SAN ANGELO – The Angelo State volleyball team improved to 4-0 with wins over Western New Mexico and Newman on the final day of Kathleen Brasfield Invitational held at Stephens Arena in the Junell Center.

The Belles began day two of the Kathleen Brasfield Invitational with a five set win over Western New Mexico. ASU was up 2-0 and was up 20-19 in set three before WNMU started a comeback.

"We started off pretty strong and I thought we were pretty clean through our first two set," ASU head volleyball coach Chuch Waddington said. "Give Western New Mexico credit, they cleaned up their side of the net and we didn't respond to it very well. I told them going into the fifth set the team that executes wins. We did a nice job of answering. We made some plays especially into the middle part of that set. I said it was their first test and we need to pass this test to have the year we want to have. We passed the test and I'm proud of them."

Brianna Sotello led the way offensively with her third straight double-double. The sophomore recorded 17 kills and 17 digs. Mallory Blauser added 15 kills and Zoey Hanrahan connected with 11. Four Belles picked up double-digit digs led by Katie MacLeay's career high with 38. Freshmen Mallory Davidson (13) and Micheala Sifuentes (10) and senior Maggie Jo Keffury (11) were also on the list. Keffury also dished out 52 assists.

Western New Mexico (2-1) won the third set 25-23 and took the fourth 25-19 with help from a .400 hitting percentage. The match moved to the deciding fifth set.

The Mustangs took a quick 4-1 before a Belle answer. An unforced WNMU error followed by a Sotello kill cut it to 4-3. The Belles tied it at six all with a kill from Lynn and answered with a move of five-straight points. Sotello and Klohe Harrion each hammered two kills each and the Belles went up 12-6. Another kill from Harrion sent it to 14-9 before the match ended on a WNMU attack error.

The Belles built a 2-0 lead after taking the first set 25-21 and a decisive 25-15 set two win. ASU hit its highest percentage of the match in the second with a .289 clip. ASU recorded a season-high 10 block assists in the win over Western New Mexico.

The finale of the Kathleen Brasfield Invitational was a 3-0 sweep of Newman (1-3).

Blauser was tops on the team with 15 kills and added nine digs while Sotello added her second straight double-double of the season with 13 kills and 16 digs.

The Belles went down early in set one with the Jets going up 12-7 before a timeout. The response was five-straight points to take a 12-13 advantage. The two teams battled with neither taking more than a two-point lead until a kill by Blauser made it 22-19. ASU put Newman on the brink with a kill by MacLeay for a 24-19 lead but the Jets didn't go away. Tied at 24, Blauser and Abie Lynn recorded back-to-back kills to secure the victory.

ASU came out in set two and opened the match on a 13-4 run on the way to a .364 hitting percentage. The Jets cut the lead to 16-11 but an 11-5 run sparked by a Lynn kill and three-straight NU errors made the score 20-12. The Belles would go secure the set with a kill by Klohe Harrion. The junior had seven kills in the match and four in the second set.

"It's tough, but everyone in the country is doing it, it's no different for us," ASU head volleyball coach Chuck Waddington said about playing four matches in two days. "We have to be prepared to win against good teams even when we're tired. That's what the preseason is about and that's why these kids train all summer long and they came to camp in great shape, ready for us."

Sotello and Keffury were named to the all-tournament team along with Tarleton State's Hailey Roberts and Kenya Alexander, WNMU's Leeta Gap, NU's Ashley Gonzales, CSC's Rudy Leasau and UTPB's Annelise Sanchez.

ASU returns to the court on Tuesday, Sept. 8 with a pair of matches against Western State Colorado and UC-Colorado Springs in Colorado Spring abefore heading to the Colorado Premier Challenge in Denver on Friday, Sept. 11.