Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
Louisiana Tech
Volleyball Sweeps Past Louisiana Tech
10/21/2004 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Oct. 21, 2004
FRESNO, Calif. - Re-establishing itself as a team at home was just what the doctor ordered for the Fresno State volleyball team as the Bulldogs recorded a three-game Western Athletic Conference sweep over visiting Louisiana Tech at the North Gym.
The 'Dogs, who posted a 30-22, 30-28 and 31-29 win, saw three players tally a double-double while hitting nearly .270 as a team in the victory.
Fresno State's outside attack was dominant as freshmen outside hitters Christianna Reneau and Mounia Nihipali along with sophomore outside hitter Tuli Peters combined for 41 of the team's 60 kills.
Reneau (16 kills, 14 digs), Nihipali (12 kills, 16 digs) and Peters (13 kills, 17 digs) kept Louisiana Tech from taking a game away from Fresno State. Reneau led all players in kills while Peters led the team in digs.
In addition, Reneau moved up to No. 2 all-time in the Bulldogs' freshman record book as she now has 294 kills. She surpassed Peters' second-best mark of 281 kills, which was set a year ago.
Senior midde blocker Tiffany Bishop contributed 12 kills and hit .364 (12-4-22) to go along with a match-high four blocks.
Joy Okpa led Louisiana Tech with 15 kills. Hitting .371 (15-2-35), she also had eight digs and two blocks. Natalie Shipp collected a match-high 21 digs for the Lady Techsters.
The win tonight broke Fresno State's four-match losing streak and three-match WAC drought. The Bulldogs are now 10-10 overall and 3-5 in the WAC.
Louisiana Tech fell to 5-16 overall and 1-7 in the WAC.
While both teams hit better than .200, Fresno State led the match in virtually every statistical category.
"We were able to win critical points tonight," head coach Lindy Vivas said. "Our goal is to go to the WAC Championships; we needed this win. This season is salvagable.
"Our focus is getting better from here," Vivas stated. "We executed well tonight and we know that anything can happen; we just need to continue to get better.
"I thought Robyn (Keune) did a nice job," Vivas added. "Her experience showed as she kept the team stable. Her serve was key. Our outsides did a tremendous job as we really saw a true team effort tonight."
Game-by-Game Recaps
Game 1 -- Dishing out three service aces, Fresno State hit nearly .300 (.280) as Bishop hit .857 (6-0-7) and Peters hit .400 (5-1-10). Nihipali recorded nine digs. Okpa hit .500 for Louisiana Tech (5-0-10).
Game 2 -- Hitting better than .230, Reneau recorded six kills while Peters notched nine digs. Shannon Phillips hit .800 (4-0-5) while Shipp notched six digs for the Lady Techsters.
Game 3 -- Fresno State hit .281 as Peters was perfect from the floor (6-0-17). Reneau chipped in six kills and Nihipali had five. Four different Bulldogs totaled at least four digs in their defensive effort. Okpa hit .500 (6-0-12) and was flawless on the court for the second time in three games.
Fresno State makes its last home appearance of the month on Sat., Oct. 23, when it hosts SMU at 7:00 p.m.
