SOUTH BEND, Ind. – New Mexico State volleyball battled Notre Dame in the finale of the Golden Dome Invitational on Saturday. Despite taking the first set from the Irish, NM State (2-1) fell 25-20, 19-25, 23-25, 21-25.

"It was a good, winnable match for us. I think the home team has the ability to win that match a huge percentage of the time," head coach Mike Jordan said. "Notre Dame just served and blocked the ball well."

How It Happened

The Aggies battled back-and-forth with the Irish to start the match. With Jordan Abalos serving, NM State pulled ahead 12-9 but the Irish surged back, coming within one. New Mexico State forged ahead, maintaining a lead over ND (3-0) and with Kaylee Neal behind the service line, NM State took a 21-17 lead. From there, the Aggies powered by the Fighting Irish with a three-point run to close out the set.

In the second set, the Aggies kept the game close until Notre Dame pulled ahead 11-7. Sasha-Lee Thomas snapped the scoring run by the Irish with a kill from the right side. NM State chipped away at the lead until they were tied 14-14 with Notre Dame. The teams went point-for-point but ND pulled ahead late with a four-point scoring run to take a 19-16 lead. New Mexico State could not overcome the deficit and fell in the second set of the match, 25-19.

Notre Dame maintains its momentum and went on a five-point scoring run to start the third set. NM State came back with a four-point scoring run to cut ND's lead to two, but the Fighting Irish pulled ahead for a 16-10 lead. The Aggies pulled within one of the Irish, but the comeback fell short and resulted in the 25-23 loss.

New Mexico State worked for each point in the fourth set and NM State took an early 10-6 lead by scoring six-straight points. ND did not go away, following the Aggies run with a three-point run of its own to pull within one. NM State did not let up, went ahead 15-10 over the Irish, but another scoring run by Notre Dame put the Irish within one. The teams continued to battle but the Irish tied the game and pulled ahead for a 22-20 lead. The Fighting Irish proved to be too much late in the set and the Aggies were defeated for the first time this season.

Following the match Jordan Abalos and Kassandra Tohm were named to the all-tournament team. Abalos recorded a double-double in two of the three matches. She recorded 38 digs and 43 kills during the tournament. Tohm posted 40 kills and hit .240 over the weekend.

New Mexico State returns home to host North Dakota, UNLV and UCLA in the NM State Springhills Suites Invitational. The Aggies take on UND the start the tournament on Thursday, Aug. 31, at 7 p.m. (MT).