LAREDO, Texas – Texas A&M International volleyball went the distance with Western New Mexico on Friday night, ultimately falling in five sets (25-23, 16-25, 22-25, 32-30, 9-15) inside the TAMIU Kinesiology and Convocation Building.
The Dustdevils (6-9, 0-4 Lone Star Conference) battled through a match that featured 34 tie scores and 17 lead changes, forcing a decisive fifth set after surviving an extended fourth-set battle.
TAMIU opened the night by taking a tightly contested first set, 25-23. The Dustdevils recorded 11 kills while hitting .308 in the opening frame, their best attacking percentage of the match.
Western New Mexico responded in the second set, pulling away for a 25-16 victory before taking a 2-1 match lead with a 25-22 win in the third.
With their backs against the wall, the Dustdevils answered in a marathon fourth set. Neither side was able to create much separation as the teams traded points deep into extra play. TAMIU eventually prevailed, 32-30, behind 14 kills in the frame to force a fifth set.
Western New Mexico grabbed control early in the deciding set and closed out the match with a 15-9 victory.
Ece Ozdemir led the Dustdevils offensively with 14 kills while hitting a team-best .387. She also added four block assists to finish with a team-high 16 points. Mia Molina and Sierra Sanchez each added 13 kills, with Molina collecting 14 digs and Sanchez recording 10 for a double-double. Jaylah Lumar chipped in seven kills.
Giulia Gainelli handed out a team-high 24 assists while adding seven digs and two service aces, while Deanna Montgomery contributed 16 assists and seven digs. Fernanda Izar helped anchor the Dustdevils at the net with two solo blocks and five block assists.
As a team, TAMIU finished with 52 kills, 43 assists, nine service aces, 68 digs and 17 total block assists.
PLAYER SPOTLIGHT:
Ece Ozdemir — Ozdemir led the Dustdevils with 14 kills on a .387 hitting percentage, committing just two attacking errors on 31 attempts. She also contributed four block assists and finished with a team-high 16 points in TAMIU's five-set battle against Western New Mexico.
Ozdemir is a senior outside hitter for Texas A&M International University and is currently pursuing a degree in Multidisciplinary Studies. A native of Antalya, Turkey, Ece is the daughter of Aydin and Derya Ece Özdemir and was born on April 17, 2003.
