Calif.

at Grand Canyon (8-7, 0-4 MW)
Oct. 11 | 3 p.m. MT | Phoenix, Ariz.

ALL-TIME SERIES
• UNM is 30-46 against SDSU all-time but has fared better against the Aztecs recently – the Lobos have won four of the last five meetings and split the season series in 2024, rallying to win in five sets in their first meeting at home (Sept. 28) before falling in straight sets on the road (Nov. 21).
• Coach Jon Newman-Gonchar is 6-5 against SDSU in his tenure in Albuquerque.
• The Lobos are 2-3 against Grand Canyon in nonconference meetings between the two teams – Coach Newman-Gonchar has only faced the ‘Lopes once, a five-set neutral loss in 2019. Saturday will be the first conference matchup between GCU and UNM and the first played on the road.

COACH JNG NEARING 100 WINS
Coach Jon Newman-Gonchar is just eight wins away from his 100th career victory as UNM’s head coach. Currently in his seventh season at the helm, Newman-Gonchar holds a 92-85 record at UNM (.525) with a 45-63 (.433) mark in Mountain West matches.

FRANCE EARNS SECOND FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK HONORS
After recording the eighth triple-double of any Mountain West player in the past decade, New Mexico’s Addison France was named Old Trapper MW Freshman of the Week.
It’s the third conference weekly award so far this season for the Lobos and France’s second time earning Freshman of the Week honors. The Lobos split a pair of five-set battles with in-state rivals New Mexico State last week, winning in Albuquerque (25-21, 22-25, 19-25, 25-19, 15-11) but falling in five in Las Cruces (18-25, 25-23, 25-18, 23-25, 7-15) to close out the nonconference portion of their schedule.

MW FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK
ADDISON FRANCE | FR | S/OH
France recorded a career-high 20 kills on .500 hitting (20 K - 3 E - 34 TA) as the Lobos rallied to defeat NMSU in five sets at the Johnson Center on Tuesday, recording her first career double-double with 12 assists in total. She also added a service ace and six digs.
She followed that up with a triple-double on Wednesday, finishing with 10 kills, 14 assists and 17 digs -- the first triple-double from a UNM player under Head Coach Jon Newman-Gonchar – and only the eighth by any Mountain West player in the last decade.
The true freshman ranked eighth among MW players in hitting % (.375) over the past week and averaged 3.00 kills per set, 2.60 assists per set and 2.30 digs per set.

EARLY RETURNS FROM MOUNTAIN WEST PRESEASON
New Mexico was voted to finish ninth in the Mountain West Preseason Poll by the league’s coaches ahead of the 2025 season, the league announced last Wednesday.
Utah State is favored to win the 2025 MW regular-season title, having earned 114 points and seven first-place votes. Under the direction of head coach Rob Neilson, the Aggies finished the 2024 season 15-14 overall and 12-6 in Conference action and appeared in the Mountain West tournament for the fourth consecutive year since the event was brought back in 2021.

For the 2025 season, the Mountain West will expand to 12 members thanks to the late addition of Grand Canyon to the conference.

Colorado State has been tabbed the runner-up with 106 points and three first-place votes followed by San Diego State in third with 96 points and the final two first-place votes. In fourth is Fresno State (86 points) and predicted to finish fifth is Boise State (73). UNLV and Wyoming are tied to finish sixth with 72 points each. In eighth is the league’s newest member, Grand Canyon (61), followed by New Mexico with 37. Behind the Lobos are Nevada (32), San José State (31) and Air Force (12).

Fresno State senior Addison Haluska was tabbed the MW Women’s Volleyball Preseason Player of the Year, joined by Boise State’s Bre Mitchell, San Diego State’s Taylor Underwood, UNLV’s Basia Latos, Utah State’s Tierney Barlow and Kayliee Kofe and Wyoming’s Paige Lauterwasser on this year’s Mountain West preseason team.

The Lobos are looking to return to the Mountain West Tournament after missing out in 2024 to snap a streak of three consecutive tournament appearances. In 2024, UNM found its rhythm late in the season, winning four of its last six — with two wins over MW Tournament-qualifying teams — after weathering a nine-match skid. The Lobos led the conference in digs per set (15.77) for the third year in a row and ranked second in blocks per set (2.53) in 2024, finishing ninth in the conference standings at 13-15 overall and 6-12 in MW play.

