It wasn’t perfect, but after a shaky second set from the University of New Mexico Volleyball team, the Lobos rallied to win the final two sets to defeat the visiting UNLV Rebels on Wednesday evening at Johnson Gym.
UNLV entered the contest at 11-3 and a perfect 2-0 in the Mountain West Conference, while New Mexico was .500 and coming off a loss to the Boise State Broncos.
Now, with the win, UNM (8-7) stands at 2-1 in conference play — and is tied with UNLV in the Mountain West, respectively.
The Lobos started off the first set with confidence, as Lauren Twitty, a sophomore outside hitter, connected with force on the setup from her teammate to get a kill for the first point.
UNM managed to get out to a 3-0 lead, while UNLV continued to struggle. The Rebels would trail the rest of the set due to a concoction of attack errors and service errors, and by the end of the first set, UNM found itself on top with a comfortable 25-14 victory.
But the second set, by no means, was a pretty one for New Mexico. Like UNM, the Rebels quickly got out to a 3-0 lead. Meanwhile, the Lobos seemed dazed and confused — and their confidence dipped. UNLV sophomore outside hitter Mariena Hayden was a force, adding four kills to her statline in the frame, and willing her team to a victory in the second set.
However, UNM’s lack of composure was also a factor. In the first set alone, the Lobos had one service error. In the second set, though, New Mexico had four, as well as an additional four attack errors. It was true-to-form for a team that has been known for its up-and-down play throughout 15 games this season.
It was the third set, the defining set, that set the tone for the rest of the match. No team, at any point, led by more than two points. Hayden was the best Rebels player on the floor — and it showed. But UNM’s will to regroup, find its groove and get Twitty in attacking mode — she had six kills in the set. Twitty handled the Rebels to break a 23-23 tie then to score matchpoint, giving her and her UNM team a 25-23 set three win.
Redshirt junior middle blocker Victoria Spragg agreed that the winner of a close third set was likely to win the match entirely, but also said her team’s willingness to get better was just as beneficial to the Lobos’ success.
“Yeah, I think when it got to that 23-23 point we had a lot of good things going for us,” she said. “We decided as a team that this wasn’t gonna happen. We’re gonna pull it out, we’re gonna get this momentum and we’re just gonna push really hard that fourth game — and I think we did that exact thing.”
Indeed, the Lobos did just that — push hard, dominate, and win the fourth and final set. In the first three sets UNM combined for two total team blocks. In the fourth, they combined for seven total blocks. New Mexico won the fourth set 25-10, solidifying its win over the Rebels.
Head coach Jeff Nelson seemed impressed with his team’s composure, but also that they held UNLV’s Hayden to zero aces, and just 18 kills. He cited the fact that, prior to the match, Hayden was averaging at least two (1.10 a set) aces and 4.75 kills a set. Hayden is widely known as one of the best outside hitters in the conference.
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UNM will have three days to prepare, before heading north to Colorado to face conference foe Air Force.
The Falcons are 1-0 in conference and 11-4 overall; they will play UNLV this Friday, Sept. 28 at home before hosting the Lobos on Sunday, Sept. 30 at noon.
Matthew Narvaiz is a sports beat reporter and senior writer for the Daily Lobo. He primarily covers football and also contributes content for other sports. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @matt_narvaiz.
