The Mustangs lost a battle to Mesa State College in five sets (15-25, 25-23, 28-30, 25-20, 15-10) Saturday evening. WNMU started off strong winning the first set by 10 points, but Mesa State answered with a win in the second set. Mesa State was led by Tessa Andrews with 24 kills, and Tara King recorded 60 assists. 

In the first set, the Mustangs made a 9-3 run and continued a fairly strong lead throughout the game. Natali Murdock (Phoenix, AZ, Pinnacle High School) and Heather Rux (Cottonwood, AZ, Mingus Union High School) each earned three kills, and Ellen East (Pomerene, AZ, Benson High School, Yavapai Community College) posted eight assists in the first set. WNMU only generated two attacking errors compared to their opponent's 11, which proved to be the key to winning the set. 

In the second set, the Mustangs came up just short. The Mavericks added on 17 kills, and WNMU delivered 18. East collected 15 more assists, and the Maverick's Tara King added 12 assists. King ended the set with a service ace.

The third set was a nail-biter. The two teams were tied 15 times during this set. A few Mesa kills and a few WNMU errors seemed to be the fire that Mesa State needed to tie the game at 21. Both teams battled through the next nine points following kill after kill. Mesa State's coach argued that game point winner was touched by WNMU but lost the fight as WNMU took game three.  The Mustangs were ahead, 2-1. 

WNMU got off to a rocky start in set three as the Mavericks went on a 10-3 run. King served six consecutive points. The Mustangs began to make a comeback but made their run too little too late as Mesa State took the fourth set. 

Antoinette McCormick appeared to be the icing on the cake for Mesa State. In the short fifth set, she tallied five kills. The Mavericks pulled away with crucial kills by McCormick and Alisan Tompkins, making the score 13-7. 

Murdock and Ziona Verhulsdonk (Kailua, HI, Hawaii Preparatory Academy) finished with 14 kills a piece. Verhulsdonk only committed three attacking errors on the night and had seven block assists. As a team, WNMU dominated in the blocking category. They out-blocked the Mavericks 12 to 5. 

East had a double-double with 46 assists and 11 digs. She also pitched in with seven kills. 

Defensively, Marilee Frost (Long Beach, CA, Robert A. Millikan High School) led the team with 16 digs. 

The Mustangs are home again Friday, September 18th against CSU-Pueblo at 7:00 p.m. 

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