SAN MARCOS, Calif. – The Eastern New Mexico volleyball team defeated Saint Martin’s 3-1 Friday morning before dropping its evening game to Azusa Pacific 1-3.

The Greyhounds won their season opening match against Saint Martin’s (25-22, 31-33, 25-12, 15-21) to begin their four-game stint at the Cougar Classic. ENMU battled hard in the second match against Azusa but fell to the Cougars in four sets (12-25, 10-25, 25-21, 21-25

Eastern jumped out to a 7-1 advantage to begin the weekend and was able to fend off a late push from the Saints to take the first set before dropping a tightly contested second frame that saw 20 lead changes. ENMU easily won the third set, capitalizing on eight Saint Martin’s errors and led the entirety of the final frame on its way to a 3-1 victory.

Junior outside hitter Jasmine Gannon had the hot hand for the Green and Silver as she finished with a game-high 16 kills. The Clovis, N.M. native also added 13 digs and a pair of assists. Sophomore setter Rae Sapiga did a stellar job setting up her attacking players, totaling 27 assists which is tied for her career high. Senior opposite side hitter Sarah Tuioti-Mariner filled up the stat sheet finishing with 11 kills, four service aces and a team-best 21 digs.

The Hounds finished with 10 blocks as they limited the Saints to a team attack percentage of .067.

Eastern struggled to find its rhythm early against Azusa and only managed 12 kills through the first two sets as the Cougars took a 2-0 advantage. The Hounds were able to battle back from a 15-7 deficit in the third frame as they closed the gap to 2-1. ENMU recorded a .387 attack percentage and only a single error in the final frame but where unable to regain the lead after scoring the first two points.

Rae Sapiga and her younger sister freshman setter Qitana Sapiga finished with identical box scores as each finished with a team-high 16 assists, two aces and eight digs. Gannon led the squad with seven kills while junior middle blocker Julie Tucker added six on just nine total attacks for an attack percentage of .667.

The Hounds wrap up their West Coast road trip tomorrow as they face Bentley at 2 p.m. followed by host Cal State San Marcos ay 7 p.m.