The Western New Mexico University Mustangs concluded their four-match homestand the way it began - with a sweep.

WNMU had two hitters in double figures, with Stephanie Higgins (Biggsville, IL/) and Jennifer Snowbarger (Oskaloosa, IA/Oskaloosa High School) recording 25 and 15 kills, respectively, during the 30-20, 30-11 and 30-28 win over Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Sunday afternoon.

But despite the Mustangs extending their consecutive-game winning streak to 33, and match streak to 11, WNMU coach Jim Callender was critical of his team's uninspired performance.

"A few people didn't come to play," he said. "If one person doesn't come to play and they're on the court, the other five can't cover - it's a team sport.

"No matter who you play, you should be motivated to play your best. If you don't give your best - don't be here."

Aside from the game-two rout, which the Mustangs won by a 19-point margin, WNMU needed to rally from deficits in the first and third games.

In the finale, the Eagles led by as many as nine points before the Mustangs made their final push.

At 16-7, a Lindsey Morrison kill sparked a 4-1 WNMU run, as the Mustangs began to whittle away the deficit. Jillian Caves (Moline, IL/Moline High School) later posted three unanswered points on serve, which featured kills by Snowbarger and Higgins, pulling the Mustangs to within three.

While the Eagles kept the Mustangs at bay, and held a 28-27 lead, Caves, again, kept Embry-Riddle's back row off-balance, forcing a shanked pass off her first serve to tie the game. Morrison followed with a block, and a Snowbarger kill sealed the win.

"They did a good job coming back, but it was a matter of sitting down the people who weren't focusing," Callender said, "and the ones who were sitting need to understand that they need to put it to a higher gear, too."

Callender was most vocal about the disparity in set opportunities for his starters, with Higgins receiving 48 and Snowbarger, 27. No other Mustang received more than eight setting assists.

Teams are going to know that they need to stop two people - that's it," he said. "We've got to spread the ball around - that's part of the problem. The only way we're going to improve is if we get other people involved and they step up. If not, were going to be where we're at."

Despite the Mustangs being 2-0 in the Heartland Conference and 12-3 overall, Callender's criticism of his squad stemmed from the fact that, without improvement, the Mustangs may fall short of their ultimate goal.

"Whether or not you're the conference champion - it doesn't matter. Because, basically, all it does is give you a better seed," he said. "You need to win the conference tournament to get the automatic bid (to the NCAA Division II Southwest Regional Tournament)."

"It's more important for us to focus on every match, because we can get an at-large bid wrapped up before the (conference) tournament. Then, we can control our own destiny."

So, with less than half of the regular season remaining, Callender said all he wants to do is remove any doubt from the NCAA Division II committee that his squad should receive the bid for the Southwest Regional Tournament. And the easiest way to do that? Win.

"We need to take care of every match now - that makes things a little harder down the road," he said. "Can we run the table? Absolutely. But, that'll take a lot of focus, and a lot of hard work. Are we capable? No question."

Against the Eagles, Higgins led the team in digs, with 10; Courtney Heiser (Tempe, AZ/Marcos de Niza High School) had nine; and Jessica Lindgren (Albuquerque, NM/Cibola High School) and Melanie Tang (Honolulu, HI/Mary Knoll High School), seven. In kills, Meghan Watson (Kailua, HI/Kailua High School) and Caves had eight. Danika Tarkington connected on six of her seven hitting attempts, for six kills and a match-high .857 hitting percentage.

WNMU travels to face Montana State University-Billings on Friday.

WNMU 3, Dallas Baptist 0
On Saturday, the Mustangs topped Dallas Baptist, 30-20, 30-20 and 30-14.

Higgins and Snowbarger finished with 13 and 12 kills, respectively, as the Mustangs led in hitting percentage - .451 to .133.

Higgins also led WNMU in digs, with 11; Watson had eight digs; and Jessica Lindgren (Albuquerque, NM/Cibola High School), seven. Lindgren also had a match-high three aces.