Bulldogs travel to UNLV & New Mexico

FRESNO, Calif. - After splitting a pair of matches at home last week, the Fresno State volleyball team travels to UNLV and New Mexico this week.

Fresno State at UNLV
Oct. 31, 2019 • 6:30 PM PT • Cox Pavilion (2,452) • Las Vegas, Nev.
Watch: Mountain West Network
Live: Live Stats • Live Updates on Twitter (@FresnoStateVB)
Series History: UNLV leads 12-10
Streak: UNLV W2
Last: UNLV 3-2 (10/5/19)

Fresno State at New Mexico
Nov. 2, 2019 • 12:00 PM PT • Johnson Center (4,800) • Albuquerque, N.M.
Watch: Mountain West Network
Live: Live Stats • Live Updates on Twitter (@FresnoStateVB)
Series History: FS leads 15-14
Streak: FS W4
Last: FS 3-0 (10/3/19)

Bulldog Bones

Fresno State travels to UNLV and New Mexico this week.
The 'Dogs went 1-1 last week at home sweeping Utah State before being swept by Boise State.
Fresno State is 2-6 in Las Vegas since moving to the MW in 2012 going 1-1 in 2018.
The Bulldogs are 2-4 at New Mexico since 2012 with wins in 2012 & 2018.
The 'Dogs swept the Lobos at home on Oct. 3, but fell to the Rebels in five sets on Oct. 5.

By The Numbers
9 - 'Dogs National Rank in Aces per set at 1.82 to lead the Mountain West.
1 - Reagan Leonard leads the Mountain West in digs per set (4.64).
1 - