ENMU volleyball falls twice on road

It was a tough weekend for the Eastern New Mexico volleyball team, which dropped two matches in the Lone Star State, falling 3-1 at Lubbock Christian on Saturday afternoon after getting swept at Angelo State a day earlier.

Good start Saturday

LUBBOCK — The Greyhounds began well Saturday against Lubbock Christian, winning the first set 25-20 after having trailed 2-0 early and 11-10 later on.

Eastern, though, responded to the latter deficit by reeling off five straight points — a set-tying kill by Julie Tucker, a tie-breaking error by Lubbock Christian, a Sara Tuioti-Mariner kill, another Lubbock Christian error, and a Jasmine Gannon kill, making it 15-11 ENMU.

Though a 16-12 lead was shrunk to 16-15, and a 24-17 match-point opportunity melted to 24-20, a Lauren Bresnahan kill polished it off the Greyhounds, handing them a 1-0 set advantage.

Eastern jumped out to a 2-0 point lead in the second set, and eventually led 19-18, just six points away from a 2-0 set lead.

A kill by Lubbock Christian’s Hailey Cournoyer tied the set at 19, and the Chaps went up 20-19 on an error. A Bresnahan kill tied it at 20 before Lubbock Christian won five of the next six points to take the set 25-21.

The Chaps breezed to a 5-0 lead and 23-10 victory in the third set, then squeaked out a 25-23 fourth-set victory to secure a match victory.

Lubbock Christian improved to 9-9, 3-6 in the Lone Star Conference, while Eastern fell to 3-14, 1-8 in LSC play.

Black Friday

SAN ANGELO, Texas — Friday night, the Greyhounds struggled defensively in their match against Angelo State, and fell in straight sets 25-15, 25-7, 25-17, inside Stephens Arena.

The Hounds were held to just 25 total kills on the night and limited to a .106 team attacking percentage in the first two frames. Eastern did turn in an efficient third set but the Rams finished the match with a scorching .519 hitting percentage.

Tuioti-Mariner registered the match’s first point following a kill set up by setter Rae Sapiga. The set remained competitive through the midway point tied at 7-7 before the home team went on an 8-1 run to blow it open before securing the set with a 25-15 final.

The Rams took control in the second set and were able to jump out to an early 14-2 lead, from which the Hounds never recovered. ENMU recorded just five kills in the middle frame on 22 total attacks.

The Hounds’ offensive attack fared better in the final frame as they finished with a game-high 13 kills and a .303 hitting percentage. Eastern held a 7-6 advantage early capped off by a kill from outside hitter Lauren Bresnahan, but the Rams rattled off five of the last six points as they cruised to a 25-17 victory.

Tuioti-Mariner and Gannon tallied a team-high five kills apiece, while Rae Sapiga led the squad with 10 assists. Defensively, Tuioti-Mariner, Sapiga and freshman Qitana Sapiga contributed equally and totaled four digs.

Eastern will be home at Greyhound Arena Tuesday to face West Texas A&M. Match time is scheduled for 6 p.m.