Bulldogs open season at EIU Panther Invitational

Fresno State vs. Valparaiso
Aug. 24, 2018 • 8:00 AM PT • Lantz Arena (4,200) • Charleston, Ill.
Video: None
Live: Live Stats • Live Updates on Twitter (@FresnoStateVB)
Series History: Fresno State leads 1-0

Fresno State at Eastern Illinois
Aug. 24, 2018 • 5:00 PM PT • Lantz Arena (4,200) • Charleston, Ill.
Video: OVC Digital Network
Live: Live Stats • Live Updates on Twitter (@FresnoStateVB)
Series History: First Meeting

Fresno State vs. Saint Francis (PA)
Aug. 25, 2018 • 10:30 AM PT • Lantz Arena (4,200) • Charleston, Ill.
Video: None
Live: Live Stats • Live Updates on Twitter (@FresnoStateVB)
Series History: First Meeting

Complete Weekly Release (PDF)

Bulldog Bones
• The Bulldogs return five starters and 11 total players from their 2017 roster with three newcomers.
• First year head coach Jonathan Winder joins the program after three years at Washington.
• Fresno State has won its first true road match of the year in each of the last seven seasons.
• The Bulldogs ranked second in the MW and 17th in NCAA Div. I with 2.76 blocks per set in 2017.
• Fresno State will be facing Eastern Illinois and Saint Francis for the first time in program history.

Scouting the EIU Panther Invitational
• Valparaiso led NCAA Div. I in both digs per set (20.03) and attacks per set (41.62) during the 2017 season. The Crusaders had the second-highest single-season dig average by a Div. I team since the move to 25-point scoring in 2008. Last season Valpo was 17-16 overall and 8-10 in the Missouri Valley Conference. Sophomore libero Rylee Cookerly was the AVCA Midwest Region Freshman of the Year last season after ranking ninth in Div. I with 5.86 digs per set. Fresno State and Valparaiso have played just once before, a 3-0 sweep by the 'Dogs 30 years ago in 1988.

• Eastern Illinois returns five starters and lost only three letter winners after going 18-18 overall and 8-8 in the Ohio Valley Conference last season to place 7th in the league. Julie Allen enters her first season leading the program, which ranked second in its conference last year averaging 2.26 blocks per set. Senior Taylor Smith was an All-OVC first team selection in 2017 after she led NCAA Div. I with 10 triple-doubles playing as an outside hitter and setter. EIU has just one other senior and five freshmen in a veteran group with 10 returning letter winners.

• Saint Francis (PA) was also a strong digging team in 2017 as it ranked 13th in Div. I with 18.11 digs per set but tallied just 1.71 blocks per set. The Red Flash have four returning starters after finishing 2017 12-15 overall and 6-8 in the Northeast Conference, improving by seven wins over the team's first season under head coach Sara McMullen. Saint Francis lost its top attacker and starting libero from last season and has nine freshmen on its roster. The Red Flash were picked to finish sixth out of eight teams in the Northeast Conference preseason Coaches' Poll.

Welcome Back
• Fresno State returns the majority of its 2017 roster for the 2018 season as five starters and 11 total players represent more the 75% of the 2018 team.
• Half of the team is comprised of seniors, as seven seniors, one junior, and four sophomores return with a total of 18 years of playing experience as Bulldogs.

Welcome Aboard
• Mixing with the veteran roster is a new coaching staff led by former Washington indoor volleyball assistant and head beach volleyball coach Jonathan Winder. His assistant coaches are Hardy Wooldridge and former Bulldog libero Maggie Eppright.
• The 'Dogs also have three new players in freshmen Kava Durr and Lauren Sabbatini and sophomore transfer Jocelyn Rodriguez, who played as a freshman at San Francisco State.

Starting Strong
• The Bulldogs have won their season opener in seven of the last 10 seasons. The 'Dogs have also started 2-0 in each of the last two seasons, extending to a 5-0 start in 2016.
• Fresno State has an even more impressive winning streak in its first true road game of the season, having won seven straight road openers with sweeps in the last three. The last time the 'Dogs lost their first road game of the season was at Utah Valley in 2010.

Fantastic Finish
• The Bulldogs ended the 2017 season on a very high note, winning three of their last four matches with consecutive home wins to end the year.
• Fresno State earned an impressive 3-1 win over Wyoming in its penultimate match of the season, knocking off a Cowgirl squad that finished second in the MW and advanced to the NIVC postseason tournament, then swept UNLV 3-0 with a 25-8 final set to end the season.

