The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
New Mexico State
Volleyball defeats New Mexico State in exhibition match
04.12.2014 | Volleyball
Rising seniors Haley Eckerman and Khat Bell combine for 24 kills.
Box Score | Photo Gallery
AUSTIN, Texas -- The Texas Volleyball team defeated the New Mexico State Aggies, 4-1 (25-17, 25-8, 25-17, 22-25, 15-7), Saturday afternoon at Gregory Gymnasium.
Texas hit .351 for the match with 54 kills and 14 errors, while NMSU was held to a .078 hitting clip.
Three-time All-American and rising senior Haley Eckerman led the Longhorns with 13 kills and two aces. Rising junior Nicole Dalton and rising sophomore Chloe Collins shared setting duties, notching 24 and 17 assists, respectively.
NMSU's Bradley Nash led the Aggie attack with 16 kills, while Taylor Livoti collected 30 assists.
In the opening set, the Longhorns and Aggies exchanged points until Texas used a 4-0 spurt to take a 15-12 edge. Texas used Eckerman's power serve to rack up three straight points, stretching the lead to a commanding 21-14 mark en route to a 25-17 win.
Texas executed a near flawless second set, hitting at a .550 clip with 12 kills and just one error. UT raced out to an 8-0 advantage, propelled by two kills and a block from freshman Mirta Baselovic. The barrage continued, as the Croatia native, Baselovic, served up an ace to cap off the 25-8 second-set victory.
In the third, NMSU jumped out to their largest lead of the match at 13-8. Texas clawed its way back, cutting the deficit to one at 15-16. Back-to-back kills from the lone seniors, Eckerman and Khat Bell, gave the Longhorns their first lead since 7-6. Bell fueled an 11-1 run with five kills down the stretch to give Texas the 25-17 third-set win.
Texas and NMSU battled throughout the fourth set before the Aggies emerged with the win, 25-22. NMSU opened with a 9-7 edge, but the Longhorns responded and tied it at 10 apiece. The Aggies reclaimed the lead, using a 5-1 run to take a 15-11 lead. Junior Tiffany Baker tallied a block, block-assist and kill to command a 7-1 answer from the Longhorns to grab a 19-17 advantage. NMSU would finish off the fourth with an 8-3 burst to take the set.
Texas defeated NMSU, 15-7, in the final set to win the match, 4-1. Collins tallied UT's 14th ace of the match to finish off the Aggies.
The Longhorns are set to conclude the spring season at the LSC Collegiate Showcase on April 19 in Dallas.
