ALBUQUERQUE—It was déjà vu for the Vandals in its afternoon matchup with Abilene Christian. Idaho won the first two sets, just as it had in the morning, going on to win the match in four sets, 25-12, 25-19, 23-25, Idaho capped off the perfect day at the UNM Invitational, giving the Vandals a 2-0 record for the first time since 2009.

Idaho's offense got going early and often after shaking off the rust earlier in the morning. Kaela Straw led all players with a match-best 13 kills. Sarah Sharp carried over her offense from the previous match, finishing with 12 kills. The Vandals hit a match-high .474 in the opening set, totaling 11 kills on 19 total attacks. Idaho finished the evening hitting .274 (47-18-106), a mark that would have been sixth-best on the season in 2015.

"For us to be 2-0 right now is awesome," head coach Debbie Buchanan explained. "It has not always been the prettiest but I think that is what the preseason is for. You could see that we got a little tired in the end of that match. This is the most volleyball we have played—eight sets in one day."

Tara Eaton got the ball to start the night for the Vandals and was reluctant to give it up. She opened serve on an 8-0 run, recording her second ace of the day. Straw got into the action early, starting a 3-0 run that would put the Vandals up 12-2. A second 3-0 run triggered by a swing from Sharp put the Vandals in front by 13, 21-8. Sophomore DeVonne Ryter put an end to the frame, 25-12, with her second kill of the evening.

"We want to be a team that can come out and control the game," Buchanan added. "We are still working on that. We have a lot of young pieces and players working back from injury. We probably are not at 100 percent yet, but we are working to get there. Kaela was really strong for us. We are not completely there with our middles yet so it's a little bit of a learning curve for us right now."

Straw broke a 2-2 tie to start the second stanza, helping Idaho start a 7-0 run. Sharp added two kills in the run to give the Vandals an 8-2 advantage. The Wildcats slowly chipped away at the Vandal lead, getting to within one at 17-16. Idaho answered with a 4-0 run, split up by two ACU timeouts. Becca Mau, Straw and Sharp combined for four of the set's final five points, to give the Vandals a 2-0 advantage.

In a repeat of the morning match against Fairfield, the opposition took set number three. Each side exchanged miniature runs, trading two points back and forth. ACU totaled seven more attacks in the set, recording 17 kills to Idaho's 11. The Vandals outhit the Wildcats, .207 to .194 percent, but were unable to avoid the nine errors.

Ryter led the way for Idaho in the final set. The sophomore from Sedona, Ariz., swung .500 percent to balance out the Idaho offense. As a team Idaho was just .167 on the attack, but was able to hold ACU to -.107 percent with eight attack errors. The Vandals used a late 9-0 run to get to match point, 24-12. ACU forced three match points before a Wildcat error sealed the deal for Idaho.

Torrin Crawford enjoyed a seven kills and a team-high .545 attack percentage. Ryter ended the night with six kills and a.444 swing percentage. Haylee Mathis recorded a team-best 26 assists and Terra Varney recorded her 54 career match with double-figure digs (16).

The Vandals look to continue their winning ways on Saturday against host New Mexico. Action is set for 11:30 a.m. PT. The match will be streamed online through the Mountain West Network.

Fans can stay up-to-date on all things Idaho volleyball by following the team on Instagram and Twitter, @IdahoVolleyball.