Bulldogs back on the road to face UNLV, New Mexico

Thursday, October 12

Las Vegas, NV

6:00 PM

Fresno State

UNLV

Bulldogs back on the road to face UNLV, New Mexico

10/10/2017 3:36:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

By: Andrew Tomsky / Assistant Director of Communications

The match at UNLV on Thursday at 6 p.m. will be televised live on Stadium, an over-the-air TV channel which is available in several markets, including Fresno on channel 26-4. To find the local channel in your area, click here. The match will also stream on Stadium's live feed on Twitter. Like all MW matches, the contest will also be streaming live on the Mountain West Network.

Fresno State at UNLV
Oct. 12, 2017 • 6:00 PM PDT • Cox Pavilion (2,500) • Las Vegas, Nev.
TV: Stadium
Video: Mountain West Network
Live: Live Stats • Live Updates on Twitter (@FresnoStateVB)
Series History: UNLV leads 10-6

Fresno State at New Mexico
Oct. 14, 2017 • 1:00 PM PDT • Johnson Center (4,800) • Albuquerque, N.M.
Video: Mountain West Network
Live: Live Stats • Live Updates on Twitter (@FresnoStateVB)
Series History: NM leads 13-11

Complete Weekly Release (PDF)

Scouting UNLV (6-13, 2-4 MW)
• UNLV started Mountain West play 0-4 and was on a nine-match losing streak before winning twice on the road last week, picking up 3-2 wins at San Jose State and Nevada.
• For the season the Rebels rank last or second to last in the Mountain West in hitting percentage (.158), kills per set (10.65), digs per set (12.51) and opposing hitting percentage (.229).
• UNLV was picked to finish seventh in the MW this season despite going 24-8 overall and 12-6 in the league last season and advancing to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The team lost five starts and 12 total letter winners, returning just three letter winners this year.
• Lekaleka Kiner-Falefa ranks third in the MW with 4.23 digs per set and Ashley Owens is fourth with 1.21 blocks per set this year. Mariena Hayden leads the offensively with 2.77 kills per set.

Scouting New Mexico (10-8, 2-4 MW)
• Picked to finish ninth in the preseason MW poll, New Mexico was 8-4 in non-conference play. The team has MW wins over Wyoming and Utah State but lost twice on the road last week.
• The Lobos are 8-4 in 3-set matches this year but 2-4 in matches that go longer. For the season New Mexico is last in the league with just 1.94 blocks per set and 0.92 aces per set, and in league play the Lobos have the worst opposing hitting percentage by a wide margin (.256).
• Lauren Twitty ranks third in the conference with 3.79 kills per set and setter Carson Heilborn is third with 9.58 assists per set. Twitty leads the league averaging 4.05 kills per set in MW games.
• The Bulldogs have not won in Albuquerque since 2012 but came close last year, losing in five sets last October. The 'Dogs also had a 3-0 home win over the Lobos last year.

Super Serving
• Freshman Sydney Lostumo leads the Mountain West with 13 service aces and 0.54 aces per set in conference matches.
• She has had at least one ace in every league match with multiple aces in four straight, tallying 11 aces during Fresno State's four-match homestand. She has 13 aces to just 10 service errors for the season.
• Lostumo leads the league in aces since making her collegiate debut starting in the 'Dogs MW opener at Boise State. She has also averaged 5.62 assists and 1.21 digs per set.

Going Long
• Fresno State has played five straight matches that have gone longer than three sets. Just one of the 'Dogs first six MW contests was completed in only three sets.
• Of the team's 18 matches this season, 11 have gone four or more sets. Five of the team's seven wins have come in four or five set matches as the team is 4-3 in four-setters.

Block Party
• Fresno State ranks second in the Mountain West and 22nd in NCAA Div. I with 183.0 blocks this season. The 'Dogs average of 2.65 blocks per set is also third best in the league and 28th in the nation.
• The Bulldogs have had the same or more blocks than their opponent in all six Mountain West matches, averaging 2.79 blocks per set in league play (second best in the MW).
• Fresno State has recorded double-digit blocks in 10 matches this year, including four of the last five, and has had more blocks than its opponent 10 times.
• Haile Watson and Lauren Torres are both averaging better than one block per set this season while Taylor Slover, Aubrey Folk, and Brielle Hefner average better than half a block. Seven Bulldogs have totaled double-digit blocks this year.

6-2 Shift
• Fresno State changed to a 6-2 lineup in its last four matches and has seen strong results, specifically in hitting and serving.
• Madelyn Halteman and Sydney Lostumo split time as setter in the formation and have combined for 9.17 assists per set with 15 service aces. Both setters have averaged at least 4.25 assists per set and they have led the team to a .215 hitting percentage after the squad was hitting .197 for the season before the switch.

Back on the Road
• Fresno State goes back on the road after 13 of its first 14 official matches of the season were played outside of Fresno. The team played on the road for five consecutive weeks to start the season.
• After playing just one official home match over the first 34 days of the season Fresno State played four home matches over an eight-day stretch that ended last Thursday.
• The Bulldogs have played road matches in four states and two time zones and will visit two more states this week.

Taylor Terrific
• Junior Taylor Slover put together one of the best matches of her career against San Jose State, hitting .514 with 21 kills and just two attack errors. She finished just shy of her career-high of 25 kills tallied in the 2017 season opener vs. Utah Valley.
• For the season Slover ranks sixth in the Mountain West averaging 3.93 points per set. She has led the team in kills in 10 matches, tallying double-digit kills 12 times.

Home Cooking
• Fresno State is 3-2 at home this season averaging 3.35 blocks per set on its home floor, tallying at least 12.0 blocks in four of the five matches.
• The 'Dogs have outblocked their opponents 67.0-34.0 at home while outhitting the opposition .214-.172 over 20 home sets.

Aces Aplenty
• After leading the Mountain West and ranking 15th in NCAA Div. I averaging 1.67 service aces per set last season, the 'Dogs are averaging 1.39 aces per set this year.
• The Bulldogs are averaging 1.65 aces per set at home this year after tallying 30 during their four-match homestand.
• Fresno State totaled 24 aces in its first three matches (10 sets) of the season while allowing just 13 aces from its opponents.

Success in the SMC
• Dating back to last season the Bulldogs have won five of their last seven home matches.
• The squad has had a winning home record in each of the last two years and in five of the last six seasons.

Big Blocking Set
• The Bulldogs tallied a season-high 10.0 blocks in the second set against Utah State.
• The total topped the 9.0 blocks that squad had in the second set among its program-record 21.0 blocks against CSU Bakersfield.
• Haile Watson and Taylor Slover each had four blocks in the set and Brielle Hefner had three as the Bulldogs forced a -.021 hitting percentage from the Aggies with 10 kills and 11 errors.

Brielle Hitting Well
• Junior Brielle Hefner has been a consistent offensive threat all season as she leads the team hitting .274 and is second with 2.61 kills per set.
• Hefner had her best match at San Francisco, recording a career-high 25 kills while hitting .404. She had 13 kills and no errors on her first 26 swings of the match as she more than doubled her previous career high of 12 kills and tied for the most kills by a Bulldog this season.