At the conclusion of the 2024 season, UNM ranked among the Top 100 in NCAA D-I in six statistical categories:

• Blocks Per Set (33rd)
• Total Blocks (44th)
• Digs Per Set (74th)
• Attacks Per Set (81st)
• Opp. Hitting % (82nd)
• Team Digs (86th)

They ranked first in the conference in Digs Per Set (15.77) and Team Digs (1,766), ranked second in Blocks Per Set (2.53), Total Blocks (283.5) and Attacks Per Set (36.21) and ranked third in Opponent Hitting % (.190) and Total Attacks (4,055).

UNM got a breakout season from outside hitter Lauryn Payne, who earned All-MW honors at the conclusion after racking up 370 kills (3.36/set) in her first year as the Lobos’ go-to option at the pins.

In her first season in Albuquerque, middle blocker Liepa Lavickyte picked up steam down the stretch, earning two MW Defensive Player of the Week honors and ranked second in the conference in blocks per set (1.35) at the end of the year.

Madeleine Miller also proved up to the task as a six-rotation setter after moving into the starting role, averaging 7.63 assists per set (7th-most in the MW) and putting up 14 double-doubles on the season — Miller also served up 27 aces and connected on 56 kills while totaling 32 total blocks.

Under Head Coach Jon Newman-Gonchar, UNM has won at a .585 clip over the past four seasons and is 33-18 at home in that span. Last season, the Lobos averaged over 800 fans a game for the third season in a row, with a season-high 1,387 fans in attendance vs. New Mexico State on Sept. 16.

To compete for one of those top six spots, the Lobos need to replace a significant amount of contributors – four starters from last season graduated. The Lobos return eight players that saw real action in 2024 and bring in two freshmen and four transfers, two with D1 experience at previous institutions.

OUTSIDES/OPPOSITES
After a breakthrough season that saw her put away a team-high 370 kills and 393 total points to earn the first All-MW honors of her career, senior outside Lauryn Payne returns to lead the Lobos’ attack alongside fellow returners Naomi Chankoumi (70 SP, 96 kills) and Seenane Brewer (36 SP, 45 kills). Payne picked up momentum near the end of the 2024 season as the Lobos snapped a seven-match skid to win four of their last six, connecting on double-digit kills in each of her final six and setting a new career-high with 26 in total against UNLV in the season finale.
Grad transfer Gioia Riccato (University of Verona) brings a bevy of high-level experience despite this being her first D1 season – the 6-1 outside has played for three Italian clubs while attending University of Verona prior to heading to Albuquerque for one season of eligibility. Ukrainian transfer sophomore Uliana Yastrub (Rutgers) and redshirt freshman Amanda Tremeroli also will make their Lobo debuts this season to round things out.

LIBEROS
The Lobos got one of the most productive single-season efforts from a libero in program history from grad transfer Falanika Danielson in 2024, but have plenty of options to replace her contributions this season.

Junior Giselle Groe (168 career sets played) and redshirt junior Madison Blanco (119 career sets played) both have extensive experience in the back row at UNM, with Brazilian junior college transfer Camila Canedo and freshman Anna Johannson (Minneapolis, Minn.) making it a four-way competition for the starting libero role. Whoever doesn’t start at libero will likely still get plenty of defensive rotations and serving opportunities.

SETTERS
One of the most productive setters in the Mountain West in 2024, Madeleine Miller ranked seventh in the league in assists per set (7.63) and returns as the Lobos’ highest-volume option at the position. She’s backed up by a pair of newcomers in 6-3 true freshman Addison France and NMJC transfer junior Sude Omercikoglu, with left-handed France able to play at opposite as well. Omercikoglu was a part of an NMJC team that advanced to the NJCAA Tournament in 2023 and has led the Thunderbirds in assists per set in each of the last two seasons.

MIDDLES
Two-time MW Defensive Player of the Week Liepa Lavickyte is positioned to lead the Lobos at the net while they look to replace the contributions of 2024 captain and five-year senior Elizabeth Woods – the Norwegian junior racked up 123 blocks in total (1.35/s) to lrank second in the conference in blocks per set in 2024.

6-1 sophomore Reagan Miller (32 sets played in 2024) and 6-3 redshirt freshman Zoe Leonard will both likely get their share of reps alongside Lavickyte, with 6-1 CBU transfer sophomore Solia Angilau also in the mix.