CHATTANOOGA – Behind a pair of double-doubles from Madeline Schneider and Shimen Fayad, the Cal State Fullerton volleyball team opened the 2016 season with a 3-0 [25-17, 25-7, 25-21] sweep of Mississippi Valley State at the UT Chattanooga Tournament on Friday.
With the win, the Titans move to 1-0 on the year, while the Devilettes fall to 0-1. The victory marks the first win for Cal State Fullerton volleyball since November 15, 2014 when it swept UC Riverside inside Titan Gym. It was also the first triumph for the squad under second year head coach Ashley Preston and her staff.
"I am very excited to get the first match jitters out," Preston said. "It's an incredible feeling for our staff to get our first win as Titans.
"Mississippi Valley State played us tough, especially in the third set when we were down. To see the ladies rally back and take over the match shows their grit and spirit. We have a young team and we'll just keep growing from this match."
Overall, the Titans hit .214 in the contest with the help of solid offensive efforts from Schneider and Fayad. Schneider, a sophomore outside hitter who transferred from UMBC, pounded out a match-high 20 kills to hit a team-leading .316. She also added 11 digs to complete the double-double in her Titan debut, while adding one service ace and a block assist.
Fayad finished the match with 12 kills en route to hitting .280 with 10 digs as the redshirt sophomore outside hitter also collected a double-double in her Titans' debut. Fayad, a transfer from Wichita State, contributed a whopping six service aces to tie for fourth all-time in the Cal State Fullerton single-match record book.
Freshman setter Rachel Hall made her collegiate debut and dished out 32 assists to pace the offense, while adding seven digs on defense.
The Titans controlled the first set as they led the entire frame, despite seeing a pair of early ties. However, after taking a 6-5 advantage on a Mississippi Valley State service error, Cal State Fullerton never relinquished its lead as the Titans claimed a 25-17 win.
Fullerton back and dominated the second set hitting a sizzling .556 attack percentage, while limiting the Devilettes to a .000 hitting percentage. The Titans' offense knocked down 11 kills in the frame against just one attack error, while MVSU managed four kills, but offset them with four errors. Cal State Fullerton again controlled the set and cruised to a 25-7 victory as the Titans took a 2-0 advantage into the intermission.
Following the break, Cal State Fullerton fell behind in the third set as Mississippi Valley State took an 8-1 lead. The Titans refused to quit and fought back eventually knotting the game at 18-18. Fullerton continued to battle and took its first lead of the frame (21-20) on an attack error by the Devilettes. From there, the Titans tallied four-straight points to take a 24-20 advantage and push the game to match-point before winning the set, 25-21, and completing the sweep.
Cal State Fullerton finished the match with 38 kills, 36 assists, 12 service aces, 44 digs and 3.0 total team blocks. While, Mississippi Valley State was limited to just 16 kills, a .013 hitting percentage, one service ace, 12 digs and 4.0 total team blocks.
The Titans continue action in the UT Chattanooga Tournament on Saturday, August 27 when they take on South Carolina State at 1:30 p.m. (PT).