BOULDER, Colo. – New Mexico Volleyball came within a set of its first victory over a ranked opponent since 2010 Saturday night, taking a 2-1 lead on No. 23 Colorado before the Buffaloes rallied to hand the Lobos a five-set defeat (19-25, 27-25, 25-23, 16-25, 6-15) at the CU Events Center.
After Colorado entered the night without dropping a set through its first three matches, the Lobos (1-3) handed the Buffs (4-0) their first two set losses of the season back-to-back in the second and third to move within one set of the upset. Colorado answered by hitting .615 in the fourth and .474 in the fifth to close out the match.
Mina Stanojevic paced the Lobos with 16 kills on .324 hitting to go with 12 digs, two aces and two total blocks, while Reagan Miller added 14 kills on a team-best .400 hitting percentage with three block assists. Addison France finished with 12 kills and eight digs, giving UNM three players in double figures, while Madeleine Miller dished out 43 assists with six digs and two aces. As a team, New Mexico finished with 55 kills, seven aces and eight total blocks.
SET ONE
The teams stayed within a point of one another deep into the opening set, with a Stanojevic solo block pulling UNM ahead 15-14 before Colorado answered. The Lobos were still level at 18-18, but the Buffs took control with five consecutive points and scored seven of the final eight to take the opener 25-19.
SET TWO
Colorado opened up its largest lead of the frame at 16-11 before the Lobos began chipping away. UNM used kills from Miller and France along with a four-point Stanojevic service run to pull within 16-15, eventually drawing even at 17-17. Neither side led by more than two the rest of the way, and Colorado reached set point first at 24-23 and again at 25-24. France erased the second before an attack error gave UNM its first set point, and Stanojevic delivered an ace to finish a 27-25 win — Colorado's first set loss of the season.
SET THREE
The Lobos made it two in a row with their best offensive set of the night, hitting .314 in a 25-23 win. UNM erased an early 7-3 deficit with four straight points and later turned a 14-12 deficit into a 17-14 advantage behind a Canedo ace and kills from Yastrub and France. Colorado rallied to tie it at 22-22 and again at 23-23, but the Lobo block closed the door, with back-to-back stuffs securing the final two points and a 2-1 match lead.
SET FOUR
Colorado responded with its most efficient frame of the match, hitting .615 with 17 kills and only one error. UNM battled back from an early 6-2 deficit to get within 10-9 and remained within two at 15-13, but the Buffs pulled away late, scoring eight of the final nine points for a 25-16 win that forced a fifth.
SET FIVE
The Buffs carried that momentum into the deciding set, jumping out to a 5-1 lead and extending it to 8-2 at the changeover. UNM got kills from Miller, France and Stanojevic down the stretch but couldn't close the gap, as Colorado finished off the match 15-6.