LAS CRUCES, N.M. – The New Mexico State volleyball team begins the 2018 season in Tempe, Ariz., with the Sun Devil Classic, hosted by Arizona State at the Wells Fargo Arena this weekend. The Aggies take on Pacific at 3 p.m. MT on Aug. 25, followed with a match against host ASU at 8 p.m. The NM State squad closes its run on Saturday, Aug. 25, with a match against UT Arlington at 11 a.m.

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PRESEASON FAVORITES
NM State was predicted to finish in first in the Western Athletic Conference, according to the preseason poll voted on by the league's head coaches. The Aggies are the defending WAC regular-season champions and look to claim their fourth-straight title in 2018.

Individually, Briana Ainsworth, Tatyana Battle and Megan Hart were named to the Preseason Al-WAC Team. Battle received the honor for the third-straight season while Ainsworth received the recognition for a second-straight year. Hart was named a preseason favorite for the first time in her career as an Aggie.

LOOKING BACK AT 2017
NM State posted another banner season in 2017. The Aggies went 21-8 overall and tallied a 12-2 conference record, resulting in the team's third-straight WAC regular-season title. However, New Mexico State's impressive season came to a close in the WAC Tournament semifinals when the team fell 3-1 to the eventual champions CSU Bakersfield.

Five Aggie players received All-WAC accolades following the regular season including Kassandra Tohm, who received the prized Player of the Year award and Ariadnne Sierra, who earned her second-straight Libero of the Year honor. Head Coach Mike Jordan was also named the league's Coach of the Year. Battle joined Tohm on the All-WAC First Team. Sasha-Lee Thomas also received conference honors when she was named to the All-WAC Second Team. Lia Mosher was the lone NM State player on the All-WAC Freshman team in 2017.

KNOW YOUR FOE: PACIFIC
Pacific closed out the 2017 season with a 17-14 overall record and an 11-7 record in West Coast Conference play. The squad was pegged to finish ninth in the WCC preseason coaches' poll for the team's 2018 campaign. As a team, the Tigers averaged 13.13 kills per set, 12.36 assists per set and 14.05 digs per set last year.

Pacific setter Hanne De Schrijver tallied a team-best 757 assists during her freshman campaign and also led the squad with 7.14 assists per set. Kaitlyn Lines totaled 161 kills and 27 blocks in her collegiate debut with the Tigers. The outside hitter also notched 48 digs and 27 blocks in 2017.

SCOUTING THE SUN DEVILS
Tournament host Arizona State finished the 2017 season with a 10-22 overall record and the squad went 0-20 against Pac-12 opponents. As a team, the Sun Devils averaged 13.1 kills per set and 16.2 digs per set last season while also posting 2.0 blocks per set.

Claire Kovensky, WAC Freshman of the Year in 2017, transferred to ASU following her freshman campaign at Grand Canyon. Kovensky completed her first collegiate season with a team-leading 305 kills (3.28 kills per set), 266 digs (2.86 digs per set) and 39 blocks at GCU. Junior setter Nicole Peterson returns for the Sun Devils as the team's leader in assists (785) and assists per set (9.94).

LOOKING AT THE MAVERICKS
UT Arlington finished 13-17 in 2017 and posted a 7-9 record in Sun Belt play. The Mavericks were pegged to finish fourth in the west division in the SBC and Zhanelle Geathers was name to the preseason all-conference team. In 2017, UTA averaged 12.4 kills per set, 11.5 assists per set and 14.6 digs per set.

Geathers was a Second-Team All-Sun Belt Conference selection in 2017 when she totaled 3.39 kills per set with a .186 hitting percentage. Outside hitter Kylie Jedlicka tallied 2.27 kills per set with a .175 hitting percentage while also averaging 2.42 digs per set and 0.29 blocks per set during her sophomore season.

COMING UP: LOBO CLASSIC
Following the tournament at ASU, the Aggies take on top competition at the Lobo Classic from Aug. 31-Sept. 1. NM State opens the tournament with a pair of matches against Florida Gulf Coast and Eastern Kentucky. New Mexico State closes its run in Albuquerque, N.M., with a match against Battle of I-25 rival New Mexico.