Bulldogs head to Portland for Les Schwab West Coast Challenge

Fresno State (6-1) at Portland State (1-5)
Sept. 7, 2018 • 10:00 AM • Viking Pavilion (3,000) • Portland, Ore.
Video: WatchBigSky
Live: Live Stats • Live Updates on Twitter (@FresnoStateVB)
Series History • Streak: Portland State leads 8-1 • FS W 1

Fresno State (6-1) vs. Gonzaga (0-5)
Sept. 7, 2018 • 5:00 PM • Viking Pavilion (3,000) • Portland, Ore.
Video: WatchBigSky
Live: Live Stats • Live Updates on Twitter (@FresnoStateVB)
Series History • Streak: Tied 1-1 • FS W 1

Fresno State (6-1) vs. California (5-1)
Sept. 8, 2018 • 10:00 AM • Viking Pavilion (3,000) • Portland, Ore.
Video: WatchBigSky
Live: Live Stats • Live Updates on Twitter (@FresnoStateVB)
Series History • Streak: California leads 18-9 • CAL W 4

Complete Weekly Release (PDF)

Quick notes
• Fresno State has opened a season 6-1 for the first time since 2009 and last started 7-1 in 2002
• The 'Dogs rank in the top-15 in NCAA Div. I in total aces (3rd), kills (5th), assists (6th), and digs (11th)
• Fresno State is 4-0 in 5-set matches and has played at least four sets in six of its seven matches
• Haile Watson hit .720 with 19 kills vs. Saint Mary's, the best hitting percentage in Div. I this year
• The 'Dogs play in Portland for the 2nd straight year, were at the University of Portland in 2017

Scouting the Les Schwab West Coast Challenge
• Portland State will be hosting its third tournament already this season but is just 1-5 despite playing five of its first six matches at home. The Vikings opened the year with a 3-0 sweep of Long Beach State but have lost their last five matches winning just two total sets. PSU has played another MW team, losing 3-1 at home to Boise State. The team is hitting just .176 for the season and averaging 1.40 blocks per set. Portland State was picked fourth in the Big Sky preseason poll after going 21-9 last year. The 'Dogs beat the Vikings, 3-2, in their last meeting in 2016.

• Gonzaga is 0-5 but has played a tough schedule, losing twice to No. 11 UCLA as well as other Power-5 schools Utah and Iowa State before a 3-2 loss at Montana in its last match. The Bulldogs were supposed to play in a tournament in Hawaii but Hurricane Lane forced the team to play just two matches at UCLA instead. The Zags were picked fifth in the WCC preseason poll after a 14-16 overall record last year. Gonzaga returned six starters and 12 letter winners and is hitting just .157 as a team. Gonzaga and Fresno State have only met twice, last in 1998.

• California is off to a 5-1 start, sweeping three matches in a home tournament and winning two of three in South Dakota. The Golden Bears have lost only four sets in six matches while ranking second in the Pac-12 in aces per set (1.80) and third in opposing hitting percentage (.149). Cal was picked last in the preseason Pac-12 poll after going 13-18 overall and 4-16 in conference matches last year. Fresno State is playing a Pac-12 foe for the second straight season, and its last Pac-12 win came at Colorado in 2012. The 'Dogs last beat California in 1984.

Spectacular Start
• Fresno State has opened a season 6-1 for the first time since 2009. The 'Dogs swept three matches at the EIU Panther Invitational, beat Fresno Pacific in their home opener, then went 2-1 in the Fresno State Invitational with the only loss coming in four sets against tournament champion Saint Mary's.
• The Bulldogs haven't started 7-1 since the 2002 team began the year with a 12-1 record. The 2002 team was the last Fresno State squad to qualify for the NCAA Tournament.

Top Attacker
• Senior Haile Watson had a career-high 19 kills and just one error in 25 attacks vs. Saint Mary's to hit .720, the best single-match hitting percentage in NCAA Div. I this season (min. 20 attacks).
• Watson's only attack error against the Gaels came late in the fourth set as she nearly broke the program hitting percentage record of .792, achieved by Shauna McQuaid with 20 kills and one error against UALR in 2001.
• Watson hit .443 with 2.76 kills per set last week and ranks 30th in NCAA Div. I this season with a .428 hitting percentage.

