TUCSON, Ariz. – New Mexico State volleyball fell to Arizona at the McKale Center during the teams run at the Wildcat Classic. The Aggies were swept by the tournament host 25-18, 26-24, 25-17, snapping the squad's seven-match winning streak.
"I want to congratulate Dave Rubio on his 500th win. He's a great coach, a class act and a great friend. His team played exceptionally well. They did a lot of things better than they did last week and we didn't have any answers," head coach Mike Jordan said. "I was disappointed in the effort defensively. We need to improve on it and toughen up so that we can be ready to play tomorrow."
How it Happened
NM State (9-3) got off to a slow start with Arizona (10-1) climbing out to a 4-0 lead to start the opening set. The Aggies battled back-and-forth with the Wildcats but a five-point run down the stretch put NM State behind 14-7. New Mexico State was unable to overcome the early deficit and fell in the first set 25-18.
The Aggies jumped ahead 3-0 early in the second set after Natalie Mikels served up back-to-back aces. The squad battled back-and-forth but five–point rally for NM State forced Arizona to take both timeouts in the span of the run. The Aggies led 24-20 late in the set but the Wildcats clawed their way back, scoring four straight to tie the set. New Mexico State could not stop the fiery Arizona offense and the Wildcats added a pair of points to close the second set on a six-point rally and hand the Aggies the heartbreaking 26-24 loss in the set.
In the third set, NM State fell behind 11-7 when the Wildcats went on a seven-point scoring run. Unable to find a rhythm, New Mexico State went point-for-point down the stretch but the squad was unable to make a dent in the Arizona lead. Unable to find a rhythm late in the set. New Mexico State fell 25-17, ending the team's seven-match winning streak.
By the Numbers
NM State tallied 28 kills on hitting .094 in the match. The team also posted 45 digs, 27 assists and three aces. Tatyana Battle led the Aggies with 10 kills followed by Davison with five. Setters Mikels and Briana Ainsworth notched 12 and 11 assists, respectively, while libero Halle Razo posted a team-high 14 digs.
New Mexico State closes its tournament run with a match against UT Martin at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 15.
