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The New Mexico volleyball team is going to have to rely on its depth for the rest of the season after losing a key player to injury.
UNM dominated Utah State (17-9, 9-5 MWC), completing its 11th sweep of the season, but lost freshman outside hitter Julia Warren, who went down with a leg injury early in the match.
Head coach Jeff Nelson said his team experienced an injury-riddled last season and that they stepped up in a tough situation. Warren had an x-ray and remained in the hospital after the Lobos’ victory, Nelson said.
“We are deeper than we have ever been,” he said. “Those kids stepped up and won a huge match without one of their premier players.”
Nelson said he has the luxury of utilizing the team’s depth this season using a plethora of new rotations.
“I’m going through two things right now,” he said. “Reliving the injuries from last year and feeling bad for the team and myself and everyone else is not fun and it’s not good.”
UNM (19-5, 10-4 MWC) was able to get some major production out of the middle, which hasn’t been a reliable source for the Lobos. Skye Gullatt had a solid hitting game, recording six kills on only nine attempts.
“Right now I want to do it for Julia,” she said. “We just want to make it to the tournament which is our biggest goal as a team.”
Gullatt said that the team worked well together despite the loss of Warren.
“The confidence between us, the chemistry was really on today and it worked out,” she said. “This is a big win for us … We are knocking them down one at a time so we can get there.”
The Lobos and the Aggies were fighting hard in the first set as they both saw some success in their hitting. Redshirt Junior Chantale Riddle led the Lobos with six kills in the first set in the tightly contested match.
The Lobos didn’t transition well with their defense, which allowed USU to expose them in the backside of the court.
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UNM had a commanding lead, 21-14 in the first set, but had trouble finding a way to put the Aggies away. The Aggies went on a solid run which allowed them to tie the game at 24 points apiece.
The Lobos prevented the Aggies from taking the lead down the stretch thanks to two huge kills from Riddle. Senior middle blocker Lexi Ross was able to slam home the last point of the match as the Lobos squeezed out a 27-25 victory.
The Lobos did not need extra points to claim a victory in the second set even though the Aggies shut down Riddle’s production. Despite only getting one kill in the second set, Riddle and the Lobos held on to their early lead and beat the Aggies 25-18 after a game-winning double block.
USU contested the third match tightly, just like the first set. A late run helped the Aggies tie it up at 19 points, and then again at 22.
The Lobos didn’t allow the Aggies to score after the 22-point tie and completed the sweep with a 25-22 victory.
