Fullerton Classic Pres. By Embassy Suites - North Orange County Tournament Page
FULLERTON, Calif. – After two straight weeks on the road, Cal State Fullerton returns home to Titan Gym to host the Fullerton Classic Presented by Embassy Suites – North Orange County for the final nonconference matches of the season.
FULLERTON CLASSIC PRESENTED BY EMBASSY SUITES - NORTH ORANGE COUNTY:
The Titans return to Titan Gym this weekend to host the Fullerton Classic presented by Embassy Suites - North Orange County. Fullerton opens the tournament with a match against Yale on Friday night at 7 p.m. and then concludes the tournament with matches against Georgetown and No. 22 UCLA on Saturday. The tournament marks the final nonconference matches of the season for the Titans.
FOLLOW THE TITANS:
Fans can keep up with the latest in Titans athletics by following us on Facebook (FullertonTitans), Twitter (@FullertonTitans), Instagram (@FullertonTitans), and YouTube.com (YouTube.com/csfathletics). In addition, the volleyball team has established its own official Twitter page (@FullertonVB).
CATCH ALL THE ACTION
Television: None
Streaming Video: A live video feed will be available for all six matches of the Fullerton Classic Presented by Embassy Suites - North Orange County. Links available at FullertonTitans.com.
Audio Webcast: All three Fullerton matches will have an audio webcast. Links are available at FullertonTitans.com.
Live Stats: Live in-game stats will be available for all six matches of the Fullerton Classic Presented by Embassy Suites - North Orange County. Links can be found at FullertonTitans.com
Tickets for all Titans home games can be purchased online at fullertontitans.com, or at the Cal State Fullerton Athletics Ticket Office, located in the Titan House on campus off of Gymnasium Drive on the northeast side of Titan Gym. Game day sales and will call tickets will open an hour prior to the scheduled time at the specific venue.
FULLERTON CLASSIC: AN INSIDE LOOK
• Yale is coming off an impressive victory over Villanova last week, sweeping the Wildcats 25-19, 25-10, 25-10. The Bulldogs had a collective .371 hitting percentage in the final match of the Villanova Classic. Kelly Johnson notched 14 kills and had a dynamic .565 hitting percentage in 23 attempts to go along with seven digs and four assists. The sweep helped Yale wrap up a weekend in which the Bulldogs took on some of the nation's best teams including current No. 3 and preseason No. 1 ranked Penn State. Mollie Rogers had 34 kills in three matches during the weekend and was named to the Villanova Classic All-Tournament team. In addition, freshman Kelsey Crawford was named the Ivy League Rookie of the Week for the first time in her career. Crawford tallied 81 assists and had a .375 hitting percentage at the Villanova Classic. She is currently ranked fourth in the Ivy League in assists and posted a double-double with 33 helpers and 12 digs in the Bulldogs win over Villanova. The Titans and Bulldogs have one previous meeting, which came at the Fullerton Classic in 2010. The Titans scored a sweep over the Bulldogs, 27-25, 25-14, 25-22. It was the Titans sixth straight victory of what turned out to be a seven-match winning streak. Fullerton would go on to win the Big West Conference championship that season, going 26-6 and 14-2 in conference.
• Georgetown scored two victories at the Tiny Laster Memorial Classic hosted by Hampton University last week. The Hoyas defeated host Hampton in four sets and then swept through Presbyterian. Middle blocker Ashlie Williams was named the tournament MVP after averaging 2.91 kills and 0.91 blocks per set. Williams had 13 kills and a .542 hitting percentage to go along with three blocks in the tournament-clinching match against Presbyterian. The sophomore out of Los Angeles, Calif. also posted an impressive .385 hitting percentage in Georgetown's three matches last week, earning Williams a spot on the Big East Conference Weekly Honor Roll. It was the third consecutive week a member of the Hoyas volleyball team has been named to the honor roll. Georgetown opened this week with a tough loss to George Washington on the road and fell to 6-4 overall on the season. They will open the Fullerton Classic when they take on No. 22 UCLA at 4 p.m. On Saturday, the Hoyas and the Titans will meet for the fifth time in history and the first time since 1999. Fullerton scored the first three wins in the series but the Hoyas pulled out a four-set victory at the Four Points Titan Classic in the third match of the 1999 season.
• UCLA moved up three spots in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) top-25 rankings this week, finding themselves at No. 22 after breaking into the poll last week. The Bruins are one of seven PAC-12 schools ranked in the top-25 including No. 1 Stanford, No. 5 Washington and No. 10 Southern California. The Bruins ranked up on the strength of their three-match sweep at the Outrigger Resorts Volleyball Challenge hosted by the University of Hawai'i. The Bruins opened the tournament with a sweep over San Francisco, which was also the 1,200th victory in program history. UCLA hit .419, marking the 47th straight match the Bruins have won a match when hitting .300 or better and third time this season. In their second match of the tournament, the Bruins disposed of then No. 22 ranked and hosts Hawai'i in three sets. It was UCLA's second victory over a ranked team this season, the first coming against then No. 9 Illinois on Sept. 5. The Bruins finished off their perfect weekend with a four-set victory against Utah State. Senior Karsta Lowe was named the MVP of the tournament as she averaged 5.50 kills per set and surpassed double figures in kill in each of the three matches. She capped off the weekend with a 22-kill performance against Utah State, her fourth 20-kill performance of the year. For her efforts, Lowe made history when she was named the Pac-12 Conference Offensive Player of the Week for the second straight time. It marked the first time in program history that a Bruin earned the award in consecutive weeks. It was also the 73rd time UCLA received the weekly honor from the conference. Lowe leads the country with a 6.42 kills per set average and ranks first on the team with a .376 hitting percentage. The Titans will meet the Bruins for the 17th time on Saturday night. The Bruins lead the all-time series 15-1 and won the previous meeting in 2011, scoring a sweep over the Titans at the Four Points by Sheraton Invitational.
