DURANGO, Colo.  – Texas A&M International volleyball (1-3) dropped their opening match of the Skyhawks Tournament to Lone Star Conference foe West Texas A&M (4-0) in a 3-0 (14-25, 23-25, 14-25) decision.

Sophomore Mackenzie Catalina led the Dustdevils with 10 kills as well as four digs and one assist. Senior Annie Deininger posted seven kills, two blocks, a dig and an ace. Senior Sammantha Herrera also added seven kills. Sophomore Maison Kosse contributed 25 assists with three digs, two blocks and an ace. Hannah Semon added 10 digs.

TAMIU opened the match with an early 3-1 lead, only to see it evaporate as the Lady Buffs ran out on a 6-1 run to take a 7-4 lead. From there, WT strung together multiple long runs, including another 6-1 run and a 7-2 run. They eventually took the set 25-14.

The Dustdevils seemed to find their footing in the second frame as they went up 6-2 to start the set. The Lady Buffs rallied though and took the lead 10-8 on an 8-2 run. However, TAMIU refused to give up and put together a 7-2 run of their own to reclaim the advantage 16-13. Things grew tight for several points as both squads traded the lead back and forth. The Dustdevils managed to come out on top 22-19, but could not hang on as WT closed out the set on a 6-1 run to take the frame 25-23.

The third set began extremely tight and featured two lead changes and 10 ties early. The Lady Buffs eventually broke out on a 4-0 run to take a 14-10 lead. After that, WT was able to string together runs to keep TAMIU at bay. They closed out the match on a 9-1 run to seal the victory with a 25-14 decision in the final set.

TAMIU will be back in action later this afternoon as the take on tournament host Fort Lewis at 4:30 p.m.