RENO, Nev. – The Wyoming Cowgirls volleyball team suffered a hard-fought 3-2 loss to the Nevada Wolf Pack Wednesday night, despite a strong performance in blocking and service aces. Set scores were 25-22,19-25,20-25,16-25,and 15-13.
Wyoming (8-10, 4-3 mountain West) nearly overcame a significant kill and dig disparity, ultimately falling short in a decisive fifth set after leading by as many as six points. The loss halts a recent stretch of success for the Cowgirls and drops them to fourth in the Mountain West standings. Wyoming will look to rebound Saturday at Air Force.
Despite being outkilled 65-45 and outdug 55-45, Wyoming demonstrated dominance at the net, recording 15 team blocks to Nevada’s eight. The Cowgirls also registered nine service aces compared to the Wolf Pack’s seven. However, Nevada rallied in the fifth set with a 10-3 run to take a 12-10 lead and ultimately close out the match.
Claire Wagstaff led Wyoming’s offensive effort with 12 kills, hitting at a .478 clip. Addy Cook, Sarah Holcomb, and Paige Lauterwasser each added eight kills, with Cook posting a .400 hitting percentage. Holcomb anchored the defense with a match-high eight total blocks, supported by seven from Jordan Sandy and five from Cook.
Defensively, Lauterwasser led the Cowgirls with 10 digs, followed by Skylar Erickson with eight and Maddy Stucky with seven. Sara Quigley dished out 20 assists, while Stucky added 16. Sandy contributed a career-high four service aces.
The Cowgirls will travel to Air Force for a 7 p.m. MT match on Saturday.
