NEWARK, Del. – A 16-match Conference USA slate begins on Friday for NM State Volleyball. The Aggies (7-6) open their third season in the league on the road, taking on Delaware out east. The Blue Hens (3-6) are one of two new programs to join CUSA this fall, alongside Missouri State. NM State has its eyes on snapping a three-match skid and starting conference play with momentum ahead of a four-match homestand to start October.
 
WHAT TO KNOW
Who: NM State (7-6, 0-0 CUSA) at Delaware (3-6, 0-0 CUSA)
Where: Bob Carpenter Center – Newark, Del.
When: Friday, Sept. 26 at 3:00 PM MT / Saturday, Sept. 27 at 10:00 AM MT
Live Stream: ESPN+
Live Statistics: nmstatesports.com/stats
All-Time Record vs. Delaware: 1-0
Last Meeting: Delaware 0 vs. NM State 2 – Dec. 12, 1975 (IAIAW Nationals – Princeton, N.J.)
 
LAST TIME OUT
NM State wrapped up a five-match week at the Tulsa Volleyball Invitational, playing three times in the Sooner State. The Aggies came up empty, taking just two sets over the weekend and suffering its first three-match losing skid since Sept. 14-19 of 2024. After being swept by the hosting Golden Hurricane, the Crimson & White fell in four sets at the hands of both Little Rock and Oral Roberts.
 
SERVE AND PROTECT
NM State leads Conference USA in total blocks (115) and aces (96) this season. The Aggies have held eight of their 13 opponents to a sub-.200 hitting percentage, doing so at a higher rate than last year's squad (16 of 33 matches). The 2024 unit also posted eight or more blocks in 16 of 33 contests. This fall's team, however, has tallied at least eight rejections in 11 of 13 matches thus far.
 
At the service line, NM State has been equally as dominant. The Aggies have averaged 1.92 aces per set, up from last year's 1.30 mark. Eleven aces was the group's high-water mark in 2024, which has already been eclipsed three times this campaign. In this year's season opener against Eastern Washington, Maggie Lightheart led the way with six of her team's 15 aces. Additionally, on Sept. 13, she tallied seven more as part of a 14-ace night for the home team against New Haven. The Crimson & White have combined for six or more aces in six of their past eight outings, bringing their season total to 96 perfect serves to rank 16^th in NCAA Division I.
 
SWEET 16
As a true freshman, Kate Sinclair has made an immediate impact. The Canadian has entered the starting lineup in each of the past 12 matches and appeared in all but two sets. The middle blocker leads the team in total blocks, tallying 54 on the season, including six solo rejections. Her 1.13 blocks per set are the most by an Aggie since Lia Mosher in 2020 (1.19). The first-year Aggie has posted four or more denials in each of the past six outings, tallying 34 over the span while leading her team in each match. 
 
Offensively, her 56 kills have come on a .260 hitting percentage, highlighted by back-to-back eight-kill outings against UNM last week. In her last five contests, she has finished with a clip of .350 or higher four times, including her career best of .462 at UNM.
 
NOTHING LIGHTHEARTED ABOUT HER
In the early stages of her junior season, Maggie Lightheart has dominated the competition and established multiple new individual bests. At SIU, the third-year Aggie went for a career-high 17 kills and 21 digs. Twenty-four hours later, she tallied 47 attempts, landing her 18^th kill on the match-winning point and finishing with a .319 hitting percentage.
 
The Las Cruces native now ranks second on the team with 131 kills on the season after a 38-kill week. Her 115 digs also place her second highest on the squad after leading the club in four of the first seven outings of 2025. 
 
Additionally, Lightheart paces Conference USA with 31 aces on the young campaign, placing her third across all of NCAA Division I and ahead of last year's program leader (30, Martinez). The Sept. 17 five-set thrilling comeback against New Mexico was capped off by two straight aces from the junior. The crowd of more than 1,400 strong erupted as the Las Cruces native clinched her program's first win in the rivalry series since 2019.
 
TESS IS MORE
After a stellar high school career, Tess Fuqua left the City of Crosses to go play for Arizona. Before seeing action, she tore her ACL, missing all of the 2023 season. In the spring of 2024, she suffered the same injury once again, ruling her out for the entirety of that fall as well. The Centennial High School product decided to rehab back home, transferring to NM State ahead of Fall 2024, where she watched from the Aggie bench.
 
This past offseason, Fuqua returned to the floor for her redshirt sophomore campaign. She has started all 13 matches to begin 2025, leading her team in kills seven times. Her 22 kills against Little Rock are the most by any Aggie in a single match this season. The Arizona transfer leads NM State with 139 kills, also ranking among the squad's top three kills per set (2.96), digs (116), digs per set (2.47), service aces (16) and aces per set (0.34).
 
THE FOX SAID WHAT?!
As a freshman, Mia Fox appeared in 15 sets and landed 17 kills, recording a high of four kills in a single match. Across three contests at the UC San Diego Invitational to start this season, the sophomore obliterated her previous records in nearly every category. With six kills against EWU, nine versus Northwestern and 11 at UCSD, the middle blocker set a new personal best in each outing, tallying a total of 26 kills and more than doubling her career mark. Her total led the team on the weekend while she hit a remarkable .548 en route to CUSA's best opening-weekend clip. Defensively, she also added 10 total blocks, setting a new career best twice. 
 
This year, Fox has amassed 89 kills and 40 blocks while starting all 13 matches. The sophomore has led the squad in denials on five occasions and set a new career high with six against Little Rock last weekend. 
 
PERSONNEL GROWTH
The 2025 roster stands at an average of 6-foot-0, nearly an entire inch above the final 2024 edition. This fall's squad boasts six Aggies of at least six feet tall that were not active on the 2024 club, including four newcomers. Freshman Jaelynn Kohli and transfer Ezgi Duzgezen each stand at 6-foot-3 in their first year with the program. Kate Sinclair (6-foot-4) and Zoe Ziegler (6-foot-6) would each have been the tallest on last year's team, with the latter coming in as the tallest on record in program history. Peyton Castillo and Tess Fuqua were also both inactive in 2024 as they recovered from injury. 
 
CAN'T GET RID OF 'EM
Over the offseason, several familiar faces returned to the Aggie staff. Twenty-eighth year head coach Mike Jordan brought back longtime assistant Chris Hertel after a season apart in which Hertel was head coach at Radford. Chelsea Rose, a member of the 2010 Aggie squad and former director of player development, also reclaimed a spot on the bench.
 
ENDLESS OPTIONS
With 20 student-athletes, the Aggies boast the largest roster in Conference USA for the second straight season. Additionally, six setters give the Crimson & White the most in the league once again. No other league program entered the season with more than four. 
 
LOCAL PRODUCTS
Seven Aggies hail from the Land of Enchantment, including four from Las Cruces. Rilen Garcia, Maggie Lightheart, Tess Fuqua, Bella Castro, Jazlyn Vasquez, Mia Mendoza and Makayla Martinez all call the Land of Enchantment home. Jaelynn Kohli also recently graduated from Eastlake High School in El Paso, Texas.
 
SCOUTING THE BLUE HENS
Delaware is under the direction of Kimberly Lambert, who boasts a 64-29 record in her time with the program. The Blue Hens are out to a 3-6 start this season, but picked up a four-set victory in their last match against Saint Peter's. 
 
The squad won the 2023 CAA Championship and made the NCAA Tournament, falling to Missouri in the opening round. After another 20-win season a year ago, the 2025 squad is led by Anna Logan Gillens (3.79 kills per set), Kennedi Inman (8.55 assists per set) and Asia Murray (1.24 aces per set). 
 
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