T-Birds Come Up Short in Roswell

The No. 3 ranked Thunderbirds suffered their first conference loss of the season in four sets to New Mexico Military Institute Wednesday night in Roswell (25-17, 16-25, 25-19, 25-10). 

The Thunderbirds struggled offensively in the first set as they trailed 15-8 to start the match. The Broncos extended their lead to double digits later in the set, 22-12. NMJC found somewhat of a spark towards the end of the set outscoring NMMI 5-3 the rest of set one before dropping the first frame 25-17.

The Thunderbirds brought some much needed energy out in the second set, grabbing a 7-2 advantage. NMMI responded with five unanswered points to knot up the score at 7-7. The T-Birds countered with a 6-0 run that featured two aces by Gaby Arias and two kills by Iva Popovic. This springboarded the T-Birds to 12-7 lead.

NMJC expanded their position to eight points later in the set, 20-12. The Thunderbirds would go on to win the second set 25-16. NMJC has yet to lose the second set all season.

The Thunderbirds kept in close in the third set and only trailed by one point midway through the match, 15-14. The game remained as close at 19-17 in favor of the Broncos. NMMI then caught fire and outscored NMJC 6-2 to win the third set 25-19.

The T-Birds could not gather any momentum in the fourth set, ultimately falling 25-10 to drop their first conference contest this season. 

Outside hitter Iva Popovic finished the match with 13 kills, 10 digs, and five blocks. Right side Polianna Hernandez tallied nine kills, while outside hitter Gaby Arias recorded six kills and five digs. Right side Olivia Swipiarski registered five kills and five digs. 

Libero Addison Carillo recorded 17 digs during the four-set loss. Setter Sude Omerickoglu accounted for 15 of the T-Birds assists. 

The No. 3 ranked Thunderbirds 17-2 (2-1) travel to Odessa to face No. 6 Odessa College in another top-10 matchup Saturday, Sept. 23 at 2 p.m. CDT.