HUNTSVILLE, Texas – NM State Volleyball tallied its first Conference USA victory of the 2026 season on Saturday afternoon, defeating Sam Houston in five sets inside Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum. Maggie Lightheart paced the team with a season-best 17 kills, helping the Aggies capture the opening set and dominating the deciding fifth set to secure the hard-fought road win.
Set-by-set: NM State def. Sam Houston 3-2 (25-20, 17-25, 25-17, 13-25, 15-8)
FIRST SET
The Aggies came out strong, racing to a 10-4 advantage behind contributions from Tess Fuqua, Maggie Lightheart and Mia Fox. Sam Houston battled back to trim the deficit to just two points (20-18), but a 5-2 run helped NM State maintain control down the stretch. Fuqua tallied five kills in the frame as the Aggies secured a 25-20 first-set victory.
SECOND SET
A back-and-forth second set featured five ties and two lead changes. Lightheart continued to power the Aggie offense with seven kills in the frame, but the Bearkats maintained momentum throughout the stanza and evened the match with a 25-17 victory.
THIRD SET
The Aggies wasted little time reestablishing control of the match in the third set, hitting .290 as a team while limiting Sam Houston to a -.033 hitting percentage, their lowest mark of the afternoon. Fuqua recorded three kills and two service aces during the set, while Jaelynn Kohli added key points as NM State rolled to a 25-17 victory and reclaimed the match lead, two sets to one.
FOURTH SET
The Bearkats forced a deciding set following a strong fourth-frame performance, claiming a 25-13 victory to send the match to a fifth set.
FIFTH SET
NM State saved its best volleyball for the deciding frame. The Aggies opened on a 7-2 run behind kills from Fuqua, Herman and Lightheart before continuing to apply pressure from the service line. Herman and Lightheart teamed up for a pair of key blocks, while Lilli Saldivar added a late kill as NM State cruised to a 15-8 victory to secure the match.
NUMBERS OF NOTE
QUOTEABLES
Head Coach Mike Jordan, on the first CUSA victory of the season:
"I'm not happy with our play this weekend. We made far too many mistakes. Physical errors are one thing, but mental mistakes are another. Players have the right to fail occasionally on their own, but they do not have the right to fail their teammates. We were more prepared to play today than yesterday and we managed to win but that doesn't mean we were successful."
UP NEXT
NM State will travel to Lynchburg, Va., next weekend to continue Conference USA play against Liberty. First serve is scheduled for 4 p.m. MT on Friday, Oct. 9, inside Liberty Arena as the Aggies look to build on their first conference victory of the season. The match will be streamed live on ESPN+, and live stats available at nmstatesports.com/stats.
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.
##NM State##