Alumnae Opener
• The Bulldogs played their annual Alumnae Match on Saturday, with the 2018 squad earning a 4-0 win.
• Haile Watson led the 'Dogs with 13 kills while hitting .579 and Taylor Slover tallied 10 kills, four aces, 12 digs and a block. Montez Uigaese had nine kills and led the team with six blocks and Madelyn Halteman totaled 35 assists.

Block Party
• In 2017 the Bulldogs were second in the MW and ranked 17th in NCAA Div. I with 2.76 blocks per set.
• Fresno State's 311.5 blocks in 2017 were the second most in a season in program history (rally scoring era). The total was just 4.5 blocks shy of the single season program record of 316.0 blocks, set in 2003.
• Fresno State recorded double-digit blocks in 16 matches last year, including 10 of the last 17, and had more blocks than its opponent 17 times. The team broke the three-set program-record with 21.0 blocks vs. CSU Bakersfield, an NCAA season high for a three set match.

Home Cooking
• Dating back to the 2016 season the Bulldogs have won nine of their last 12 home matches.
• Fresno State was 7-3 at home last season, outblocking its opponents 124-76 at home while outhitting the opposition .222-.178 over 38 home sets.
• The squad has had a winning home record in each of the last two years and in five of the last six seasons.

Seven Seniors
• Fresno State leads all MW schools with seven seniors on its 2018 roster. The seniors have totaled 13 years of playing experience with the program.
• Air Force is second in the MW with five seniors while no other team has more than three. The other 10 MW schools have 19 total seniors, an average of less than two seniors per team.

You're Invited
• For the first time since the 2016 season the Bulldogs will host a tournament this year with the inaugural Fresno State Invitational Aug. 30-Sept. 1 in the Save Mart Center.
• The 'Dogs welcome reigning Patriot League champion American along with Saint Mary's, San Francisco, and Cal Baptist for the three-day, eight match tournament.
• Fresno State will face American, Saint Mary's, and San Francisco while Cal Baptist will play only neutral site matches.

Big Time Blocker
• Senior Haile Watson was second in the Mountain West last season averaging 1.38 blocks per set in conference matches. Overall she ranked second in the MW and 34th in NCAA Div. I with 1.31 blocks per set last year.
• Watson became the first player in program history to tally 10 blocks in a three-set match, vs. CSU Bakersfield. She set a new career-high with 12 blocks at Air Force, tying for the second most blocks in a five-set match in program history.
• Watson had the fifth most blocks in a season in program history and enters her senior year ranked 7th in program history with 1.12 blocks per set for her career.

Championship Pedigree
• New Fresno State head coach Jonathan Winder has won championships throughout his career as a player and coach.
• At Washington, Winder helped lead the Huskies to a pair of Pac-12 indoor championships and multiple weeks with the No. 1 national ranking with consecutive NCAA Elite Eight appearances.
• During his playing career, Winder led Pepperdine to the 2004 National Championship as well as three MPSF conference titles and helped team USA win the 2007 Pan American Cup.

'Dogs Picked Seventh
• Fresno State was picked seventh in the preseason MW Coaches' Poll. The 'Dogs received 39 points in the poll to be picked ahead of Utah State, Air Force, Nevada, and UNLV in the 11-team league. Colorado State earned 10 first-place votes and was picked to repeat as conference champion.
• The 7th-place pick was three spots higher than the 'Dogs were voted last season when the coaches picked Fresno State to finish 10th. The Bulldogs finished tied for eighth in the league in 2017.

Loaded Schedule
• In 2018 the Bulldogs will play three matches vs. 2017 NCAA Tournament teams and have five contests against teams that played in the National Invitational Volleyball Championship (NIVC) last year. The squad will also face a Pac-12 foe for the second consecutive season, taking on Cal in Portland.
• The 'Dogs play MW champion Colorado State twice and face defending Patriot League champion and NCAA qualifier American. UC Irvine reached the third round of the NIVC last season while MW squads Wyoming and Boise State also made the 2017 postseason.
• In 2017 Fresno State had three wins against 2016 NCAA Tournament teams, beating UNLV twice and defeating 2016 SWAC champion Alabama State.

Strong Support
• Fresno State ranked fourth in the Mountain West averaging 801 fans over ten official home dates last season.
• Factoring in the 1,297 fans that saw the exhibition match vs. Fresno Pacific, the 'Dogs home average would have been the third highest average among conference teams.

"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.

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Bulldogs open season at EIU Panther Invitational

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Players Mentioned

Kava Durr

Maggie Eppright

Madelyn Halteman

Jocelyn Rodriguez

Lauren Sabbatini

Taylor Slover

Montez Uigaese

Haile Watson

Fresno State Athletics