OREM, Utah – The Utah Valley University volleyball team rallied to force a decisive fifth game against the undefeated and defending WAC champion New Mexico State Aggies on Thursday night at the UCCU Center, but in the end the Aggies managed to pull out the five-set contest by a score of 3-2 (22-25, 25-22, 25-21, 26-28, 15-7).
 
The setback snaps UVU's (9-12) winning streak at five, but keeps the Wolverines in a tie for second place in the conference standings with a 5-3 WAC record. NM State improves to 18-5 overall and a perfect 8-0 in league play with the victory.
 
"The girls did everything that that they needed to in that fourth set. A number of those blocks really got us back into the match and I was hopeful that the momentum would kind of carry us in the fifth set. Unfortunately, we struggled a bit with our passing there in that final set and weren't at our best," said head UVU coach Sam Atoa. "To go five again with New Mexico State and have them here on our home court, we thought we'd be able to get it done. But unfortunately they were the better team there at the end." 
 
Despite suffering the setback, three Wolverines finished in double figures in kills in the contest as Kiahna Vernon, Lexi Thompson and Madison Dennison finished with 14, 11 and 10 respective kills. Dennison also added six blocks at the net for UVU, while Brighton Taylor finished with a career-high 10 blocks of her own and Kelcee Munk tied her career-high with seven. Sierra Starley and Nakisha Willden too played well, as Starley notched her fifth double-double of the season with 35 assists and 10 digs while Willden led UVU from the back row with 28 digs.
 
With NM State holding to a 2-1 lead in the match, both sides traded points early in the fourth set until UVU managed to reel off a 4-0 run to take a 13-10 lead. With the Wolverines later holding to a 15-11 lead, NM State struck back with a 4-1 spurt to pull within one at 16-15. After NMSU later tied it up at 18-18, UVU countered with Vernon kill and a Taylor and a Munk block assist to take a 20-18 lead. The Aggies then immediately answered back with four consecutive points to take a 22-20 advantage of their own. UVU didn't go away however, as it struck back with a critical 4-1 run to take a 24-23 set-point lead. Munk and Taylor led the spurt with a trio of block assists. The set then seesawed back and forth from there until UVU put the set away following a Starley kill and a Starley and Taylor block assist to force a decisive fifth game. Taylor and Munk paced the Wolverines at the net in the set with five block assists apiece.
 
With the decisive fifth set all deadlocked early at 4-4, NM State managed to piece together a 5-1 run to take a 9-5 advantage. Following a Wolverine point, the Aggies then once again responded with a crucial 5-0 spurt to extend their lead to as many as eight at 14-6. NMSU then put the set and the match away two points later on a Jordan Abalos' 20th kill on the night.
 
Tatyana Battle paced the Aggie attack in the contest with a match-high 26 kills. She also was one of three NMSU players to record a double-double on the night, as she added 20 digs.
 
The victory marks NM State's 12th in its last 13 matches and its 22nd consecutive win in WAC play.  
 
The Aggies were the first to get things going in the first set, as they opened up a quick 7-4 lead. The Wolverines struck right back by scoring four of the next five points to tie the score at 8-8. NMSU then answered with a 4-1 spurt of its own to take a 12-9 advantage, but back countered UVU with an 8-2 run to take a 17-14 lead. Dennison paced the rally with two kills and two blocks. NM State then battled back to tie the score at 17-all, but back answered Utah Valley with a 5-2 run to pull back ahead at 22-19. The Wolverines would then go on to take the set five points later, at 25-22, on a Thompson kill.
 
The Aggies were the first to pull ahead in the second set by jumping out to a 10-6 lead following a 4-0 run. With NM State later holding to a 14-8 lead, UVU answered back with a 5-1 spurt to pull within two at 15-13. After a trio of NMSU points, Utah Valley once again countered back seven unanswered points to take a 20-18 advantage of its own.  The Aggies didn't go away however, as they struck back by scoring seven of the final nine points to take the set by a score of 25-22 and tie the match at 1-1.
 
Utah Valley bounced back early in the third set by erupting out to a 7-2 lead. New Mexico State didn't waste any time returning the favor, however, as it reeled off the next five points to tie the score at 7-7. After back-to-back UVU points, NM State managed to piece together another 5-0 spurt to take a 12-9 lead. With the Aggies later holding to a 15-11 advantage, the Wolverines responded with a 6-1 run of their own to take a 16-15 lead. NMSU then struck back with a 4-1 spurt to regain the lead at 20-18. Following a Starley kill, the Aggies answered with four straight points to take a 24-19 set-point advantage. UVU battled back with a pair of points, but NMSU's Brigette Lowe helped the Aggies put the third game away on the very next with a kill.  
 
Despite suffering the defeat, the Wolverines shined at the net in the outing by outblocking NMSU, 16.0 to 6.0.
 
Prior to Thursday's match, the UVU volleyball team honored Austin Buxton from the 21st-ranked Utah Valley men's soccer team, as Buxton is currently undergoing chemotherapy for testicular cancer.
 
The Wolverines will conclude the weekend homestand when UT Rio Grande Valley comes to the UCCU Center on Saturday at 1 p.m. UVU and UTRGV will battle it out for second place in the WAC standings, as both teams will enter the contest with identical 5-3 conference records.