Going Long
• Fresno State has played at least four sets in six of seven matches this season with four 5-set matches. Every match against a Div. I opponent has gone at least four sets as the team is playing 4.4 sets per match on average.
• The Bulldogs have played 31 sets this year, tied for the sixth most among all Div. I programs. Furthermore, the 'Dogs have played five sets that have gone into extra points.

National Top-10
• Among 334 NCAA Div. I programs, Fresno State currently ranks third in the nation with 57 service aces. The 'Dogs are +17 in service aces this season, having allowed just 40, and have had at least four aces in every match.
• Fresno State also ranks in the top-15 in the country in total kills (5th), total assist (6th), and total digs (11th), in part thanks to averaging nearly four and a half sets played in seven matches.

Fantastic in Five
• The Bulldogs are 4-0 in 5-set matches this year with two straight 5-set wins.
• Fresno State was just 2-4 in 5-set matches last season and the 'Dogs already have as many five set wins as any previous team since the 2012 Bulldogs went 7-3 in 5-setters.

Breakout Star
• Senior Jessica Gilbert has moved into the starting lineup this season and leads the team with 3.26 kills and 3.93 points per set while hitting .286 and adding 2.10 digs and 0.77 blocks per set.
• Gilbert has had at least 10 kills in six of seven matches and has hit .250 or better in all but one match this year. She had a career-high 19 kills and 15 digs against Eastern Illinois to earn her first double-double and had 18 kills and 21 digs vs. San Francisco.
• In her first season with the 'Dogs in 2017 after transferring from Eastern Washington, Gilbert played in just 12 matches and 21 sets while totaling 22 kills.

Super Support
• A crowd of 1,583 fans packed the Save Mart Center for Fresno State's home opener vs. Fresno Pacific and the 'Dogs are averaging 1,037 fans through four home matches.
• Fresno State ranks 32nd in NCAA Div. I in average home attendance and has the second highest average attendance among all Div. I schools in California, trailing only San Diego.

Home Cooking
• Dating back to the 2016 season the Bulldogs have won 13 of their last 17 home matches.
• Fresno State was 7-3 at home last season and is 4-1 in the Save Mart Center so far this year.
• The squad has had a winning home record in each of the last two years and in five of the last six seasons.

Digging History
• In just her second career start at libero Reagan Leonard broke the single-match program record with 38 digs in the 'Dogs 3-1 win at Eastern Illinois. Her total was one dig better than the previous record of 37 digs, set by Mounia Nihipali vs. San Jose State in 2004.
• Leonard has tallied double-digit digs in every match this season with 20 or more digs five times as she leads the MW and ranks 40th in NCAA Div. I averaging 5.16 digs per set.

Beating Tourney Teams
• Fresno State's 3-2 victory over American gave the 'Dogs their first win of the year against a team that played in the NCAA Tournament last season. American went 26-8 last year and won the Patriot League to qualify for the NCAA Tournament.
• Last season the 'Dogs had three wins against 2016 NCAA Tournament teams, beating UNLV twice and defeating 2016 SWAC champion Alabama State.

Double-Double Madness
• The Bulldogs recorded five double-doubles in three matches at Eastern Illinois and have already totaled eight double-doubles this season. The team had a grand total of seven double-doubles in 30 matches last year.
• Madelyn Halteman and Taylor Slover each have three double-doubles while Jessica Gilbert has two. The 'Dogs have at least one double-double in five matches this year and multiple double-doubles in three matches.

Starting Strong
• The Bulldogs have now won their season opener in eight of the last 11 seasons. The 'Dogs have also started 2-0 in each of the last three seasons.
• Fresno State has an even more impressive winning streak in its first true road game of the season, having now won eight straight road openers. The last time the 'Dogs lost their first road game of the season was at Utah Valley in 2010.

"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

Bulldogs head to Portland for Les Schwab West Coast Challenge

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Jessica Gilbert

Madelyn Halteman

Reagan Leonard

Taylor Slover

Haile Watson

Fresno State Athletics