Fresno State Athletics
Thursday, November 29
Las Vegas, Nev.
4:30 P.M. PT
Fresno State
22-10
3
vs
2
UC Santa Barbara
17-12
1
2
3
4
5
F
UC Santa Barbara
23
25
16
28
11
2
Fresno State
25
22
25
26
15
3
‘Dogs top UC Santa Barbara in 5-set thriller to open NIVC
11/29/2018 10:03:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Fresno State tallied a season-high 15 blocks and earned its first postseason victory in 23 years as the Bulldogs topped UC Santa Barbara, 3-2 (25-23, 22-25, 25-16, 26-28, 15-11), in the opening round of the National Invitational Volleyball Championship (NIVC) on Thursday night on the campus of UNLV.
Fresno State (22-10) recorded its first postseason win since beating Stephen F. Austin, 3-1, in the original NIVC tournament on Dec. 1, 1995. The Bulldogs advance to face UNLV (20-11) Friday night at 7 p.m. in an NIVC 2nd Round matchup as the Rebels swept UC Irvine in the second match in Las Vegas on Thursday.
Haile Watson had a season-high nine blocks to lead the 'Dogs to a commanding 15.0-3.0 advantage in blocks against UCSB. Watson also had 13 kills while Aubrey Folk led the 'Dogs with 15 kills and Taylor Slover had 10 to go with five blocks and eight digs. Madelyn Halteman was one of four Bulldogs to record double-digit digs and had her 10th double-double of the season with 44 assists and 13 digs while also leading the team with two service aces.
Bulldog sophomore Reagan Leonard had a team-high 16 digs on Thursday and, with her fourth dig of the night early in the second set, broke the single-season program record with her 574th dig of the season. With the team's fourth dig of the match the squad also established a new single-season program record for digs. UCSB actually had a 73-64 edge in digs but committed 16 service errors and 39 total attack errors, 24 of which were unblocked errors.
How it Happened
There were 35 ties and 13 lead changes in the match as all but the third set were very competitive. Fresno State hit a match-best .364 with 16 kills and just four attack errors in the first set as Folk hit .600 with six kills to lead the way. The 'Dogs led for most of the first set and were up 20-15. UCSB battled back to trail just 23-22, but the 'Dogs reached set point at 24-23 and won it on a solo block from Jessica Gilbert.
The second set was the only one of the match in which UC Santa Barbara hit better than .205. The Bulldogs also had their worst hitting set of the match at .121 but neither team led by more than three points in the period. The Gauchos had a 4-0 run to turn a 16-14 deficit into an 18-16 lead and led the rest of the way. The 'Dogs were down just 22-21 but UCSB scored three of the last four points to even the match.
Fresno State completely dominated the third set, outhitting UCSB .333-.000 as the Gauchos had 11 kills and 11 attack errors. The Bulldogs had five blocks in the set, jumping to a 6-1 lead and moving to an 11-3 advantage to pull away early. The 'Dogs led by as many as 10 points at 17-7 and were up by at least eight for the remainder of the set.
The fourth set had 17 ties and six lead changes as neither team ever led by more than three. Watson had five kills in the set and it was tied at every point from 15 until the finish. After trailing 22-21, the 'Dogs had a 3-1 run to reach match point at 24-23. UCSB dodged that one and again saved match points with the Bulldogs up 25-24 and 26-25. A Fresno State service error tied the set at 26-26 and the Gauchos followed with a block and a kill to force the fifth.
The decisive set was tied at each of the first five points, but the 'Dogs put together a 4-1 run to take a 9-6 lead. UCSB again hit .000 in the fifth set with six kills and six attack errors, four of which were unblocked. Fresno State extended its lead to 12-7 and reached match point up 14-10. A service error kept the Gauchos alive but Kava Durr followed with her seventh kill of the night to complete the win (watch).
Notes
"Our focus here in the postseason is on continuing to become the best team that we can be. I thought we were playing hard and well at times. We had some good runs of blocks and were able to set our quicks. The team showed that we still have lots of energy left and plenty of toughness to keep this thing going. It's a great step for our program to win postseason games. I'm excited for tomorrow to see how good this team can be."
What's Next
Fresno State and UNLV will meet for the third time this season. The 'Dogs beat UNLV by 3-1 scores twice during the regular season, including a win in Las Vegas on Nov. 10. The winner of the match will advance to the quarterfinals of the NIVC next week and face the winner of Portland and Utah Valley, who will play a second round match in Wyoming Friday night at 5:30 p.m. PT.
"Just the Ticket to Build Our Community" – The Bulldog Scholarship Fund gives Bulldog alumni, fans and friends the opportunity to support Fresno State Athletics and the student-athletes who inspire them. For information about how you can support the Bulldog Scholarship Fund, please visit www.bulldogscholarshipfund.com or call 559-278-7160.
Follow us on:
Twitter: @FresnoStateVB
Instagram: FresnoStatevball
Facebook: FresnoStateVB
Fresno State (22-10) recorded its first postseason win since beating Stephen F. Austin, 3-1, in the original NIVC tournament on Dec. 1, 1995. The Bulldogs advance to face UNLV (20-11) Friday night at 7 p.m. in an NIVC 2nd Round matchup as the Rebels swept UC Irvine in the second match in Las Vegas on Thursday.
