Box Score ALAMOSA, Colo. – After a close first set, the Western New Mexico University volleyball team would make quick work of Adams State University coming away with another sweep, 3-0 (25-23, 25-21, 25-17) Friday night in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference action.
The opening set would be close in the early parts, with the teams tying several times with the last coming at 18. From that point on, WNMU (9-12, 6-8 RMAC) would end up controlling the set and the match.
Leeta Grap (Kamuela, HI/Hawaii Preparatory Academy) tallied a kill and later
Lauren Buseman (Eagar, AZ/Round Valley) added one to boost the advantage to three, 23-20.
Heather Verrill (Barstow, CA/Barstow ), who had yet another big game going for 10 kills and five blocks, put the Lady Mustangs a point away with a kill at 24-21. ASU (12-10, 6-7 RMAC) would come back with a pair of tallies to get to within one before
Shannon Rich (Folsom, CA/Folsom) ended the set with a kill for the 25-23 set victory.
WNMU would end up getting 14 kills in each set and as the match progressed, so did the hitting percentages. The Lady Mustangs finished the first with a .233 percentage and then collected a .303 in the second before finishing with a resounding .462.
In the second set, the Lady Mustangs began to pull away after the set was tied at 14. Rich and Buseman would combine for a block and then after a solo block by Rich, a Grizzlies attack error had WNMU ahead, 17-14. ASU would fight back to knot the set at 17 just to watch the Lady Mustangs answer with a kill by Buseman and then a solo block by Grap. A Verrill kill and attack error had the Lady Mustangs in front by four and they wouldn't look back.
Kelli McGhiey (Pearl City, HI/Sacred Hearts Academy ) tallied a kill and then a Rich solo block gave WNMU the set, 25-21, and a 2-0 match lead.
The third set was all Lady Mustangs from the start. Tied at three, WNMU would go on a 6-1 run to take a five-point lead. Rich,
Sheila Menezes (Sao Paulo, Brazil/Escola Estadual Prof. Antonio Ablas Filho) and Grap each added points during the run. The advantage ballooned to six on a kill by Grap at 17-11. ASU would come back to within four at 20-16, but WNMU was ready coming back with Verrill getting two kills, a solo block and then later another solo block at 25-17 to seal the set and the 3-0 match sweep.
WNMU hit .314 for the match, their highest of the season. They tallied 42 kills to just 10 errors in 102 chances. They limited ASU to a .119 clip (42 kills, 28 errors in 118 chances) behind 13 blocks. Grap led the way with 11 kills, while Verrill posted 10 and hit .615.
Melanie Hughes (Riverside, CA/Martin Luther King Jr.) dished out 22 assists to lead the team. Menezes posted 13 digs, while Rich tallied six blocks.
The win has WNMU near the top-eight and a possible spot in the RMAC Tournament. At 6-8, WNMU is just a half-game out of seventh and 1.5 back of fifth. WNMU will now be off until returning home next Friday when they will host Fort Lewis at 7 p.m. inside Drag's Court. The Lady Mustangs will also be wearing pink shirts in support of Breast Cancer Awareness month.
