ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Utah State volleyball (19-9, 11-6 Mountain West) lost 3-1 to New Mexico (17-10, 8-9 MW) on Thursday night.
Three Aggies finished the night with double-digit kills as sophomore opposite side hitter Adna Mehmedovic had 15, senior outside hitter Shelby Capllonch had 13 and junior outside Tatum Stall had 12.
Three USU student-athletes logged double-doubles as Capllonch had 13 digs, freshman setter Leah Wilton-LaBoy had 25 assists and 13 digs and sophomore setter Beatriz Rodrigues had 16 assists and 10 digs. Redshirt sophomore libero Jordi Holdaway added 10 digs, while graduate middle blocker Myrthe Maring led the squad with seven blocks.
A kill from senior opposite Kylee Stokes gave the Aggies the 10-7 lead in set one, but the Lobos countered with seven-straight points for the 14-10 edge. After UNM extended its lead to 22-14, an 8-1 Aggie run trimmed the margin to one at 23-24. However, New Mexico held on for the 25-23 win.
Set two stayed tight until a 6-1 USU run, highlighted by kills Capllonch, Stall and Mehmedovic, blocks from Maring, Mehmedovic and senior middle blocker Kennedi Boyd, along with a Holdaway ace gave Utah State the 14-9 advantage. A 7-1 Aggie run, capped by a Maring and Stokes block, later put USU ahead 22-13. A Mehmedovic kill gave Utah State set point, and a New Mexico attacking error secured the 25-17 Aggie win.
New Mexico won set three 25-15.
After some back and forth to open set four, a 5-0 Lobo run gave UNM the 7-3 lead. New Mexico maintained the margin until a 6-1 Utah State run, highlighted by Capllonch and Mehmedovic kills, cut the lead to 20-18. The Aggie were unable to overcome the two-point hump, however, as the Lobos won 25-21.
Overall, USU hit .219 (59-26-151), while UNM hit .265 (50-14-136).
Utah State wraps up its regular season at Air Force (14-15, 6-11 MW) on Saturday, Nov. 19, at 1 p.m.
Fans can follow the Aggie volleyball program on Twitter, @USUVolleyball, on Facebook at /USUVolleyball or on Instagram, @usuvolleyball. Aggie fans can also follow the Utah State athletic program on Twitter, @USUAthletics, Facebook at /USUAthletics and on Instagram, @USUAthletics.
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