The New Mexico beach volleyball team split its results on Saturday as it defeated Colorado Mesa 4-1 and lost to TCU 3-2.
The Lobos (2-3) bounced back after falling to two nationally-ranked teams in a previous matchup, and fought off the Mavericks (1-4) in the first match at GCU Beach Volleyball Stadium.
In the second game, the Lobos battled hard against the Horned Frogs (3-1), but could not clinch the deciding match.
“We got better as the weekend went on,” head coach Jeff Nelson said in a release. “We played some really tough teams, played them really tight, and I think it will help us as we go down the road.”
It didn’t take long for New Mexico to awaken and pick up wins on its top four courts against Colorado Mesa.
Julia Warren and Lauren Twitty contributed to UNM’s first points on the No. 4 court, dominating the two sets 21-9, 21-16.
New Mexico changed its lineup in the No. 5 position, but Carly Beddingfield and Emily Nenninger fell 25-23, 21-12.
On the top-seeded court, Cassie House and Ashley Kelsey won 21-15, 21-16 to help the Lobos regain a 2-1 lead.
Devanne Sours and Lise Rugland clinched the dual for New Mexico in the No. 2 spot with a 21-14, 21-15 win.
In the No. 3 slot, Eastyn Baleto and Marisa Doran sealed the victory for the Lobos as they won 21-16, 21-14.
“It was nice to get the win against Colorado Mesa,” Nelson said. “And the match against TCU could have gone either way. I actually expected them to be our toughest match so I was really pleased that we stepped up and played better.”
Although No. 18 New Mexico missed several 2-point games, it changed in the lineup and demonstrated solid performance in taking on No. 15 TCU.
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The Horned Frogs fell 3-2 to Grand Canyon in an earlier dual, but readjusted to best New Mexico in a marathon match.
Beddingfield moved to play in the No. 4 position and paired with Jackie Baro, but their loss (21-17, 24-22) gave TCU an early lead at 1-0.
Warren and Twitty scored on the second court to tie the dual 1-1. They lost a tight set one 27-25, but clinched the next two matches 21-13, 15-11.
Top-seeded pair House and Kelsey lost both sets by just two points at the No.1 position (21-19, 22-20). The Horned Frogs jumped ahead 2-1.
Baleto and Doran brought the match into a deciding point at 2-2 with their score in the No. 3 slot. They came back after losing the first set, and won in three sets (29-31, 21-16, 15-8).
Sours and Rugland gave New Mexico some hope of coming out on top when they clinched the second set 21-16 after falling in set one by a score of 21-17. However, TCU sealed the 3-2 win in the deciding set, 15-11.
Bo Yu is a sports reporter for the Daily Lobo. He primarily covers beach volleyball, track and field, cross country and volleyball. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @Bo_YuB.
