UNM volleyball stays hot with win over San Diego State
Oct. 26—Dig Pink night got off to a sputtering start for the University of New Mexico volleyball team, but the Lobos finished on a high note.
Kaitlynn Biassou racked up a match-high 17 kills — including some key ones in the pivotal third set — and UNM rallied for a 3-1 victory over San Diego State at Johnson Center on Thursday night.
The set scores were 19-25, 25-21, 28-26 and 25-16.
It was the seventh win in eight matches for the Lobos (16-6 overall, 8-3 Mountain West), who moved into sole possession of second place in the league standings when Wyoming swept past Boise State on Thursday.
But UNM had to scratch and claw for its latest win, fighting off two set points in the third before finally taking control against the Aztecs.
"We have a mentality of coming out and setting the tone," Biassou said, "but San Diego State didn't let that happen. Fortunately, this team has also been resilient. When we know it's getting tight, we want the ball even more and usually find a way to make a play."
The key plays Thursday came after UNM and SDSU split the first two sets and traded runs in a tight third set. The Lobos had two shots to finish it with a 24-22 lead, but SDSU reeled off three straight points to force a UNM timeout.
When the action resumed, Biassou hammered a spike off an SDSU defender that soared into a light fixture near the ceiling and ended with a UNM point. Lauren Payne added a key kill as the Lobos rallied to take the set and a 2-1 lead.
"That finally got us rolling," Biassou said. "We're always really confident at home, but it seems like every match is a battle in this league."
The Lobos seemed to hit their stride in the fourth set, getting a pair of big blocks from Elizabeth Woods and Athina Dimitriadis as they stretched a 14-12 lead to 19-12. The Lobos finally put the victory away on a Kali Wolf kill and promptly lined up to sign postgame autographs.
UNM had to fight through some unforced errors but maintained its high-level defense throughout most of the match. The Lobos limited SDSU to a .123 attack percentage and finished the night with 64 digs and 12 total blocks.
Biassou (10 digs) was one of three Lobos to post double-doubles as UNM completed a sweep of its season series with the Aztecs. Uxue Guereca added 11 kills and 11 digs, while setter Melissa Walden amassed 20 assists and 13 digs.
Julia Haynie had 11 kills and hit .429 to pace San Diego State.
UNM will host UNLV on Saturday at 1 p.m. as it looks to extend its run in the Mountain West race.
Four of the Lobos' last six matches are on the road, including trips to Utah State, Boise State, Colorado State and Wyoming.
