ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The San Diego State volleyball team avoided a haunted Halloween Thursday night by posting a 3-1 conquest of New Mexico (25-20, 15-25, 25-21, 25-14) in a Mountain West match at the Johnson Center.
The Aztecs (11-11, 4-7 MW) received double-digit kills from four players to record their sixth straight victory over the Lobos and surpass their win-total from the entire 2018 campaign. In addition, SDSU won for the first time in nine true road matches this season.
Victoria O'Sullivan led the Aztecs' balanced attack with a match-high 16 kills and hit .464 for the night, committing just three errors in 28 attempts, while Hannah Turnlund completed her fifth double-double of the year with 13 put-aways and 11 digs. Not to be outdone, Tamia Reeves maintained her torrid pace, finishing with a .524 attack percentage on 11 kills and no miscues to go with five total blocks, while Erin Gillcrist launched 10 non-returnables of her own.
In addition, Camryn Machado provided a huge spark with her 12th double-double of the year on 49 assists and 11 digs, while Loren Teter led all players with 21 digs to anchor SDSU's back row. Lauren Lee also tied her season-best with 11 digs while serving up a match-high three aces.
Collectively, the Aztecs owned the statistical advantage in most categories, including kills (59-51), hitting percentage (.295 to 229) and digs (68-45), while the two sides recorded 7.0 team blocks apiece. SDSU also benefited from eight Lobo service errors, as UNM dropped to 6-17 overall and 1-10 in conference play.
The teams combined for seven ties and three lead changes early in the first set before the Aztecs vaulted in front for good with a 7-0 surge to break a 9-9 deadlock. O'Sullivan sparked the run with back-to-back kills after joining forces with Reeves on a block.
Despite two kills apiece down the stretch from Lauren Twitty and Tai Bierria, the Lobos were unable to draw closer than four points, as the opening frame ended fittingly on a UNM service error. SDSU registered their best hitting percentage of the match at .355, blasting 16 kills on 31 swings with five errors.
However, the Aztecs had the tables turned against them in the second stanza, as the Lobos out-hit the visitors .481 to .222, collecting 14 kills against just one error in 27 attempts. Save for a 1-1 tie, UNM led throughout, building a trio of 10-point leads, including the final 25-15 spread following a combined block by Kaitlynn Biassou and Rachel Murphy.
Despite knocking down two fewer kills in the third frame (16-14), SDSU took advantage of seven Lobo attack errors while posting three blocks. In addition, Reeves and Sam McGrath stepped up and delivered service aces, helping the Scarlet and Black take a 2-1 lead on the set scoreboard.
The Aztecs forged a pair of seven-point leads, including a 17-10 margin following a Reeves put-away. However, UNM managed to slice the deficit to three on four different occasion, including a 24-21 spread after an errant SDSU attack. The Aztecs withstood the threat following a timeout, as Turnlund supplied the clinching kill.
Buoyed by its good fortune, SDSU rode the momentum into the fourth set, racing to a 7-1 lead, thanks in large part to Lee, who recorded all three of her aces during that span. The Lobos pulled to within 10-7 shortly thereafter, but O'Sullivan personally took control with three straight kills, while Reeves soon followed with another to all but extinguish UNM's comeback hopes.
With a 14-7 lead safely in tow, the Aztecs coasted the rest of the way, as O'Sullivan appropriately ended the match with a kill to cap an 11-7 closing run.
The Lobos were led by Bierria (15 kills, 10 digs) and Twitty (12 kills, 10 digs) who each logged a double-double, while Biassou finished with 12 put-aways as well in the loss.
UP NEXT
San Diego State closes out its weekend road trip on Saturday, Nov. 2, when it battles UNLV, starting at 2 p.m. PT.
Volleyball Victorious at New Mexico in Four Sets
