The Titans will head west this weekend to take on the No. 6 ranked Rainbow Wahine Sunday night from the Stan Sheriff Center.
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CATCH ALL THE ACTION:
Television: None
Streaming Video: A live video stream of the OC Sports broadcast of the Titans match against the Rainbow Wahine will be available through BigWest.tv. Links are available at FullertonTitans.com
Audio Webcast: A live audio broadcast will be available for Sunday night's match against Hawai'i. Links at FullertonTitans.com
Live Stats: Live in-game stats for Sunday night's match will be available through StatBroadcast. Links at FullertonTitans.com.
SUNDAY, NOV. 1 AT HAWAI'I
(STAN SHERIFF CENTER), 8 P.M. PT
Cal State Fullerton at Hawai'i
Series Record: Hawai'i leads 34-0
First Meeting: Lost, Nov. 5, 1982, 5-15, 7-15
Last Meeting: Lost, Oct. 2, 2015, 11-25, 16-25, 13-25
Current Streak: Lost 34
FIRST MEETING VS. RAINBOW WAHINE:
After spending more than a month on the road, the Titans returned home only to fall to the then No. 10 Rainbow Wahine in three sets. The Titans were outhit .362 to .053 on the night as the Rainbow Wahine committed just 10 errors in 94 attacks. For Fullerton, Kandace Thomas set a new season-high with a .700 attacking percentage (7-0-10), a mark that still holds going into Sunday. Freshman J'Nai Higgins set a career high with 11 assists in that match.
HAWAI'I NOTES:
HAWAI'I BY THE NUMBERS
After a bye week, UH rose to #6 in the AVCA Coaches' Poll. It is the highest AVCA ranking for the Rainbow Wahine since UH was ranked No. 5 in Week #6 during the 2013 season. The Rainbow Wahine also went up three spots to No. 23 in the RPI.
-UH is No. 1 in the NCAA in blocking averaging 3.50 blocks per set
-UH is No. 3 in opponent hitting percentage with 0.135
-UH is ranked No. 9 in NCAA w/.282 team hitting percentage
-UH is No. 10 in the NCAA in team total blocks with 234.5
-UH is ranked No. 36 in NCAA w/14.03 kills per set
-UH is the last undefeated team in the conference at 8-0
-UH has won their last 13-straight matches
-In conference, UH is ranked No. 1 in four of seven statistical categories:
-hitting percentage (.282)
-blocks per set (3.50), No. 2 is UC Davis with 2.32 blocks per set
-opponent hitting percentage (.135)
-kills per set (14.03)
RAINBOW BLOCK PARTY
-The Rainbow Wahine continue to lead the NCAA averaging 3.50 blocks per set. Led by senior Olivia Magill at the net, UH ranks No. 1, 2 and 3 in the Big West in blocks. Magill is averaging 1.69 blocks per set (which ranks her at No. 2 in the NCAA) with 108 total blocks with 11 solo and 97 block assists. Sophomore middle hitter Emily Maglio is second on the team and in the league with 1.35 rejects per set. She has five solo blocks and 64 block assists and is ranked No. 25 in the nation, while junior middle hitter Annie MItchem accounts for 33 total blocks with two solo. Junior opposite Nikki Taylor is third in the BWC and No. 41 in the NCAA with 1.29 blocks per set with 81 total blocks and five solo. Hawai'i's three middle hitters have accounted for 44.3% of all of UH's blocks (104.0 of the team's 234.5 total), add Taylor to the mix, and the four together total 67.1% of the team's block total.
DIGGING IT UP AT HOME:
The Titans racked up 69 digs against UC Irvine on Oct. 23 at Titan Gym, the most digs by Fullerton at home this season and second most this year overall. Three players racked up double-digit digs, led by Paige Reed's 24. Mackenzie Olsen added 13 and Kyra Hill scooped up 10 on the defensive end.
REED THE DEFENSE:
Paige Reed racked up two straight 20-dig performances against UC Irvine and UC Davis over the weekend, including a season-high 24 against the Anteaters on Oct. 23. Reed has posted three 20-plus dig performances this season and 15 double-digit performances to lead the team. She is currently ranked in the top-10 in the conference in total digs (286, 6th) and digs per set (3.96, 4th)
DOUBLE TROUBLE:
Kyra Hill and Mackenzie Olsen each recorded double-doubles against UC Irvine on Oct. 23, marking the first time this season the Titans had two players record double-doubles in the same match. Olsen set a new season high with 13 digs in the match while Hill recorded the team's first kills/digs double-double of the year with 11 kills and a career-high 10 digs.
COMING UP ACES:
Freshman Kyra Smith recorded a pair of aces on Oct. 23 against UC Irvine, the first service aces of her career.
HILL CONTINUES TO LEAD THE OFFENSE:
Kyra Hill has racked up a team-high eight double-digit kill performances this season and leads the Titans with 157 kills. Her 2.45 kills per set average has her ranked in the top-20 in the Big West Conference, coming in at 17th.
RAISING THE ROOF:
Freshman Kyra Smith has racked up 22 solo blocks this season, which leads the Big West Conference. Overall, Smith has tallied 65 total blocks to place 11th in the conference.
FOLLOW THE MACK:
Mackenzie Olsen has dished out 545 assists for the Titans this season, which ranks sixth in the Big West going into the weekend. She is averaging 7.57 helpers per set, which places her seventh in the conference. Olsen also leads the team with three double-doubles this season after leading the Titans with eight last season.
MEGANN CONTINUES TO SET CAREER MARKS:
Megann Delgado had 40 attacks on Oct. 23 against UC Irvine, tying her career high. She hammered down a career-best 18 kills on Sept. 25 in the conference opener at UC Riverside. Delgado also set a new best with a .275 hitting percentage (18-7-40). She also set a new career mark with 14 digs at Cal Poly on Oct. 16.
THE HOME-STRETCH:
The Titans will play five of their last seven matches at Titan Gym following Sunday night's trek to Hawai'i.
THE SLIDE CONTINUES:
Fullerton has lost its first 20 matches of the season for the third time since 1980 and first since 1994. It is the third worst start in program history. The Titans went 1-28 after losing the first 26 matches of the season in 1994 and dropped 25 straight to start 1992. In 1993, Fullerton lost 18 straight games to open the year.
LIVING ON THE HEARTBREAK:
The Titans have played four five-set matches this season and lost them all by a combined 13 points.
HIGGINS WITH THE HELPERS:
J'Nai Higgins saw extended time playing at setter for the Titans in a 3-0 loss to No. 10 Hawai'i on Oct. 2 at Titan Gym. Higgins dished out a career-high 11 assists for Fullerton, accounting for more than half of the team's 21 helpers on the night against the Rainbow Wahine.