LAS CRUCES, N.M. – Arizona beat New Mexico State in four sets (25-22, 23-25, 25-20, 25-22) on Saturday afternoon to improve to 9-0 on the season.
 
The Wildcats had three players – Jaelyn Hodge, Kiari Robey, and Jordan Wilson – with double-digit kills and the defense totaled 11 blocks. Hodge led the offense with a season-high 20 kills while Robey had 15 kills and Wilson recorded 10 kills. Alayna Johnson tallied eight blocks to lead the defense followed by Wilson with seven blocks.
 
Arizona won the first set, 25-22, and had four blocks to take a 1-0 lead in the match. Kiari Robey led the offense with six kills and hit .667 in the set. Jaelyn Hodge followed with five kills. Alayna Johnson led the defense with three blocks. The Wildcats went on an 8-0 run to take the lead halfway through the set and used the momentum to win the set.
 
NMSU took the second set, 25-23, to tie the match. Despite the Wildcats recording four blocks, the Aggies hit .306 in the set. Johnson had three blocks and Carlie Cisneros led the offense with four kills and an .800 hitting percentage, but Arizona fell behind early and couldn't complete the comeback.
 
The Wildcats won the third set, 25-20, to take a 2-1 lead. Arizona hit a match-high .342 and held NMSU to a .132 clip in the set. Hodge tallied six kills and Robey had four kills to lead Arizona to the set victory. In another back-and-forth set, the Wildcats and Aggies battled for the lead until Arizona pulled away after being tied at 15-15.
 
Arizona won the match with a 25-22 victory in the fourth set. Hodge led the team with six kills and ended the match with her 20th kill of the game. Robey and Wilson both had three kills and one block in the set. Arizona had to come from behind to win the set and used multiple scoring runs to gain the lead.
 
Arizona will return home to host the Wildcat Classic from Thursday, September 19-Saturday, September 21. The Cats will face North Dakota State on Thursday at 6 p.m. MST in McKale Center to kick off the final weekend of non-conference action.