by Nicole Craig
and Steven Fernandez
Daily Lobo
The UNM volleyball team finished third in this weekend's Hilton Albuquerque Volleyball Classic.
The Lobos opened the tournament with a 3-1 loss against the Utah State University Aggies on Friday. UNM rebounded for a 3-0 win against University of California-Riverside before falling 3-1 in its final game against tournament champion Stephen F. Austin State University on Saturday.
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Lobo head coach Kelley McKee said her team hurt themselves on Friday.
"We made too many mistakes," McKee said. "First it was our passing and serving, and then it went to our hitting."
Senior Kelly Therkelsen was one of the bright spots for UNM, finishing the tournament with 28 kills and 25 digs. For her effort, Therkelsen was named to the Hilton Albuquerque Volleyball Classic All-Tournament team.
"Kelly showed a tremendous amount of leadership," McKee said. "She was our go-to player."
Sophomore Gayle Tripp said the team had to deal with adversity in the loss.
"We are young and inexperienced," Tripp said. "We also have two of our go-to outside hitters on the bench with injuries."
The Lobo injury list includes Jeanne Fairchild, Anna Lehne and Michelle Miller.
In Friday's opener, the Aggies played hard with good defense and strong hitting. They handily beat the Lobos 30-16 in game one. Freshman Allison Suiter led the Lobo offense with three kills.
Game two went back and forth, but the Aggies took control toward the end of the game with a 5-0 run. They won the game 30-26.
In game three, a strong defensive effort led the Lobos to a win. Trailing 28-26, Utah State made two unforced errors, and Therkelsen took control of the game. Therkelsen aided in a block and made the game-winning kill to give the Lobos a 30-28 win.
Although the Lobos lost, they showed promise in their effort, Therkelsen said.
"I think if we play like we did in game three, with good communication and work ethic, we will do some good things," she said.
Game four looked promising as the Aggies made early mistakes. However, the Lobos were unable to hang on as two UNM errors and two Utah State kills closed the game at 30-28.
UNM was a much different team in Saturday's win against UC-Riverside. The Lobos started slow in game one, trailing 18-10. However, they went on a 12-3 run to win the game 31-29.
Game two wasn't close, and the Lobos outhit UC-Riverside .444 to .062 en route to a 30-15 victory. In game three, UC-Riverside made two comebacks, but UNM was able to hold off the competition and hang on for a 30-26 win.
In Saturday's finale against Stephen F. Austin, UNM was unable to overtake the eventual champions who went undefeated in the tournament.
Stephen F. Austin rode a 15-4 run in game one to claim a 30-19 victory. The Lobos struggled in game two as Stephen F. Austin cruised to a 12-3 run and won the game 30-16.
Game three was a tight one, and the Lobos trailed 28-27 late in the game.
Jennifer Heasty gave UNM the lead on an ace, and the Lobos ended up winning game three 30-28.
UNM jumped out to a 12-10 lead in game four, but Stephen F. Austin blazed to a 20-5 run and clinched the tournament with a 30-17 victory over the Lobos.
Therkelsen said she was disappointed with the loss but optimistic about the rest of the season.
"It is early in the season, and I think we have already improved a lot," she said.
