Matches 12-14: SDSU/USD California Mixer
Cal State Fullerton vs. San Jose State
Date: Friday, September 16
Time: 4:30 p.m.
Location: Jenny Craig Pavilion || USD
Cal State Fullerton at San Diego
Date: Saturday, September 17
Time: 10:00 a.m.
Cal State Fullerton at San Diego State
Date: Saturday, September 17
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Location: San Diego, Calif.
Venue: Jenny Craig Pavilion/Atec Court
Live Stats: FullertonTitans.com
Video: FullertonTitans.com
Tickets: FullertonTitans.com/Tickets
SDSU/USD CALIFORNIA MIXER
The Cal State Fullerton volleyball team travels to the SDSU/USD California Mixer this weekend to play San Jose State, No. 10 San Diego and San Diego State. The first two Titan matches vs. San Jose State (Friday, 4:30 p.m.) and at No. 10 San Diego (Saturday, 10 a.m.) will be played at Jenny Craig Pavilion on the campus of the University of San Diego. Fullerton's final match will be played at Aztec Court against San Diego State at 7 p.m., Saturday.
TICKETS
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 one hour prior to the scheduled time at the specific venue. All Cal State Fullerton students with a school ID get free admission.
FOLLOW THE TITANS
Fans can keep up with the latest in Titans athletics by following us on Facebook (FullertonTitans), Twitter (@FullertonTitans), and Instagram (@FullertonTitans). In addition, the volleyball team has established its own official Twitter page (@FullertonVB).
CATCH THE TITANS
Cal State Fullerton home volleyball matches will be broadcast live over the internet at FullertonTitans.com. The Titans also offer live streaming video for home volleyball matches courtesy of Big West TV. Fans can catch all the exclusive action from the comfort of their home computers. To access the links, click on the audio or live video links on the schedule page.
FRIDAY, SEPT. 16 vs. San Jose State || 4:30 p.m.
Cal State Fullerton vs. San Jose State
Series Record: SJSU leads 22-3
First Meeting: L, 3-2 at San Jose State (Nov. 13, 1981)
Last Meeting: W, 3-1 vs. San Jose State (Sept. 16, 2005) || Titan Gym
Current Streak: Won 2
Last 10 Meetings: 3-7
SAN JOSE STATE NOTES
San Jose State enters the weekend with a record of 6-3. The Spartans are an undefeated 4-0 in three-set matches as Giulia Gavio leads SJSU with 4.23 kills per set. Last week, the Spartans finished 2-1 at the Flo Hyman Collegiate Cup Houston, Texaswith wins over Houston and Louisiana-Monroe and a loss to Houston Baptist.
SATURDAY, SEPT. 17 at No. 10 San Diego || 10:00 a.m.
Cal State Fullerton at San Diego
Series Record: San Diego leads 17-9
First Meeting: W, 3-2 (Oct. 11, 1980) || Unknown
Last Meeting: W, 3-0 vs. #21 San Diego (Sept. 22, 2010) || Titan Gym
Current Streak: Won 1
Last 10 Meetings: 1-9
SAN DIEGO NOTES
The University of San Diego women's volleyball team cracked into the top-10 of the AVCA top-25 poll this week, checking in at No. 10. This marks the third time in program history that USD has been in the top-10, having been in there twice in the 2013 season, reaching as high as No. 2 that season.
After making its sixth consecutive NCAA Tournament and 19th overall, San Diego was picked as the favorite to win the 2016 West Coast Conference Volleyball Championship in the annual preseason poll of the WCC's 10 coaches. Senior opposite Lisa Kramer helped lead San Diego to a perfect 3-0 record this past week, including knocking off No. 18 Colorado, and No. 7 UCLA in back-to-back outings. This win over UCLA was the program's first against the Bruins, and it marks the third time since 2013 USD has defeated a top-10 team in the Jenny Craig Pavilion.
San Diego (5-2) is 3-2 against ranked opponents in 2016 and enters the weekend on a four-match win streak. Kramer averages 4.36 kills per set, while six other Toreros average at least 2.0 kills per set.
SATURDAY, SEPT. 17 at San Diego State || 7:00 p.m.
Cal State Fullerton at San Diego State
Series Record: SDSU leads 34-5
First Meeting: L, 2-0 (Sept. 19, 1980) at SDSU
Last Meeting: L, 3-1 (Sept. 7, 2014) at SDSU
Current Streak: Lost 3
Last 10 Meetings: 4-6
SAN DIEGO STATE NOTES
Sophomore Alexandra Psoma continues to lead the SDSU (5-5) offense with an average of 2.87 kills per set. She had a career-high 19 kills in a win over Rhode Island last Friday. Her 21 points in the match against Rhode Island was also her San Diego State career best as was her .581 hitting percentage in that contest.
Deja Harris notched a career-high 19 kills and 21.5 points in a win over Stony Brook last Saturday. Her .643 hitting percentage in that match was her season best. She also tied her season best with six blocks in the victory over Rhode Island on Friday. Her .404 hitting percentage after 10 matches ranks second in the Mountain West this week.
ABOUT THE TITANS
Cal State Fullerton (5-6), who was winless in 2015, has already secured five victories this season.
The team's 509 total assists in 2016 rank 17th in the country. The Titans also lead the Big West Conference averaging 16.08 digs per set.
Shimen Fayad and Madeline Schneider have combined to lead the Titans' offense with Fayad posting 145 kills (3.72 per set) and Schnieder registering 137 kills (3.51 per set). Summer Kerins has done a solid job offensively as well as she leads the team with a .378 attacking percentage (78-20-178). Kerins was named to the Quality Inn Placentia Fullerton Classic All-Tournament team last week.
Defensively, the Titans' Madisen Babich leads the way with 3.82 digs per set, while Kyra Smith leads the team at the net with 0.98 blocks per set.
SETTING THE BAR
Freshman Rachel Hall has done a good job setting the ball with 322 assists to average 8.05 assists per set, while Precious Manu's 125 assists are good for 5.68 assists per set. The Titans as a squad averages 12.73 assists per set to rank second in the Big West Conference.
BLOCK PARTY
Sophomore middle blocker Kyra Smith, who led the Titans at the net last season as a freshman, did not waste any time this year. Smith, boasts a team-leading 39 blocks (5 solo blocks and 34 block assists) on the year as she is now averaging 0.98 blocks per set.
ACES WILD
Shimen Fayad had quite a day at the line in the opening weekend as she served up six aces in one match to help Cal State Fullerton defeat Mississippi Valley State. With her half-dozen service aces, Fayad made her way into the Titans' single-match record book as she tied for fourth most aces in a single match. She now leads the team with 12 aces on the year to average 0.31 per set.
UP NEXT
With Big West Conference play only a week away, opening weekend is shaping up to be an exciting one. Cal State Fullerton will host UC Riverside in an interesting showdown at Fullerton on Saturday, Sept. 24. The Titans enter the aforementioned match with a conference winless streak dating back to Nov. 15, 2014, when it captured a 3-0 victory over the Highlanders.