The Wolverines won their third straight match to improve to 3-2-1 overall on the season, while New Mexico State fell to 1-6-0.

Nixan Jackson put Utah Valley on the scoreboard in the eighth minute. Ashley Garcia played the ball ahead to Jackson, who outran the NM State defense before firing a left-footed shot from 25 yards out into the upper-right corner, just beyond the reach of the Aggie goalkeeper, to give the Wolverines a 1-0 lead.

Utah Valley doubled its advantage in the 33rd minute. Josie Clawson sent a corner kick into the box that was headed over to Sam Curtis. Curtis settled the ball and played it to Kate Shirts, who fired a shot into the back of the net to give the Wolverines a 2-0 lead heading into halftime.

The Wolverines added two more goals in the final 12 minutes.

Isabella Stewart sent a ball from the right side of the field into the box in the 79th minute, where Garcia one-touched it past the NM State goalkeeper and into the net to extend Utah Valley’s lead to 3-0.

Utah Valley capped the scoring in the 84th minute. Sadie Beardall played the ball to Brynlee Austin, who took a touch before slotting a pass toward goal to Clawson. Clawson finished the opportunity to give the Wolverines a 4-0 advantage.

Utah Valley outshot New Mexico State 21-5 on the afternoon, including a 7-2 advantage in shots on goal. The Wolverines also held a 13-3 advantage in corner kicks. Clawson led all players with a match-high eight shots, while five other Wolverines recorded two shots apiece.

Madeleine Boucher made two saves in goal to record her second consecutive clean sheet. The Wolverines did not concede a goal during their two matches in Hawai’i after also shutting out Washington State, 1-0, on Thursday.

“It was good to see multiple goal scorers today and different people getting involved in our attacking third and creating and finishing opportunities,” Utah Valley head coach Chris Lemay said. “The whole purpose of our trip was to provide an experience for the players, but also to come out and get a couple of results, and we feel like we achieved everything.”

Utah Valley now returns to the mainland to host San Diego State on Saturday night at UCCU Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.

Women’s volleyball loses final match in tournament

VERMILLION, S.D. – Utah Valley women’s volleyball dropped its final match of the South Dakota Classic, falling 3-0 (25-21, 25-21, 25-20) to Air Force on Saturday morning. Alysa Walker led the Falcons (2-3) with a match-high 19 kills. Miley Thunstrom recorded a career-high 15 kills for the Wolverines (0-6), surpassing her previous career best of 12 set against Portland last season. Alyvia Watkins added a season-high 10 kills.

On Friday, UVU lost to Northern Iowa 3-0 (20-25, 21-25, 17-25) despite five kills and six block assists from Brielle Rueckert and six kills and three blocks from Watkins.

After a 28-minute delay caused by a power outage in the area on Saturday, Thunstrom got off to a fast start, recording five kills on 10 swings in the opening set. Utah Valley hit a season-best .406 in the frame, while Watkins contributed three kills and freshman Chloe Hansen added four kills on eight attacks. Air Force countered with a .486 hitting percentage as a team to claim the first set.

Thunstrom helped Utah Valley build a 5-2 lead in the second set, while Evalyn Medaris and Olivia Gloeckner added early kills. Air Force responded with a 5-0 run to take the lead and later used a 4-0 spurt to extend its advantage to 17-12. The Wolverines cut the deficit to 19-17 with a 3-0 run that included a block assist from Gloeckner and Watkins before Kenna McClure delivered one of Utah Valley’s three service aces in the match. Utah Valley attempted to rally late, but Air Force held on to secure the set and take a 2-0 match lead.

The third set featured several momentum swings. After an 11-11 tie, the Wolverines used a 5-1 run to move ahead. Watkins opened the stretch with a kill before teaming with Medaris for a block to make it 13-11. Utah Valley continued to apply pressure with an Air Force attack error and kills from Watkins and Thunstrom that pushed the lead to 16-12. The Falcons responded by scoring the next nine points, taking control of the set and eventually sealing the sweep.

Utah Valley travels to the Kansas City Klassic next weekend. The Wolverines will face Drake and Kansas City on Friday, Sept. 11, before taking on Radford on Saturday, Sept. 12.