Box Score
ALAMOSA, Colo. – In a battle for the top spot in the RMAC West Division, the Western New Mexico University volleyball team looked to be in good shape up 2-0 against Adams State College Friday night. But, the Grizzlies fought back to force a deciding fifth set in which they took to stun the Mustangs, 3-2 (25-22, 25-18, 19-25, 20-25, 8-15).
The first set started out with a bang for ASC (12-4, 6-2 RMAC) as they raced out to a 6-0 lead and still led 11-4, before WNMU (10-7, 6-3 RMAC) came fighting back.
An attack error started the rally and one that would see the Mustangs reel off ten straight points.
Malayzha Dinkins (Corona, CA/Santiago High School) posted the next point with a kill and after an attack error,
Heather Rux (Cottonwood, AZ/Mingus Union High School) and Dinkins combined to force another attack error on a block to make it 11-8 and force Adams State into a timeout.
Out of the timeout, Rux posted two kills and an attack error by the Grizzlies tied the set at eleven.
Angelina Pulu (Long Beach, CA/Robert A. Millikan High School) pushed WNMU in front with a kill and after Dinkins added another kill,
Alyssa Meihack (Fallon, NV/Churchill County High School) delivered a kill to give WNMU a 14-11 lead.
ASC would come back to tie the set a couple of times, with the last one at 15 before WNMU began to pull away again.
An attack error broke the tie in favor of WNMU and Dinkins followed that with a service ace for a two-point advantage. Rux and Pulu added kills for the next two points for a 19-15 lead.
The Grizzlies would get to within a point, 20-19, but that would be as close as they would get. An attack error followed for ASC and another one on a solo block by Pulu made it 22-19 and another timeout by ASC.
Out of the timeout, ASC posted a point, but the block party came back for the Mustangs in the form of
Jordan Johnston (Boise, ID/Centennial High School), as she assisted on back-to-back blocks with Pulu helping on the first and
Ziona Verhulsdonk (Kailua, HI/Hawaii Preparatory Academy) the second to make it 24-20.
Verhulsdonk then closed out the set with a kill after ASC scored a pair of points for the 25-22 set win.
WNMU roared out of the gates in the second set, opening a 5-1 lead on two kills by Johnston, and blocks by Verhulsdonk and Johnston.
The Mustangs pushed the lead to six, 14-8, on a kill by Pulu to prompt ASC into a timeout.
WNMU would continue to control the rest of the set, as the Grizzlies would get to within five, 22-17, but that would be as close as they would get with an attack error and another one that led to a block by Rux and Pulu made it 24-17 in favor of the Mustangs.
After ASC tallied a point, Pulu delivered a kill to end the set with WNMU taking it 25-18 and pushing the match lead to two sets to none.
The Grizzlies refused to go down, opening the third set with an 8-1 lead.
WNMU would get back to within two, 11-9, with Pulu and Verhulsdonk posting a kill each to get WNMU back in the set.
The would be as close as WNMU would get, as the Grizzlies reeled off the next three points and never looked back, taking the set, 25-19.
The fourth set was nip-and-tuck early on with the teams tied several times, including a tie at 14 all.
ASC broke the tie to take a 16-14 lead, which led to a WNMU timeout.
ASC would get the lead as high as three, 18-15, but WNMU came back with a kill by Rux and another by Johnston to trim the deficit to one, 18-17.
The Mustangs would fall behind by two again, 20-18, but a kill by Johnston kept WNMU close at 20-19.
Johnston would come through with another kill to make it 22-20, ASC would score the final three points to take the set, 25-20.
WNMU opened the decisive fifth set with a 2-0 lead on a pair of attack errors by the Grizzlies.
ASC would come back to tie the set at two, before a kill by Pulu gave WNMU the lead back at 3-2.
It would go back-and-forth with the teams tying at six in which ASC took control, scoring the next five points to open up an 11-6 lead.
WNMU would get two points back on a service error and an attack error, but it wouldn't be enough, as ASC closed the game winning the final four points for the victory.
Pulu posted 19 kills, two assists, 10 digs and four blocks.
Verhulsdonk was in double-digit in kills with 14, while also adding three blocks.
Meihack handed out 39 assists, while
Kassie Kagawa (Hilo, HI/Waiakea High School) led the way in digs with 17.
Johnston led the team in blocks with five, all assisted.
ASC posted 12 more kills (68-56), six more assists (61-55), while WNMU had five more blocks (10-5).
WNMU will return to action next Thursday, October 13 when they will remain on the road at Regis beginning at 7 p.m.
Short Box Score (Match)
Western New Mexico vs Adams State College (Oct 07, 2011 at Alamosa, Colo.)
Adams State College def. Western New Mexico 22-25,18-25,25-19,25-20,15-8
Western New Mexico (10-7, 6-3 RMAC) (Kills-aces-blocks) - Angelina
Pulu 19-0-4;
Ziona Verhulsdonk (Kailua, HI/Hawaii Preparatory Academy) 14-0-3;
Heather Rux (Cottonwood, AZ/Mingus Union High School) 9-0-3; Malayzha
Dinkins 8-1-1;
Jordan Johnston (Boise, ID/Centennial High School) 5-0-5; Alyssa Melhack 1-0-0; Taylor
Henderson 0-0-2; Totals 56-1-10.0. (Assists) - Alyssa Melhack 39;
Marilee Frost (Long Beach, CA/Robert A. Millikan High School) 13. (Dig leaders) -
Kassie Kagawa (Hilo, HI/Waiakea High School) 17;
Angelina Pulu (Long Beach, CA/Robert A. Millikan High School) 10;
Marilee Frost (Long Beach, CA/Robert A. Millikan High School) 9; Alyssa Melhack 9
Adams State College (12-4, 6-2 RMAC) (Kills-aces-blocks) - Dominique
Davis 20-1-0; Letisha Spencer 19-0-2; Gabriella Rifilato 9-1-1;
Deprece Washington 8-0-3; Megan Tapia 4-1-1; Bri Norlock 4-0-1;
Mikaela Hoelsken 3-0-0; AJ Palmer 1-4-0; Crissy Skokan 0-0-1; Totals
68-7-5.0. (Assists) - Gabriella Rifilato 49. (Dig leaders) - Dominique
Davis 14; AJ Palmer 12; Kelsey Huckle 10; Valerie Garcia 8
Site: Alamosa, Colo. (Plachy Hall)
Date: Oct 07, 2011 Attend: 479 Time: 1:48
Referees: Kim Renquest, Kathy Cox
