SILVER CITY, N.M. -- Six University of Colorado at Colorado Springs players had double-digit kills as the Mountain Lions defeated the western new Mexico Mustangs 3-2 (24-0, 30-28, 26-30, 30-28, 15-13) Friday night in a matchup of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference's two divisional leaders.

With the win, RMAC East Division-leading UCCS improved to 10-1 in the conference and 12-8 overall. Western New Mexico suffered its first RMAC loss and, at 8-1, slipped a half game behind new West Division leader Fort Lewis. The Mustangs are 12-5 overall.

Heidi Fehringer and Diane Sheldon shared the load for the Mountain Lions contributing 17 kills apiece. Cortney Weedman accounted for 33 assists while Jessica Stewart added 38 in her return.

Stewart played well despite dealing with a persistant bloody nose after being hit in the face with a ball early in the match.

Defensively, the Mountain Lions were led by Andrea Weedman with 22 digs and Laura Meeter added 19.

The Mustangs were led by Natali Murdock and Alzie Auelua who had 18 and 17 kills respectively. Courtney Heiser had a match-high 58 assists.

After building a 9-6 lead in the first game, the Mustangs rallied scoring six consectutive points and gaining control of the game. A Lindsey Morrison kill tied the game at 19. The Mustangs finished with a 11-5 run and a hitting percentage of .412 to take Game 1 30-24.

The Mountain Lions responded in Game 2 by taking a 17-9 lead. The Mustangs battled back behind an 11-4 run led by three kills from Auelua. The Mountain Lions held off the Mustangs and a Sheldon kill eventually gave Game 2 to the Mountain Lions.

Game 3 was a back-and-forth contest. The Mustangs enjoyed a 10-3 advantage in errors over the Mountain Lions in the third game and took a 2-1 lead in the match.

The Mountain Lions responded once again after spotting the Mustangs a 20-15 lead in Game 4 the Mountain Lions rallied behind a balanced attack which featured Fehringer, Sheldon, Weedman and Brooke Akers all accounting for two kills each.

The Mountain Lions gave the Mustangs a 10-7 lead in Game 5. A Sheldon kill followed by a n ace y Stephanie Laband brought the Mountain Lions to within one. A kill by Fehringer and an error by the Mustangs led to a Laband kill that ended the match and completed the Mountain Lions' comeback. Sheldon led the Mountain Lions with three kills in the deciding game.

UCCS will face its second divisional leader in as many weekends when the Mountain Lions take their Western Slope swing against Mesa State and new West Division leader Fort Lewis.