SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - 275 days after a five-set victory over UTEP in El Paso, NM State Volleyball is set to begin the 2023 regular season . They will head west to the Golden State to play in a four-team tournament hosted by UC Santa Barbara. As part of The Thunderdome Classic, NM State will play one match against each of the other three teams: UCSB, North Florida and Denver.
The Aggies' schedule for the weekend is listed below:
Friday, August 25 - at UCSB (8:00 PM)
Saturday, August 26 - vs. North Florida (5:00 PM)
Sunday, August 27 - vs. Denver (12:00 PM)
All times are in MDT
The Aggies have revamped their roster and are looking to improve on the 16-12 showing in 2022. 10 members of last year's squad have departed, including standouts Lia Mosher, Katie Birtcil, Molly Johnson, and Rylee Fay. The team will now turn to seniors Darian Markham and Mari Sharp, along with All-CUSA Preseason Team selections Ryleigh Whitekettle and Starr Williams. Redshirt junior Kacia Brown, junior Sidney McIntosh, and sophomore Rilen Garcia earned the other starting spots in Saturday's exhibition against Western New Mexico.
Scouting the Gauchos
UCSB will host The Thunderdome Classic coming off a 20-10 finish a year ago. Following an 0-5 start, the Gauchos won 12 of their next 14 matches. During that span, one of their two losses came to the Aggies in Las Cruces. UCSB visited the Pan American Center for a two-match weekend in September last year, ending in a true split. The Gauchos came out on top 3-1 on Sept. 9, and the Aggies responded with their own 3-1 win the next day. The two were an even match, with both squads collecting 91 points in their wins, and NM State eking out a 183-179 advantage over the series.
UCSB is returning star senior Outside Hitter Michelle Ohwobete, who tallied 3.23 kills per set across 105 sets in 2022. Ohwobete also swung .232 on 907 attempts, leading the team with 405.0 points. She brings great value to the defensive side as well, with 446 digs and 125.0 blocks since 2021.
Scouting the Ospreys
North Florida is returning the six athletes with the most sets played in 2022. The veteran roster looks to rely on their experience, as they bring back last season's leaders in kills, points (Mahalia White), digs (Rocio Moro), and blocks (Kierstyn McFall).
While last year concluded with a 12-17 mark for UNF, there is room for optimism. The season started off with a sluggish 1-9 stretch, but their non-conference slate was loaded with six Power Five opponents, including Florida, who was No. 15 at the time. The Ospreys went on to win 11 of their final 19 matches, including an 8-3 stretch in the middle of the conference season. Their 9-7 mark in ASUN play earned them a trip to the ASUN Tournament before falling to two-seed Florida Gulf Coast.
Scouting the Pioneers
Denver is coming off a 19-12 showing, with a 12-6 record in Summit League action. The Pioneers finished as the fourth seed, falling to eventual champions, top-seeded South Dakota in the Summit League Tournament.
When the Aggies take the floor on Sunday, they'll be standing face-to-face with a relatively similar opponent, as the Pioneers are looking to replace substantial production from 2022. The Pioneers' leaders in points, kills, assists, service aces, digs, blocks have all departed, opening the door for a new era.
Graduate student Cadi Boyer will look to take a step up following a solid 2022 campaign. The middle blocker had a .379 hitting percentage, 171 kills and 113.0 total blocks. Denver is also equipped with two outside hitters as graduate transfers from Power Five programs, with Cassie Davis from Baylor and Mackenzie Fidelak from Stanford. They will look to fill some of the missing production offensively as well.
How To Follow
ESPN+ will be streaming UCSB matches for the weekend, including Friday's match at 8:00 PM MDT. The other matches can be followed live via StatBroadcast.
For complete coverage of NM State Volleyball, follow us on Twitter (@NMStateVBall), Instagram (@NMStateVBall) and like us on Facebook (NM State Volleyball). You can also follow along with Aggie Volleyball via NMStateSports.com.
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