MADISON, Wis. – The No. 2 New Mexico women’s cross country team gave top-ranked North Carolina State a serious run for its money on Friday.
At the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational, UNM tied the Wolf Pack with 80 points each in the 36-team 6-kilometer Championship division. N.C. State, behind individual winner Katelyn Tuohy at 19 minutes, 44.3 seconds, took the head-to-head tiebreaker of each team’s five scorers, finishing 1-2-18-23-36 to UNM’s 8-9-12-25-26.
Samree Dishon led UNM (20: 05.9), just ahead of teammate Gracelyn Larkin at 20:06.0. Amelia Mazza-Downie crossed at 20:08.1, Elise Thorner at 20:18.0 and Emma Heckel at 20:18.4.
The 1-2 finish between the two emerging rivals is the same as at Notre Dame’s meet on Sept. 30, when North Carolina State scored 55 to UNM’s 68.
The UNM men finished 31st of 33 teams and were paced by Jonathan Carmin in 90th place at 24:00.9 for eight kilometers.
UNM has added a meet next Friday at Colorado Springs ahead of the Mountain West Championships on Oct. 28 in Laramie, Wyoming.
• New Mexico State’s men and women compete at the Arturo Barrios Invitational in Bryan/College Station, Texas – hosted by Texas A&M – on Saturday.
SOCCER: The New Mexico women on Thursday held off UNLV 1-0 at the UNM Soccer Complex.
Leilani Baker scored her fifth goal of the season just after halftime to lift the Lobos (5-3-6, 3-1-3 Mountain West), while Alli Davis had five saves and recorded her third career shutout in goal.
New Mexico outshot UNLV 22-9 overall and 8-5 on goal, while holding a 4-2 edge in corner kicks.
“I was incredibly proud of our effort tonight,” said UNM coach Heather Dyche. “I thought for 70 minutes of that game, that was the best we have played all year. We had good energy and composure, and moved the ball well. I was really pleased with the team tonight and happy to get a win.”
The Lobos conclude their four-game homestand on Sunday when they host Nevada. Game time at the UNM Soccer Complex is 1 p.m.
• New Mexico State (7-4-3, 4-2-2 WAC) is in action Saturday vs. Sam Houston (3-8-2, 3-5-1) in Huntsville, Texas. The Aggies stand second in league play but are coming off a 3-1 loss Sunday at first-place Utah Tech.
VOLLEYBALL: UNM closes its week Saturday at Nevada (2 p.m., themw.com) after getting swept Thursday at San Jose State. The 25-23, 25-13, 25-18 defeat was the fourth in five matches for the Lobos (11-6, 2-5), now tied for eighth place in the 11-team Mountain West.
Kaitlynn Biassou led the way with 10 kills and Uxue Guereca had four service aces in the loss at San Jose State.
UNM’s next home match is Thursday vs. San Diego State, 6:30 p.m.
SWIMMING: In Laramie, UNM wrapped its two-day women’s swimming and diving dual meet on Friday, falling to host Wyoming 203-147. The Lobos host Colorado State Pueblo and Western Colorado this coming Friday in Johnson Center.
