RIVERSIDE, Calif. — Four Titans reached double figures in kills as Cal State Fullerton women's volleyball defeated UC Riverside in five sets Saturday night on the road.
Lyla Traylor knocked down 17 kills on a .292 hitting percentage to lead the Titan hitters, also adding 18 digs, three aces, one block and an assist. Lolo Fonua, Julia Crawford and Danielle Jefferies each tallied 11 kills as the Titans hit at a .221 clip on the match.
Elizabeth Schuster orchestrated the Titan offense with 50 assists and only one error, while adding 12 digs and three blocks. Bianca Martinez contributed eight kills and a career-high eight blocks, while Nadia Koanui recorded 21 digs for the Titans.
The Titans won the first set, 25-21, before narrowly dropping the next two to fall behind 2-1 in the match. Cal State Fullerton just came out on top in the fourth, 26-24, before sealing the match victory with a dominant 15-6 set five win.
The first set started off back and forth, as kills by Traylor and Martinez put the Titans up 8-6. The Titans extended their lead to five, 13-8, following a Fonua kill and a pair of UC Riverside attack errors. A pair of Martinez kills and an ace from Schuster later gave Cal State Fullerton a 19-16 advantage. The Titans maintained their lead throughout the set, as a backline kill from Crawford gave Cal State Fullerton the 25-21 set one win.
S1 | Crawford doing what she does best ��
— Titans Volleyball (@Fullerton_WVB) October 22, 2022
The Titans take set one, 25-21!#TusksUp pic.twitter.com/7mK0L3zBue
UC Riverside got off to a quick start in the second period, leading 12-5 early. The Titans responded, as a Jefferies kill and an ace by Traylor gave them a 15-14 advantage. Cal State Fullerton maintained its advantage, as kills by Crawford and Traylor put the Titans up 21-18. But the Highlanders used a 5-0 late in the set to go up 24-22, ultimately winning 25-23.
Things remained tight in the third set, with a kill by Traylor and a Highlander attack error giving the Titans a 9-8 lead. Teams then traded points, as Martinez and Crawford put down kills to put the Titans up 15-14. A pair of Martinez kills and a Traylor ace later brought the score to 22-20 for the Titans. But UC Riverside once again finished strong, using a 6-1 run to take set three, 25-23 and go up 2-1 in the match.
UC Riverside jumped to a 9-6 lead in the fourth before back-to-back kills by Traylor tied things up at 11-all. The Highlanders extended their lead back to three, 15-12, before a Jefferies kill highlighted a 4-0 Titan run to give Cal State Fullerton a 16-15 advantage. Teams traded points, as a Schuster dump kill put the Titans up 20-19. Three straight points from the Titans capped by a Jefferies kill then put them up 23-20. UC Riverside fought back to tie things at 24-all, but a Traylor kill and a block by Jefferies and Schuster gave the Titans the 26-24 set four win.
S4 | Jefferies and Schuster with the rejection to give the Titans set four, 26-24!!
— Titans Volleyball (@Fullerton_WVB) October 23, 2022
We're headed to set 5⃣#TusksUp pic.twitter.com/40w14wED1R
The Titans got off to a dominant start in the decisive fifth set, scoring the first eight points following a flurry of Martinez blocks and kills by Fonua and Traylor. UC Riverside narrowed its deficit to six, 12-6, but a kill from Jefferies, ace by Naia Stewart and another kill by Jefferies gave the Titans set five, 15-6, and the match, 3-2.
THE TITANS WIN IN FIVE!!
— Titans Volleyball (@Fullerton_WVB) October 23, 2022
Crawford puts the finishing touch on this one ��#TusksUp pic.twitter.com/rCakZgTAVN
Next up, the Titans return home to face Cal Poly on Friday, October 28th in Titan Gym. First serve is slated for 7:00 p.m. PT.
WATCH THE TITANS ON ESPN+
Titans fans can now watch every home event exclusively on ESPN+. Cal State Fullerton has built a top-tier production studio to give the viewers an ESPN quality production for all games at Titan Stadium. Additionally, all schools in the Big West Conference are committed to producing ESPN quality streams which will allow fans to watch the Titans on ESPN+ for all road conference games.
FOLLOW THE TITANS
Fans can keep up with the latest in Titan Athletics by following us on Facebook (Facebook/FullertonTitans), Twitter (@FullertonTitans) Instagram (FullertonTitans) and Snapchat (FullertonTitans). In addition, the volleyball team has established its own Twitter (@Fullerton_WVB) and Instagram accounts (Fullerton_WVB).