The No. 16 Texas A&M volleyball team added three wins to its resume after a trip to the Texas borderland. The Aggies swept Arizona, New Mexico State and UT-El Paso in the Borderland Invitational.
The maroon and white faced Arizona Friday in the first match of the weekend, on the NMSU campus. A&M defeated the Wildcats in three straight sets, 25-16, 26-24, 25-20. Junior setter Stephanie Aiple directed the A&M offense to a .298 hitting efficiency. Three Aggies had eight kills each in the match.
Later that evening, A&M played NMSU in the night cap. A&M tallied its second sweep of the day after taking down their fellow Aggies in three straight sets. A&M was down 6-1 in the first set before tying the match at six apiece after five unanswered points. Late in the first set, the Aggies mounted a comeback to take the first set, 25-20.
Despite coming within three points of tying the second set, NMSU was unable to survive the A&M attack, losing the second set, 25-16. In the third and what was ultimately the final set of the game, A&M trailed NMSU 14-9, however the A&M offense went on an 11-2 run after junior opposite hitter Ashlie Reasor recorded had back-to-to back kills, leading to a 25-19 A&M win.
Saturday, the Aggies traveled 46 miles south to El Paso, Texas, for the second and final day of the Borderland Invitational. The Aggies defeated the Miners in UTEP’s first home match of the season. A&M won the first set of the match 25-16.
The second set resulted in a close competition between the Aggies and the Miners. UTEP and A&M were tied at 23 apiece before senior middle blocker Jazzmin Barbers got a block that gave the Aggies the set point. On the ensuing play, the Miners were able to extend the match for another point. However, the Aggies took the took the set 26-24, with a 2-0 lead in the match.
In the final set of the weekend, the Aggies jumped to a 15-8 lead over the Miners and never trailed in the set. A&M took the 25-15 win over the Miners to close out tournament play and improving their overall record to 6-3.
Texas A&M head coach Laurie Corbelli said that she was happy with her team’s performance throughout the weekend. Corbelli also said that the week ahead of the A&M squad presents a huge challenge for the Aggies, who will play two teams — No. 3 Texas and No. 2 Wisconsin — who are ranked in the top three.
“They are definitely two of the best teams in the country,” Corbelli told 12thman.com. “How exciting. I love playing those kinds of matches. I think it’s the way you get better. It’s the way you learn to compete harder. It’s figuring out how to win. It’s going to be a lot of fun. I’m sure the atmosphere for both matches is just going to be one of the best. I think they are marquee matches for the week for the country and women’s collegiate volleyball, so it’s going to be fun to be a part of that.”
The Aggies will be back in action Wednesday as they travel to Austin to face longtime rival Texas in a midweek matchup.
