NMSU Volleyball Offense Shines in Exhibition Win Over Western NM

LAS CRUCES, New Mexico (KVIA) -- The preseason is in the past, and the regular season is up next for NM State Volleyball. The Aggies welcomed Western New Mexico for an exhibition on Sunday, sweeping the Mustangs in three sets. Starr Williams was sensational in the win, tallying 15 kills on 28 attempts, with two blocks to complement her .536 hitting percentage. The Aggies hit .321 as a team overall to take the match in convincing fashion. 

FIRST SET

The Aggies got out to a blazing hot start, pulling ahead 16-6 on a Yasso Amin kill. The Mustangs responded with a 5-0 run, cutting the lead to just five points. However, the Crimson & White answered with a 6-4 run that included four combined kills from Mari Sharp and Starr Williams to close out the set. 

SECOND SET

The two sides went back and forth, trading ties nearly every point until the teams were knotted at 7-7. After a small run put the home squad in front 14-12, the Aggies went on an 11-1 run to close out the set. Maggie Lightheart amassed an ace, a block assist and a kill over the stretch, while Starr Williams added back-to-back kills, entering double-digit-kill territory after just two sets. 

THIRD SET

After a pair of Aggie attack errors pulled the Mustangs within one point of the home squad, NM State posted arguably its most dominant stretch of the afternoon. Back-to-back Mia Fox blocks highlighted a 6-0 run that set up match point, which the Aggies capitalized on one point later with an Ashley Herman kill.

Head Coach Mike Jordan, on the Aggies’ performance against Western NM: “I liked our depth. I thought the setters, for the most part, did a pretty good job. I thought we tipped a few too many balls when we had opportunities to challenge the block. I think some of the young players did a good job. All of our smalls did a good job. All in all, it was a pretty good performance.”

Junior setter Nellie Reese, on her 25-assist performance: “I think today Starr [Williams] and I connected really well, and we have been connecting well at practice, but I was happy to see it in the game. I felt really good about my outside sets today, so I was happy with those.”

Junior setter Nellie Reese, on what the team needs to improve on heading into the regular season: “I think this week at practice, we have to just think about going into every match and every set expecting it to be a fight. Gregg [Whitis] talks a lot about that. I think that’s a big thing we can focus on, because there are spurts of it, but if we can do it the entire set, that’d be really good.”

UP NEXT

The Aggies will head east to Atlanta, Ga. for two games at the Georgia Tech Invitational. Up first, NM State will play Coastal Carolina in a neutral match at 1:00 PM MT on Friday, Aug. 30. Then, the Aggies will take on the hosting Yellow Jackets in a bout with the No. 14 team in the nation. The battle between the Aggies and Yellow Jackets will be streamed live on ESPN+ and available to follow via StatBroadcast.

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