Haile Watson had a season-high nine blocks to lead the 'Dogs to a commanding 15.0-3.0 advantage in blocks against UCSB. Watson also had 13 kills while Aubrey Folk led the 'Dogs with 15 kills and Taylor Slover had 10 to go with five blocks and eight digs. Madelyn Halteman was one of four Bulldogs to record double-digit digs and had her 10th double-double of the season with 44 assists and 13 digs while also leading the team with two service aces.
Bulldog sophomore Reagan Leonard had a team-high 16 digs on Thursday and, with her fourth dig of the night early in the second set, broke the single-season program record with her 574th dig of the season. With the team's fourth dig of the match the squad also established a new single-season program record for digs. UCSB actually had a 73-64 edge in digs but committed 16 service errors and 39 total attack errors, 24 of which were unblocked errors.
How it Happened
There were 35 ties and 13 lead changes in the match as all but the third set were very competitive. Fresno State hit a match-best .364 with 16 kills and just four attack errors in the first set as Folk hit .600 with six kills to lead the way. The 'Dogs led for most of the first set and were up 20-15. UCSB battled back to trail just 23-22, but the 'Dogs reached set point at 24-23 and won it on a solo block from Jessica Gilbert.
The second set was the only one of the match in which UC Santa Barbara hit better than .205. The Bulldogs also had their worst hitting set of the match at .121 but neither team led by more than three points in the period. The Gauchos had a 4-0 run to turn a 16-14 deficit into an 18-16 lead and led the rest of the way. The 'Dogs were down just 22-21 but UCSB scored three of the last four points to even the match.
Fresno State completely dominated the third set, outhitting UCSB .333-.000 as the Gauchos had 11 kills and 11 attack errors. The Bulldogs had five blocks in the set, jumping to a 6-1 lead and moving to an 11-3 advantage to pull away early. The 'Dogs led by as many as 10 points at 17-7 and were up by at least eight for the remainder of the set.
The fourth set had 17 ties and six lead changes as neither team ever led by more than three. Watson had five kills in the set and it was tied at every point from 15 until the finish. After trailing 22-21, the 'Dogs had a 3-1 run to reach match point at 24-23. UCSB dodged that one and again saved match points with the Bulldogs up 25-24 and 26-25. A Fresno State service error tied the set at 26-26 and the Gauchos followed with a block and a kill to force the fifth.
The decisive set was tied at each of the first five points, but the 'Dogs put together a 4-1 run to take a 9-6 lead. UCSB again hit .000 in the fifth set with six kills and six attack errors, four of which were unblocked. Fresno State extended its lead to 12-7 and reached match point up 14-10. A service error kept the Gauchos alive but Kava Durr followed with her seventh kill of the night to complete the win (watch).
Notes
- With 22 wins this season the 'Dogs have their most wins since the 2002 team finished the year 23-7. Coach Jonathan Winder has the most wins by a first year coach in program history, breaking a tie with Lindy Vivas.
- UCSB Junior Lindsey Ruddins entered the match ranked second in NCAA Div. I averaging 5.37 kills per set and hitting .260, but the 'Dogs held her to just 12 kills on a .182 hitting percentage and she was benched after the third set.
- Leonard broke the previous single-season program record of 573 digs that was set by current Fresno State assistant coach Maggie Eppright in 2015.
- The Bulldogs now have 1,941 digs this season, topping the previous single-season team record of 1,880 digs set in 2004.
- Fresno State improved to 15-0 this season when having the same or more aces than its opponent. Each team had three aces on Thursday while they combined for 31 service errors.
- The Bulldogs are now 21-2 this season when having the same or more blocks than their opponent.
- Fresno State is 6-2 in 5-set matches this season.
- Head Coach Jonathan Winder
"Our focus here in the postseason is on continuing to become the best team that we can be. I thought we were playing hard and well at times. We had some good runs of blocks and were able to set our quicks. The team showed that we still have lots of energy left and plenty of toughness to keep this thing going. It's a great step for our program to win postseason games. I'm excited for tomorrow to see how good this team can be."
What's Next
Fresno State and UNLV will meet for the third time this season. The 'Dogs beat UNLV by 3-1 scores twice during the regular season, including a win in Las Vegas on Nov. 10. The winner of the match will advance to the quarterfinals of the NIVC next week and face the winner of Portland and Utah Valley, who will play a second round match in Wyoming Friday night at 5:30 p.m. PT.
"Just the Ticket to Build Our Community" – The Bulldog Scholarship Fund gives Bulldog alumni, fans and friends the opportunity to support Fresno State Athletics and the student-athletes who inspire them. For information about how you can support the Bulldog Scholarship Fund, please visit www.bulldogscholarshipfund.com or call 559-278-7160.
Follow us on:
Twitter: @FresnoStateVB
Instagram: FresnoStatevball
Facebook: FresnoStateVB
Team Stats
UCSB
FS
Kills
67
54
Errors
39
17
Attempts
194
158
Hitting %
.144
.234
Points
73.0
72.0
Assists
62
52
Aces
3
3
Blocks
3.0
15.0
Game Leaders
Kills
15
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
13
Aces
0
Blocks
9
Kills
10
Aces
1
Blocks
5
Kills
8
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Players Mentioned
L
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's VolleyballMB/OH
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's Volleyball
L/DS
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's VolleyballMB
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