Recap: Dynamic Duo Leads Team De La Cruz-Mejía to 74-58 Win Over Team Caffey

Eric Rhew

Oct 13, 2024

MESA, Arizona — Outside hitters Leketor Member-Meneh and Bethania De La Cruz-Mejía combined for 27 kills and 21 digs as Team De La Cruz-Mejía secured its second straight win with a 74-58 victory over Team Caffey to complete Sunday’s Athletes Unlimited Pro Volleyball doubleheader at Arizona Athletic Grounds.

Team De La Cruz-Mejía upped its record to 2-0 with the victory, while Team Caffey dipped to 0-2.

Member-Meneh, who collected MVP 1 distinction along with 324 leaderboard points, tallied a team-high 14 kills while adding 10 digs for her first double-double of the season.

De La Cruz-Mejía, meanwhile, earned the match’s MVP 2 selection after a 13-kill, 11-dig performance that earned her 345 leaderboard points.

Opposite Willow Johnson completed the Match MVP sweep for Team De La Cruz-Mejía after erupting for 13 kills, including seven kills in the second set, on a .333 hitting percentage. She narrowly missed a double-double after registering nine digs while adding two solo blocks.

Setter Natalia Valentin-Anderson dished out 40 assists and fashioned a team-high 12 digs for her fifth double-double of the campaign.

Outside hitter Brooke Nuneviller anchored Team Caffey in the loss with a double-double of 10 kills and 13 digs, while outside hitter Temi Thomas-Ailara put down a season-high nine kills.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Team Caffey took the early match lead after winning a back-and-forth opening set by a 26-24 margin. But, Team De La Cruz-Mejía stormed back to claim the match victory by collecting a 25-17 verdict in the middle frame before a 25-15 outburst in the final set.

LEADERBOARD IMPACT

De La Cruz-Mejía enters Monday’s Week Two finale as the league leader with 1,754 points, but is ahead of opposite Brittany Abercrombie by just 82 points going into their clash in the nightcap. Member-Meneh remains in third place followed by libero Manami Kojima. Johnson rose 10 spots on the leaderboard and holds 11th place with 899 points through Sunday’s action.

MATCH NOTES

Caffey and De La Cruz-Mejía met as opposing captains for the first time in their Athletes Unlimited Pro Volleyball careers.
Sunday’s night contest between Team Caffey and Team De La Cruz-Mejía marked the 100th match in Athletes Unlimited Pro Volleyball history.
Member-Meneh, De La Cruz-Mejía, libero Manami Kojima and middle blocker Kayla Haneline all improved to 5-0 on the season with Team De La Cruz-Mejía’s victory on Sunday, joining Abercrombie and outside hitter Paige Briggs-Romine as the only players in the league who have not suffered a loss.
De La Cruz-Mejía improved to 24-11 all-time as a captain, extending her league record … In addition, she has won her last six matches as a team leader dating back to last season.
De La Cruz-Mejía, the only player in the league with 300 or more leaderboard points in all five matches this season, has tallied 300 or more points in a league-record 26 career contests
Setter Madi Bugg posted her second straight outing with 20 or more assists after dishing out 27 assists … She opened Week Two with 28 assists against Team Abercrombie on Friday night.
Member-Meneh has registered 10 or more kills in four of her five matches this season.
Valentin-Anderson joined setter Sydney Hilley as the only players in the league to record 40 or more assists in a match this season … It also marked the 11th time Valentin-Anderson has reached the 40-assist mark in her career, extending her league record.
Valentin-Anderson, who has tallied 20 or more assists in all 35 matches of her Athletes Unlimited career, also registered her league-record 24th career double-double.
De La Cruz-Mejía has posted 10 or more kills in 41-of-47 career matches with her 13-kill performance on Sunday night … The 41 double-digit kill efforts are the most by any player in the league’s four-year history.
De La Cruz-Mejía also notched her 13th career double-double, including the third instance this season.
Nuneviller has amassed 10 or more digs in all five matches this season, holding the distinction of being the only non-libero player in the league to accomplish that feat … She also authored her 11th career double-double, including her fifth double-double this season.
Nuneviller and Valentin-Anderson stand as the only players in the league to post a double-double in all five matches this season.