Lady Matadors fall to Scottsdale 3-1 in ACCAC opener

YUMA, Ariz. – The Arizona Western Lady Matadors (2-8) dropped the ACCAC opener to No 4 ranked Scottsdale (6-0) 3-1 on Wednesday night at the House Gymnasium.

The Lady Matadors got off to a good start, taking an early 5-0 lead before the Fighting Artichokes battled back. Arizona Western took their second five-point lead of the set at 149 before being outscored 16-6 by Scottsdale who won the set 25-20.

 Just like in set one, the Lady Matadors built an early lead in the second set, taking a 6-2 advantage. Scottsdale however would go on a run and take a 14-10 lead before Arizona Western was forced to take a timeout. The Lady Matadors went on an 8-2 run and would eventually secure a 25-22 second set win on a Daniela Jimenez kill.

Scottsdale responded, opening up an 11-4 lead in the third set and taking a 12-point lead at 20-8. The Matadors would try and rally and cut the deficit to nine but would drop the third set 25-13 and trail the match two sets to one.

The fourth set was back-and-forth early before Scottsdale built an 8-3 lead and would go up by as many as eight points. The Lady Matadors battled back to cut the deficit to 15-12 and eventually climbed to within two points at 21-19 but fell in the set 25-20, losing the match 3-1.

Jimenez led the Lady Matadors in kills with 13 while Makayla Fonoimoana ended the night with 12. Natalia Slazynksa finished the match with 28 assists and 11 digs. 

The Lady Matadors are back at home on Wednesday, September 21 when they host Eastern Arizona at 7:00 pm at the House Gymnasium. Tickets are $5.00 for adults and $3.00 for senior citizens. AWC students get in free with Arizona Western ID.