Hounds come up short again to LSC foe

PORTALES — After a strong start in pre-conference play, Eastern New Mexico University continues to have buzzard’s luck in its Lone Star Conference slate.

The Greyhounds dropped their second five-setter of the week on Friday night, running out of steam in the final set in a 23-25, 26-24, 23-25, 29-27, 15-7 loss to St. Mary’s at Greyhound Arena, a match that took nearly three hours to complete.

On Wednesday night, visiting Texas Woman’s eked out a 25-21, 12-25, 25-27, 25-14, 15-12 win over ENMU (9-9, 0-6 LSC).

In a tilt which went back and forth all night, the Rattlers (7-9, 3-2) opened a 14-5 lead in the fifth set with a 9-1 surge that was too much for the Hounds to overcome.

Junior outside hitter Brianna Morris-Worth collected 16 kills for St. Mary’s, while sophomore setter Cali Nims notched a double-double with 22 digs and 38 assists.

Three ENMU players fashioned double-doubles — junior outside hitter/setter Jaylynn Nihipali (24 assists, a season-best 22 digs), senior setter Qitana Sapiga (26 assists, 11 digs) and senior middle blocker Adriana Puni (11 kills, 17 digs).

The Hounds were slated to host St. Edward’s on Saturday. They will wrap up a four-match homestand on Wednesday with a 6 p.m. tilt against Midwestern State.

Texas Woman’s 3, ENMU 2 (Wednesday) — The Hounds dominated Games 2 and 4, lost close sets in the first and third and then came up short in the finale.

Freshman outside hitter Kaia Saylor led TWU with 13 kills, while senior middle blocker Trixie Ochs combined seven kills and five total blocks (one solo). For ENMU, junior outside hitter/libero Rylee Mapes posted a personal-best 18 kills — 13 more than her previous high. Nihipali added her seventh double-double of the campaign with 17 digs and 24 assists, while Puni and sophomore outside hitter Mikaela Garvin collected seven total blocks each (including one solo apiece).

TWU (11-7, 2-4), which lost at West Texas A&M on Friday night, used a 10-3 run to erase a late four-point deficit and take control of the opening set. The Hounds countered with a 15-2 charge to erase a 3-2 deficit in Game 2 and square the match.

In Game 3, the Pioneers strung together three points to grab a late 24-22 lead. ENMU then countered with a 3-0 run before the Pioneers scored the next three points to take a 2-1 lead in games.

In the fourth set, the Hounds led 7-3 and 12-8, then strung together an 8-2 blitz for a 10-point lead and cruised to the equalizer.

ENMU had early leads of 3-0 and 6-5 in the fifth set before the Pioneers ran off a 7-1 lick to take control. It was the first true road win this season for TWU, which has gone 9-2 in home matches.