RECAP OF THE COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON CLASSIC
The Cal State Fullerton women's volleyball team traveled east for the College of Charleston Classic. They opened the tournament on the right note, defeating Stetson in four sets. Holland Crenshaw tied her career high with 18 kills and hit a team-best .438 while adding three digs and two blocks. Freshman Niki Withers added 12 kills and set a career high with six digs. The Titans took a 2-0 lead in the match and, after dropping the third set, ran away with the fourth set to take the match, despite hitting just .177 as a team. It marked the first time this season the Titans won a match despite being out hit by their opponent.
On day two, the Titans opened the day with their first five-set match of the season. Fullerton and Wake Forest went back-and-forth through four sets and the Titans held a 9-5 edge in the fifth, but the Demon Deacons stormed back to close out the match on a 10-2 scoring run. Despite the loss, freshman Stephanie Buss had one of the best individual performances for the Titans this season. Buss hammered down 15 kills and had a .609 hitting percentage, the best mark for a Titans player this season while recording 15 or more kills. Mackenzie Olsen also set a season-high with 49 assists in the match.
The Titans closed out the tournament with a loss to hosts College of Charleston. Crenshaw led the Titans with 16 kills and a .536 hitting percentage but it was not enough. The junior middle blocker finished the tournament with 46 kills and a 3.83 kills per set average, earning her a spot on the all-tournament team. She also led the team with five service aces.
BIG WEST MARKS
The Titans rank in the top five in a number of categories in the Big West Conference. They are third in the conference in total assists (441), digs (547), kills (483) and service aces (49). The Titans are ranked fourth in the conference with a 13.05 kills per set average and fifth in blocks per set (1.92), digs per set (14.78) and hitting percentage (.209).
On the individual side, the Titans also have a number of players near the top of the conference rankings:
• Freshman Niki Withers leads the Big West with 138 total kills and ranks third with a 3.73 kills per set average. She also ranks seventh, averaging 4.00 points per set.
• Holland Crenshaw ranks third in the conference with a .357 hitting percentage and is sixth with 119 total kills. She also places 10th in the conference with a 3.81 points per set average.
• Freshman Stephanie Buss has tallied 39 total blocks in 10 matches for the Titans, ranking third in the conference.
• Sophomore libero McKenna Painton ranks fifth in the conference with 4.05 digs per set average and third in the big west with 150 total digs.
• Mackenzie Olsen has dished out 9.83 assists per set this season for the Titans, which ranks fifth in the Big West. Her 354 total assists ranks third in the conference, 25 behind leader Shelley Anderson of UC Irvine.
TITAN CONNECTIONS
UCLA setter Julie Consani returns to Titan Gym this weekend after spending the first three seasons of her collegiate career at Titan Gym. Consani played in 74 matches and 238 sets in her time at Cal State Fullerton. The Newport Beach native is ranked sixth all-time in career assists (2,077) and seventh with a 8.73 assists per set average. In 2013, Consani wrapped up her time with the Titans with an 11.08 assists per set average, which ranked 32nd in the country and second in the Big West Conference. The mark also ranks as the 10th best single season mark in the Titans record book.
This season, Consani is setting the Bruins offense to a .269 hitting percentage and is averaging 11.84 assists per set. She is also averaging 2.00 digs per set, which ranks third on the Bruins.
TITANS AND RANKED OPPONENTS
The Titans matchup against UCLA on Saturday night will mark the first time Fullerton will take on a ranked opponent in 2014. The last time the Titans took on a ranked opponent was on Nov. 30 of last season when they took on No. 12 Hawai'i at Titan Gym for the final match of the season. It will also be the first time the Titans will take on a ranked opponent in a nonconference match since Sept. 20 of last season when they traveled to the Galen Center to take on No. 6 USC.
The Titans and Bruins last met on Aug. 27, 2011 when the Bruins came into the match ranked No. 11, with UCLA earning the victory with a sweep. The Titans will be looking to score their first victory over a ranked opponent in nonconference action since Sept. 22, 2010 when they swept No. 21 San Diego at Titan Gym. The Titans will also look for their second win over the Bruins in the last three meetings, with their first win coming on Sept. 18, 2009 when Fullerton topped the No. 7 ranked Bruins in five sets at Titan Gym.
CAROLYN ZIMMERMAN:
Entering her 13th season at Cal State Fullerton, Carolyn Zimmerman possessed an all-time record of 173-186 (.481). The sixth head coach in Fullerton's 37-year history, she is the winningest (.481) head coach in CSF volleyball program history.