NMMI Sports Press
The New Mexico Military Institute’s Lady Colt volleyball team couldn’t quite overcome a slow start, dropping their last clash in non-district play to Fort Sumner: 25-12, 25-20, 21-25, 25-18.
Set 1 saw a 4-0 Vixen lead until NMMI senior outside hitter Anastasia Ament knocked down a pair of kills. But Fort Sumner’s tough play at the net behind their twin towers Allyssa and Emmarie Casaus, combined with unforced errors by the Lady Colts, expanded their lead as the set continued.
The momentum stayed with the Vixens in Set 2 and a 8-0 run. This time it was Ashlynn Irish who stopped the bleeding with a rare kill from the NMMI libero. NMMI’s other attackers finally started to get into a rhythm and the Lady Colts slowly battled back on kills from a pair of freshman: Vitoria Assis over the middle, and Kaytlyn Lackey on the outside.
A big swing from the right set from NMMI junior Sara Pires cut the lead to four, 18-14, and three quick Fort Sumner errors, followed by another Lackey kill knotted the score 19-19. But the Vixens were able to seal the set with a final 6-2 run.
In the third set, it was NMMI with the early lead and holding on to get the win. Excellent serving helped NMMI throughout with aces by Ament, Pires and Irish down the stretch, along with an athletic block-then-kill combo by senior middle Paulina Sanchez.
Set 4 saw a return of play similar to the opening stanza: big kills from the Fort Sumner’s Causas twins, along with NMMI errors on attack and receive. The Vixens ran out to a 10-2 lead, but the never-say-die Colts mounted another comeback, cutting the lead to just three, 14-11, on a kill by Ament. Ament, Pires and Lackey each had one more kill in the remainder of the set, but the Vixens pulled away with the final four-set win.
“I think taking a week off with no volleyball is a little tough,” said NMMI head coach Chantale Riddle. “We have worked really hard on our skills in practice, but missed playing in an actual match - our rhythm got shaken up and we lost a bit of that competitive drive.”
“I think this was a great game to have right before district,” continued coach Riddle. “We’re still doing really good things – we just need to translate what we learned in practice to the game setting.”
The loss puts the Lady Colts record at an even 8-8 on the season. They open up district play next week, starting with the Warriors in Ruidoso on Thursday, Oct. 19, part of a three-game road swing before returning home on Thursday, November 2.