LAS CRUCES, N.M. – New Mexico State volleyball gets set for its final road trip of the regular season. The Aggies travel to take on Western Athletic Conference foes Grand Canyon on Thursday, Nov. 9, at 6 p.m. (MT) before facing off with CSU Bakersfield on Saturday, Nov. 11, 1 p.m.
REGULAR SEASON TITLE ON THE HORIZON
NM State enters the weekend with a chance to clinch its third-straight WAC Regular Season Championship. With a win over Grand Canyon, the Aggies clinch a share of the title and receive a first-round bye in the conference tournament. If New Mexico State takes down both the Lopes and the Roadrunners, the Aggies win the WAC Regular Season Championship outright.
WHERE TO WATCH
Fans can watch New Mexico State's match against GCU for free on ESPN3. The Aggies match against CSU Bakersfield can be viewed live the WAC Digital Network.
TIME FOR BATTLE
Tatyana Battle won her first WAC Player of the Week honors this season after leading the Aggies to a 2-0 record with straight-set wins over Utah Valley and Seattle U. She averaged 4.17 digs, 4.00 kills, 0.83 blocks and 0.50 service aces per set. The outside hitter also posted back-to-back double-doubles in the victories. She started the week with 10 kills, 15 digs and two blocks in against UVU and followed the impressive performance with a match-high 14 kills, 10 digs, three blocks and three service aces against SU.
REMARKABLE RANKINGS
New Mexico State (19-7, 10-2 WAC) posts a .126 opponent hitting percentage, which ranks first in the nation. NM State also ranks 31st in digs per set (16.91), 33rd in assists per set (13.16), 35th in kills per set (13.91) and 48th in blocks per set (2.42). Additionally, the Aggies lead the WAC in digs, assists, and kills per set.
Individually, Ariadnne Sierra averages 5.22 digs per set which ranks 28th nationally and second in the WAC. She also ranks fourth in the league with 0.29 service aces per set. Lia Mosher (.275) and Sasha-Lee Thomas (.269) rank fourth and fifth, respectively, among the conference leaders for hitting percentage. Mosher also sits in fourth for blocks as she averages 1.07 blocks per set. Kassandra Tohm averages 3.54 kills per set, which is fourth in the WAC while Battle posts 3.13 kills per set to put her in ninth.
In conference play alone, Thomas leads the league with a .328 hitting percentage. Tohm sits at the top of the league as she averages 3.98 kills per set and 4.20 points per set. Mosher posts a .298 hitting clip, which ranks fourth in the WAC, Battle ranks fifth among the league's leaders in both kills per set (3.36) and points per set (3.89).
LAST TIME OUT
NM State swept Utah Valley and Seattle U in the Aggies final home matches of the season. Against UVU, Tohm led the team with 13 kills and a .256 hitting clip. Battle posted a double-double with 10 kills and 15 digs. She followed the performance with a double-double against Seattle U with 14 kills and 10 digs. She received WAC Player of the Week honors for her efforts.
KNOW YOUR FOE: GRAND CANYON
Grand Canyon enters the match with an 8-16 overall record and a 3-9 record in conference play. The Lopes post a 2-6 record at the Grand Canyon University Arena this season. GCU has lost two-straight, falling to Utah Valley 3-0 and CSUB 3-1.
Claire Kovensky leads the Grand Canyon squad with 282 kills this season. The freshman averaged 3.01 digs per set which ranks third on the team. Kayla Redfield and Heidi Carpenter post the most assists on the team with 456 and 522 assists, respectively. Maria Adams tallies 1.01 blocks per set to lead the Grand Canyon team.
In the first match between the teams this season, NM State fell in the first set but the Aggies bounced back to defeat the Lopes 3-1. Tohm led all players with 21 kills in the match. Natalie Mikels posted a team-high 27 assists while Briana Ainsworth followed closely behind with 25.
KNOW YOUR FOE: CSU BAKERSFIELD
CSU Bakersfield enters the weekend with a 15-12 overall record and an 8-4 record in WAC play. The 'Runners are undefeated at home in conference play and post a 5-1 overall record at the Icardo Center.
Haylee Roberts leads CSUB with 265 kills on hitting .306. The senior also posts a team-high 90 total blocks this season. The 'Runners libero Emily Lopes is 14th in the nation in digs per set as she averaged 5.59. She has also amassed 542 total digs, which is 16th nationally.
The Aggies swept CSUB during the first meeting between the teams. Battle and Thomas led the charge for NM State with each player tallying 12 kills. Sierra posted 22 digs while Mikels recorded 22 assists in the Aggies' victory.
COMING UP
Following the match with the 'Runners, New Mexico State travels to Edinburg, Texas, to take on the best from the league at the 2017 WAC Volleyball Tournament.
