Nov. 22, 2006

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LAS VEGAS - The hot-hitting, eighth-seeded New Mexico volleyball team flew to a 3-0 shutout over the ninth-seeded Air Force Falcons in the opening match of the Mountain West Conference Championship at Cox Pavilion on the campus of UNLV. The Lobos hit .483 (48K-6E-87TA) while holding the Falcons to a .023 hitting percentage (24K-22E-87TA).

The Lobos opened game one with a 3-0 run thanks to two kills from senior Kelly Therkelsen. They never looked back, cruising to the 30-19 win. Junior Jennifer Heasty dropped in three aces late in the game and Therkelsen sealed it with two consecutive kills.

Up 3-2 in game two, two consecutive Lobo kills from sophomore Jeanne Fairchild and freshman Anna Lehne ignited a 10-2 run. Heasty fired in two more serves for aces, frustrating the Falcons. Clearly rattled, Air Force handed New Mexico six more points on attack errors, extending UNM's lead to 26-10. Two forceful kills from Fairchild followed by kills from Ingram. Therkelsen clinched the match, 30-19, with a thunderous kill to center court.

Air Force stayed closer in the beginning of game three, trailing by three at 16-13. Therkelsen and sophomore Joelle Ingram connected on two kills each, sparking a 5-0 run. Lehned added three kills and Heasty chipped in with two for the team's final five points and the 30-19 win.

Fairchild hit .632 (13K-1E-19TA) to lead the Lobos. Lehne added nine kills, hitting .615 (9K-1E-13TA). Therkelsen recorded 11 kills on 19 attacks and no errors, hitting .579. Heasty posted six kills, five aces and a team-high 10 digs.

The Lobos return to action tomorrow in the quarterfinals against top-seeded and ninth-ranked Utah. The match will start approximately 40 minutes after the No. 4 UNLV-No. 5 Wyoming at 4 p.m. PT/5 p.m. MT.