Fresno State Athletics
Volleyball Begins Road Swing To Conclude Season
11/9/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Nov. 8, 2005
Fresno, Calif. -
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Back on the Road
Fresno State hits the trail for the remainder of the season, playing four more conference games on the road before travelling to Reno for the WAC Tournament on Nov. 22-24. The first opponent for the Bulldogs in this stretch is San Jose State. The Spartans defeated the Bulldogs in Fresno on Oct. 27, and Fresno is looking to even the score in the rematch. That match will be held in the Spartan Gym on the campus of San Jose State at 7 p.m. on Thursday. Following that match, the team heads east to Reno, Nevada, where the Bulldogs will look to sweep the season series with fourth-place Nevada. Back on Oct. 22, the Bulldogs won a five-game thriller against the Wolfpack, and will take their shot again at 2 p.m. on Saturday. The Wolfpack are led by Salaia Salave'a, who seems to be back at full health after suffering an ankle injury earlier in the year. The preseason WAC Player of the Year, Salave'a is currently fourth in the conference in kills per game, finishing 3.95 balls per game.
No Place Like Home
Fresno State finished off their home schedule in fine form, taking victories from Cal State Northridge and Boise State this past week. The Bulldogs started out facing the Broncos in a conference match, and came out strong, putting together their first sweep of the year. Senior Robyn Keune had 49 assists in that match, and junior Alison Pitton contributed 20 kills, the fourth time this year Pitton has made 20+ assists. In addition, Yuko Mori made her first appearance of the year as libero and was outstanding breaking the digs record for a three game match with 28. The team continued their success on Senior Night. The Bulldogs honored seniors Robyn Keune and Briana Rempel prior to the match, and then avenged a 2004 loss to the Matadors by taking a five-game win over Cal State Northridge on Saturday. Mori continued to play well, recording 30 digs for the Bulldogs, and the three middle blockers for the Bulldogs all had big nights. Jessica Peterson, Alisha McKee and Kasie Spencer all had 16 assists, and the Bulldogs hit .226 on the night on the way to the victory. In addition to one of their better offensive performances on the year, the 'Dogs also hit the court, making 95 digs, a season high to seal the win.
Tournament Spotlight
With four conference games remaining, the Bulldogs are currently in seventh place with a one-game lead over Boise State and Louisiana Tech. That is important for the Bulldogs, because while each team will participate in the tournament, the teams in eighth and ninth place play each other for the right to play the no. 1 seed, which will likely be No. 9 Hawai'i, who currently hold a 103-match winning streak in conference play. If the standings remain the same, the Bulldogs would face Utah State in the first round, a team that they are 1-1 against, splitting home and home with the Aggies in 2005. Fresno State also has a chance to catch Idaho for the sixth spot. The Bulldogs remain two games behind Idaho, but play the Vandals head-to-head on Nov. 17 in the final week of regular season play.
