LAS VEGAS – Wyoming volleyball suffered its first setback in nearly a month on Saturday afternoon, dropping a thrilling contest to UNLV in five sets (25-17, 19-25, 18-25, 26-24, 12-15). Despite sophomore Halie McArdle's match-high and career-high 21 kills, UW (12-10, 7-3 MW) was unable to mount a late comeback in its first road loss during conference play.
 
McArdle led Wyoming's offensive effort while demolishing her previous career-best of 15 kills set just two days prior in UW's win at New Mexico. She became the third Cowgirl to record at least 20 kills in a match this season, joining sophomore Tara Traphagan and junior Emily Lewis. It was McArdle's eighth match of the season with double-digit kills, while Traphagan posted her ninth such match of the year with 16 kills on Saturday. Traphagan also had four blocks, reaching that total for the seventh time in the last eight matches.
 
Freshman Marissa Harmon coordinated the offensive effort with 46 assists, her seventh match of the season with 40-plus helpers. She also chipped in eight digs and five kills for Wyoming. Redshirt freshman Jackie McBride posted nine kills on the day while registering four blocks and a career-high eight digs. Sophomore defensive specialist Madi Fields led the squad with 28 digs, while senior Lily Austin had 13. McArdle contributed 12 digs, while redshirt sophomore setter Cori Aafedt had 10.
 
UNLV (8-15, 4-6 MW) led a balanced attack as three Rebels had at least 15 kills. The Rebels outhit the Cowgirls .184 to .140 in handing the Brown and Gold their first loss in seven tries. UNLV improved to 6-7 at home on the season, while Wyoming fell to 5-2 on the road.
 
Set One
UNLV started hot, building a 5-0 lead before the Cowgirls embarked on a 6-1 run to even the score. Wyoming launched a 7-3 run after falling behind 10-9 to take a three-point advantage at 16-13 thanks to a balanced offensive attack. The Cowgirls never looked back, relying on a strong defensive effort for the remainder of the set. Reed Copeland and Marissa Harmon teamed up for a pair of blocks late in the set to seal UW's 25-17 set win. McArdle led the Cowgirls with three kills during the frame while Harmon had eight assists.
 
Set Two
UW kept its momentum going into the second frame, jumping out to an 8-3 lead thanks to three quick Halie McArdle kills. The Rebels stormed back, however, unleashing a 12-1 run to take a 15-9 lead. The six-point advantage was too much for Wyoming to overcome, as UNLV took the set two victory 25-19. McArdle let UW with five kills in the set, while Jackie McBride and Tara Traphagan each added three. Harmon had 12 assists in the set for Wyoming.
 
Set Three
UNLV notched eight of the frame's first nine points, but two more kills from Halie McArdle helped the Cowgirls take three of the next four points, making the score 9-4. UNLV then went on a 7-2 run to take a double-digit advantage at 16-6. With UNLV maintaining its 10-point advantage at 20-10, McArdle led Wyoming on a 6-2 charge with three more kills to bring the Cowgirls within six points. UNLV's early lead was too much for Wyoming to overcome once again, however, as UW fell 25-18 in set three. McArdle had six kills in the frame while Harmon posted 11 assists to lead the Pokes.
 
Set Four
Wyoming regained its footing early in the fourth frame, taking a 3-1 lead before a back-and-forth battle ensued. UNLV took back a two-point lead at 10-8, but four kills from Tara Traphagan helped Wyoming take off on a 6-1 run for its first lead since the second set. The two teams continued fighting back-and-forth until UNLV took a three-point lead at 18-15, which the Cowgirls quickly erased with three points of their own. Traphagan and McBride teamed up for a clutch block to even the score at 22 before UW closed the set on a 4-2 run, knotting the match at 2-2 with an exciting 26-24 set victory. Traphagan posted a whopping eight kills in the set while McArdle added five. Meanwhile, Harmon recorded her third consecutive set with double-digit assists, contributing 11 for UW.
 
Set Five
Things looked promising for the Cowgirls as they developed a 4-1 lead to start the set. Wyoming led by as many as four points, taking an 11-7 advantage on a kill by Halie McArdle before UNLV scored seven straight points. The Rebels eventually claimed the final frame by a score of 15-12.  
 
Up Next
The Brown and Gold travel to Fort Collins, Colo., to enter battle with Colorado State at 7 p.m. on Tuesday for this season's second installment of the Border War.