ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – New Mexico Volleyball battled to equalize in the second set but couldn’t keep pace down the stretch as the Lobos fell to Cal Baptist in four sets (25-27, 25-18, 15-25, 22-25) in their 2026 season opener Saturday evening at The Pit - Powered by Nusenda.
Six different Lobos recorded four or more kills to pace the UNM offense, with Mina Stanojevic (11 kills) and Aylin Ravell (9 kills) leading the way. Both Stanojevic (19 digs) and Camila Canedo (17 digs) cracked double-digit digs, with Stanojevic finishing with a double-double in the process.
Madeleine Miller dished out 27 of UNM’s 39 assists while connecting on five kills of her own on .833 hitting – she and Reagan Miller both came up with a team-high two block assists apiece.
Addison France added five more kills while serving up a team-high two aces, with Stanojevic, Canedo and Zoe Leonard adding one each.
In total, the Lobos held CBU to .194 hitting but hit .084 themselves, getting outblocked 14 to 5.
UP NEXT
The Lobos (0-1) hit the road to continue opening weekend with a neutral-site matchup with Tulsa (1-0) Sunday at the Pan American Center in Las Cruces. Live stats will be available via GoLobos.com/VBStats, with no stream available for the match. Follow @UNMLoboVB on IG, X and Facebook for match updates and coverage, promotional information, behind-the-scenes content and more.
BUY TICKETS
Single-match tickets for all home matchups at The Pit - Powered by Nusenda are now available via GoLobos.com/VBTickets. Student tickets are free with a valid student ID and can be reserved here.
Set One – California Baptist 27, New Mexico 25
UNM fell behind early but got back into the thick of it in an opening set that saw seven ties and four lead changes.
Cal Baptist jumped out to a 9-5 advantage after a 4-0 run, but New Mexico steadily worked its way back into the frame. The Lobos pulled within one at 13-12 behind a Camila Canedo service run before eventually drawing even at 18-18. Madeleine Miller and Addison France helped spark another UNM push, with France’s kill putting the Lobos in front 21-19 and a CBU attack error extending the lead to 22-19. The Lancers responded to tie the set at 23-all, but Aylin Ravell’s kill and France’s second ace of the set gave New Mexico set point at 25-24. CBU answered with the final three points, putting away two kills along with a UNM attack error to come back late.
Set Two – New Mexico 25, California Baptist 18
New Mexico answered quickly in the second to tie things up, overcoming an early 4-2 deficit with five consecutive points to take a 7-4 lead. Zoe Leonard provided a kill during the 5-0 run while Canedo pressured the Lancers from the service line to force a CBU timeout. The Lobos continued to create separation, with Mina Stanojevic, Campbell Hollister and France all contributing kills as UNM extended the lead to 15-10. Canedo later delivered an ace to push the margin to 17-11, and Leonard added another ace as the Lobos went up 21-15. CBU trimmed the deficit to four at 21-17, but New Mexico closed out four of the final five points, with Miller and Hollister supplying consecutive kills before a CBU attack error finished off the 25-18 win and evened the match at one set apiece.
Set Three – California Baptist 25, New Mexico 15
The teams traded points early before CBU broke a 5-5 tie with a decisive 10-1 run, using three kills, an ace and a pair of blocks to surge ahead 15-6. New Mexico briefly answered with consecutive points on a CBU service error and a Zoe Leonard kill, but the Lancers maintained control and stretched the margin to 22-11 behind kills from three different players. Seenane Brewer and Mina Stanojevic helped the Lobos fight off three set points late, with Stanojevic recording her seventh and eight kills of the night to make it 23-13 and 24-14 before a CBU attack error pulled UNM within nine. CBU’s 16th kill of the set ended things at 25-15. The Lancers hit .333 with 16 kills in the set while holding New Mexico to five kills and a .000 hitting percentage.
Set Four – California Baptist 25, New Mexico 22
New Mexico stayed within striking distance throughout the fourth and made a late push after falling behind 15-9. A Campbell Hollister kill, a Seenane Brewer-Hollister block and a Mina Stanojevic kill fueled a 3-0 run that cut the deficit to 15-12. The Lobos continued chipping away, with Stanojevic adding two more kills before Madeleine Miller put down a kill to make it 18-16. Stanojevic followed with an ace and Aylin Ravell delivered a kill to complete the comeback and tie the set at 18-all.
California Baptist responded with three of the next four points to move ahead 21-19, but Reagan Miller answered with a kill and Brewer followed with another to keep UNM within one at 22-21. Hollister’s kill later made it 23-22, but the Lancers claimed the final two points to close out the set, 25-22, and the match in four. New Mexico produced 15 kills in the frame but committed 12 attack errors, hitting .067.
ICONIC NEW DIGS
Friday’s match was the first regular-season volleyball match played at The Pit - Powered by Nusenda since 2023, with this season marking the first time the Lobos play at The Pit full-time since 1999. This fall, The Pit celebrates its 60th anniversary, with its first game played on Dec. 1, 1966.
1,213 fans were in attendance for Saturday’s match, making it three crowds of 1,000+ in a row to open Lobo Volleyball’s new era at The Pit - Powered by Nusenda. Including UNM’s two exhibitions last weekend, UNM is averaging 1,161 fans in attendance at home matches this season.