“Overall it was a great win and a solid weekend.”
Lobo beach volleyball head coach Jeff Nelson had that to say in a release after the team changed its starting lineup at the last minute due to a migraine, and closed the Wildcat Spring Challenge with a 4-1 victory over Santa Clara on Saturday.
The UNM beach volleyball team posted strong performances in Arizona this weekend as it took another win on Friday with its 5-0 sweep against CSU Bakersfield.
Even though the Lobos (8-9) could not pull off a win against No. 8 Arizona and dropped 4-1 to the host Wildcats, some lineup changes would provide more possibilities for the team in the remaining three weeks of the regular season.
The Friday match with the Roadrunners turned out to be the touchstone of the new lineup for the Lobos.
Chloe Crappell and Victoria Spragg became the new No. 4 pair and picked up the first point for New Mexico as their foes retired due to injury.
Top seed Cassie House and Ashley Kelsey won 21-7, 21-13. In the No. 3 position, Marisa Doran and Eastyn Baleto won 21-10, 21-13 to clinch the dual.
On court four, Julia Warren and Lauren Twitty continued the winning with 21-8, 21-15. Devanne Sours and Lise Rugland added the final point in the No. 2 spot, scoring 21-15, 21-12.
The victory provided the Lobos with confidence to maintain the new lineup to take on the Wildcats. However, New Mexico only picked up one point and bit off their ninth defeat by nationally ranked teams in the season.
“We competed well in every spot but just couldn’t turn the scores,” Nelson said in a release.
House and Kelsey dropped on court one in two sets (21-13, 21-17). Crappell and Spragg gave the Wildcats the second point as the No. 4 pair (21-17, 21-16).
Sours and Rugland ended their winning streak and failed with a pair of 21-16 sets. Arizona clinched the dual on court two.
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In the No. 3 spot, Doran and Baleto dropped 21-12, 21-16. Warren and Twitty contributed to the single point for New Mexico on court five (21-15, 16-21, 15-10).
Back on Saturday, the Lobos faced some challenges when team captain Doran was sidelined due to a migraine. But the last-minute lineup change still brought New Mexico the 4-1 win against the Broncos (0-8).
Warren and Twitty capped the weekend with their third win on court five (21-14, 21-9). In the No. 1 slot, House and Kelsey won 21-13, 21-9.
On court two, Sours and Rugland clinched the dual for New Mexico (21-12, 21-19).
In the No.3 position, Jackie Baro and Carly Beddingfield fell 21-17, 21-16 to give the Broncos the only point.
Baleto paired with Spragg to win a comeback in the No. 4 spot (11-21, 21-16, 15-10).
The Lobos will return home next Friday and Saturday to host Colorado Mesa at Lucky 66 Bowl.
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.
