SAN MARCOS, Calif. – Despite a 33 kill combined performance from Mackenzie Carter and Kylie Coon, the Saints ended up falling in five sets to Western New Mexico, 25-19, 20-25, 21-25, 25-17, and 15-12.
 
Coon pieced together her first double-double of her collegiate career, ending with 15 kills and 10 digs. For the second straight match, Carter led the Saints' offense with 18 kills, while Alyssa Bartlett and Emily Kinsley-DeLeon combined for 40 assists. In the fifth and final set, the Saints held an 8-5 lead, but after the switch, Western New Mexico rallied for a 10-4 run to snatch away the victory.
 
A run on 9-4 in the middle of the first set allowed the Mustangs to open up an 18-12 lead, one the Saints were never able to recover.
 
In the second set, Coon powered the offense with six kills, as the Saints rebounded strong. Saint Martin's also capitalized on 13 errors committed by Western New Mexico en route to the 25-20 set victory.
 
Out of the break, the Saints stayed hot by rattling off seven straight points to open up a 12-6 lead. The Mustangs managed to trim the lead back down to one on several occasions in the set; however, SMU never broke and sealed the set victory with a Kinsley-DeLeon ace.
 
In the fourth set, both sides battled to a 14-14 tie before the Mustangs found life in a set ending 11-3 run to force the final set.
 
Five different Saints contributed with kills in the opening rallies of the fifth set, leading to the Saints' 8-5 lead. But in the end, the Mustangs once again found a way to rally and clinch the set, and match victory with a 10-4 stretch.
 
"Losing in five is always tough," said head coach Jon Killingbeck. "We had some good moments, and we had some learning moments. We have to take this experience and grow to handle those pressure situations better in the future."
 
The Saints return to action Friday morning at 9:00 a.m. with a match against Eastern New Mexico. Live stats and video will be available on smusaints.com.