MESA, Arizona, October 18, 2024. – The duo of outside hitter Bethania De La Cruz-Mejía and opposite Khat Bell combined for 29 kills as Team De La Cruz-Mejía downed Team Member-Meneh, 72-64, to start Week Three of Athletes Unlimited Pro Volleyball action on Friday night at Arizona Athletic Grounds.
Team De La Cruz-Mejía begins the week at 1-0, while Team Member-Meneh falls to 0-1.
De La Cruz-Mejía amassed a match-high 17 kills with a service ace and eight digs to claim MVP 1 honors and 356 leaderboard points, while libero Manami Kojima added 20 digs for MVP 2 plaudits and 300 points.
Outside hitter Leketor Member-Meneh set a season high with 16 kills and chipped in 10 digs to earn MVP accolades and 183 leaderboard points in the defeat.
Bell tallied 12 kills with seven digs and a pair of solo blocks for Team De La Cruz-Mejía, while setter Natalia Valentin-Anderson finished with 35 assists and 16 digs in the victory.
Outside hitter Madi Kingdon Rishel recorded nine kills and nine digs in the loss for Team Member-Meneh and setter Marlie Monserez added 30 assists with a team-high 15 digs.
How It Happened: Team De La Cruz-Mejía took the opening set by a 25-18 count before Team Member-Meneh trimmed the match deficit to 47-43 with a 25-22 score in the second frame. Team De la Cruz-Mejía secured the match victory with a 25-21 triumph in the final set.
Leaderboard Impact: De La Cruz-Mejía returns to the top spot on the leaderboard with 2,277 points, while Kojima and Valentin-Anderson each moved up one spot into fourth and fifth places with 1,611 points and 1,522 points, respectively.
Notes of Interest
Member-Meneh and De La Cruz-Mejía faced each other as opposing captains for the first time in their Athletes Unlimited Pro Volleyball careers.
Member-Meneh, the 25th player in AU Pro Volleyball history to serve as a team captain, made her debut as a team leader on Friday night.
De La Cruz-Mejía moved her AU Pro Volleyball career captain’s record to 25-12 … She is the second player in all Athletes Unlimited sports to reach 25 victories as a team leader … Attacker Sam Apuzzo, the 2024 AU Pro Lacrosse champion, is the all-time leader with 27 wins as a captain.
Teams wearing the Orange jersey have won five straight matches after Team Abercrombie went 3-0 in Week two, while teams donning the Blue top have now lost their last six contests.
Outside hitter Paige Briggs-Romine suffered the first loss of her Athletes Unlimited career after opening the season at 6-0 … Opposite Brittany Abercrombie is the only remaining player in the league with a perfect match record this season.
Monserez lost her sixth straight contest after being on the winning side in the league’s first match day of the season.
Valentin-Anderson posted her seventh double-double of the season, which tops the league … It marked her 26th career AU Pro Volleyball double-double, extending her all-time lead.
Member-Meneh surpassed 15 kills for the first time in her AU Pro Volleyball career with her season-high 16 kills … She also posted her second double-double of the season.
Bell finished with double-digit kills for the fifth time this season, including the fourth outing in a row.
Kojima is the second player to record 20 or more digs in a single match this season, joining Morgan Hentz (October 11 vs. Team Caffey) … She is the ninth player in league history to achieve the mark.
Libero Nomaris Vélez Agosto secured her 42nd match with 10 or more digs to increase her existing league record.
De La Cruz-Mejía became the first player in the 2024 AU Pro Volleyball season to reach 100 kills … She is the league’s all-time leader in the category with 694 kills.
De La Cruz-Mejía surpassed 15 kills for a league-record 23rd time in her AU Pro Volleyball career, including her fourth instance this season.
Monserez piloted her second double-double performance of the season … She also finished with 15 or more digs for the first time this season.
De La Cruz-Mejía claimed her 33rd career Match MVP award, including the 17th MVP 1 certificate … Both marks stand as league records.
Kojima earned the first Match MVP honor of her AU Pro Volleyball career … She is the 69th different player in league history to receive a Match MVP award.
English 
Spanish