ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Another chapter of the Battle of I-25 was written on Tuesday. NM State Volleyball made the trek to Albuquerque for an evening bout with New Mexico, falling three sets to two. The visitors held a 2-1 advantage, but dropped both of the final two frames to suffer their first five-set loss of 2025. The two sides will square off less than 24 hours later, with first serve from the Pan American Center set for 6:00 PM on Wednesday. 
 
Set-by-set: NM State loses 2-3 (21-25, 25-22, 25-19, 19-25, 11-15) 
 
FIRST SET
Tess Fuqua and Mia Fox teamed up for a pair of early aces that brought a tie at 8-8, but four aces throughout a 15-point stretch sparked a 10-3 Lobo run. After an Aggie stoppage down seven, three Maggie Lightheart kills in short order kept her side in the fight. NM State called its second timeout down 23-17, but Jaelynn Kohli landed two balls to help her side stave off four set points. The visitors' run fell short, though, with UNM taking the opener 25-21. 
 
SECOND SET
Fox joined forces with Zoe Ziegler early in frame two to lead a 5-0 run that included four kills and a solo block. After building a 9-5 lead, the Aggie allowed a 6-1 burst that forced them into a timeout. Maggie Lightheart's first ace of the night led a short-lived charge from the Crimson & White before UNM pulled ahead by three once more. Kaylee Peterson entered the match to serve amid a 3-0 run that saw back-to-back block assists from Ziegler and Kate Sinclair. The latter came away with a kill and a block before sealing the set with her fifth kill of the match.
 
THIRD SET
The third stanza belonged to the Aggies early on as Ziegler and Fox combined for another block to pull ahead 6-3. After a tie at seven all, Jaelynn Kohli capped a 5-1 run with a kill that put the visitors at the halfway mark. Later, Tess Fuqua notched a pair of kills in an Aggie run before former high school teammate Bella Castro capped off the 5-0 spurt with an ace to propel ahead 18-11. Later, Kate Sinclair picked up a kill and one of her two solo blocks seconds apart to give her side set point. Maggie Lightheart capitalized on the opportunity, hammering a ball from Nellie Reese to take set three, 25-19. 
 
FOURTH SET
Lightheart's second kill of the set kept things close through nearly 20 points before UNM ripped off a 5-0 run that forced Mike Jordan's bunch into a huddle. From there, NM State never drew any closer than four. A late 4-0 run while the Lobos remained at set point was too little and too late to avoid a decisive fifth set. The Crimson & White combined for seven attack errors, posting their worst hitting percentage of the night (.167). The hosts forced the final frame by a 25-19 score, flipping the script from the set prior. 
 
FIFTH SET
Five ties and four lead changes came to pass in the early stages of the night's shortest game. Following a 6-6 stalemate, Jon Newman-Gonchar's group rattled off five straight points, switching sides and prompting NM State's final timeout in the process. By the time the dust had settled, the home crowd was applauding an 11-6 lead. Kohli, Lightheart and Fuqua all tallied a pair of kills, but Addison France's 20^th kill of the contest signaled the end of any potential late rally. UNM prevailed 15-11 in the fifth set. 
 
NUMBERS OF NOTE

• Making her third consecutive start at libero, Las Cruces native Bella Castro tabbed 12 digs, adding an ace and an assist on the night.  
• After winning nine straight sets, NM State's streaked was snapped in the opening frame on Tuesday.
• NM State now holds a 47-33 all-time record against New Mexico.
• The Aggies have now notched eight or more blocks in seven of nine matches this season. In 2024, NM State did so in just 16 of 33 matches. 
• The Aggies dropped their first five-set match of the season, falling to 1-1 in such contests.
• Jaelynn Kohli returned to the lineup for the first time since the opening weekend of the season. In her return from the six-match absence, she notched a new career-high with 15 kills.
• Mia Fox tied her career high with 11 kills in the loss, doing so on just 21 attempts.
• The sophomore also notched five total blocks, setting a new individual best. 
• Kate Sinclair's eight kills were good for the highest single-match output of her young collegiate career. 
• The Canadian also came away with two solo blocks for the first time as an Aggie. 
• For the first time this season, four Aggies tallied double-digit kills (Kohli, Lightheart, Fuqua and Fox).

• Senior setter Nellie Reese's three kills were a career high, coming on as many attempts. 

 
UP NEXT
The Battle of I-25 comes to Las Cruces on Wednesday as both teams face a turnaround of less than 24 hours. UNM will make its only trip to the Pan American Center this season for a 6:00 PM match in the City of Crosses. The rivalry's season finale will be streamed live on ESPN+ and available to follow via nmstatesports.com/stats.
 
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