PORTALES, N.M. – The Eastern New Mexico University volleyball team lassoed the Western New Mexico Mustangs, 3-1 (25-17, 22-25, 25-19, 25-22), on Wednesday night at Greyhound Arena in front of 372 fans. The Greyhounds climb back to the .500 mark at 7-7 on the year and 2-2 in Lone Star Conference play following the victory.
 
"I'm happy to get a win," ENMU head coach Sia Poyer said. "We're always going to have our inconsistencies. That's just part of it. The girls aren't making mistakes on purpose. There's a lot of pressure on them to perform well. I'm happy with how we responded. Western was a big team. Volleyball is more than just height; it's a team sport. I'm very happy with how we performed tonight."
 
The Greyhounds were led offensively by junior Brooklyn Biel and freshman Sarah Tuioti-Mariner with 14 and 12 kills, respectively, while Tuioti-Mariner hit .318 on the match. Senior and reigning Lone Star Conference Offensive Player of the Week, Lauren Frye tallied 11 kills and hit .500 in the win.
 
"That's what you hope for as a coach when you put a freshman in there," Poyer said on the effort by Tuioti-Mariner tonight. "She's still a freshman and tonight was only her fourth game. I hope this continues."
 
Sophomore Kaitlyn Kluna dished out 27 assists, her second-highest total of the season and Alexis Aguirre added another 22 dimes to set the table for an offense that hit at a .290 clip on the evening. Junior Andrea Aguilar and senior Courtney Lawson each picked up big defensive nights, with 16 and 13 digs.
 
"Other than that run they had in the second set, we passed the ball very well tonight," Poyer said. "Andrea and Courtney both did an exceptional job of distributing the ball tonight. I'm tempted to have them just pass the ball to the whole court."
 
Eastern roared out to an early edge in the match by claiming the first set, 25-17. The Greyhounds jumped in front by a sizable margin multiple times before the Mustangs narrowed the gap. With the score at 16-13 following a WNMU run, Eastern closed the frame on a 9-4 run of its own to take the early lead.
 
The second set was a back-and-forth tilt between both teams, featuring four ties and a pair of lead changes. Western held the Greyhounds to their lowest attack percentage on the evening at .192 to push a tie going into the intermission.
 
Eastern managed to pull away in the third set, committing just four errors on 27 attacks, good for a .444 swing percentage. Six different members of the Greyhounds recorded kills in the set with Frye (4), Biel (3), Lawson (3), Tuioti-Mariner (3) and Jennifer Martinez (2) picking up multiple points.
 
The Green and Silver held on in the fourth set to clinch the win. Leading 18-11, the Greyhounds allowed the Mustangs to creep back into the match behind a 6-2 run from Western, but Tuioti-Mariner's final kill on the night secured the victory for Eastern.
 
The Greyhounds return to the court on Friday, Sept. 30 when they travel to Odessa to take on UTPB. First serve is slated for 6 p.m. For the latest news, follow @ENMUAthletics on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram and visit goeasternathletics.com.