San Diego State women’s volleyball team lost against the No. 2 team in the Mountain West conference, New Mexico, 1-3 with set scores of 25-19, 21-25, 26-28, 16-28.
Outside hitter Heipua Tuatua’a, opposite hitter Taylor Underwood and middle blocker Julia Haynie were on top of the team’s kill leaderboard, with each recording 11 kills.
Tuatua’a and Underwood also had a solid defensive performance, with both being involved in a pair of team blocks. Tuatua’s earned eight digs with Underwood behind her with seven digs.
Returning with an impact was outside hitter Madison Corf. In three sets played, Corf earned eight kills and was involved in three team blocks.
Sitters Fatimah Hall and Sarena Gonzalez combined for 42 assists, with Hall leading the Aztecs in assists with 22. In addition, Hall recorded eight digs and was involved in a team block. Defensive specialist Douglas McKenna led the team with 18 digs.
The Aztecs began with a hot start taking a 9-3 lead in the first set, forcing the Lobos to take an early timeout. While the Lobos tried to claw their way back, the Aztecs maintained their dominance throughout the set, not allowing a tying score.
Tuatua’a, Underwood, Haynie and middle blocker Hague Campbell all earned three kills in the set. The team had 14 kills in the first set, earning the first-set victory 25-19.
The Aztecs offensive performance halted after the Aztecs tied the second set 5-5 as the Lobos scored 6 unanswered points, taking a 5-11 lead.
The Aztecs came back to tie the game 19-19 after Corf and middle blocker Kat Cooper paired up for a team block, but the Aztecs could not take advantage late. Once tied 21-21 the Lobos scored 4 unanswered to close the set 21-24.
Tied 1-1, the third set became the defining set for both teams. The Aztecs took an early 10-5 lead after scoring 5 unanswered points. Both teams battled it out, but two stretches of unanswered points by the Lobos gave New Mexico the lead late 18-20.
The Lobos maintained the lead getting a set point opportunity 22-24, but kills by Underwood and Tuatua’a forced overtime. Despite Tuatua’a setting up two set-point opportunities, the Lobos closed the set with 3 unanswered points 26-29.
The momentum carried into the fourth set with the Lobos taking an early 6-7 lead. From that point on, the Aztecs were not able to take the lead the rest of the set and were outscored 10-18.
This is the second meeting between SDSU and New Mexico, with SDSU now 0-2 against the Lobos this season. The Aztecs first meeting with New Mexico was nearly identical with the Aztecs taking a first-set win 25-19 and losing in the last three sets.
The Aztecs are now 3-8 in the conference and are currently on a two-game losing streak.
The Aztecs will continue their road trip to the USAF Academy in Colorado, where SDSU will face the Air Force Falcons in their second meeting this Saturday Oct. 28 at noon.
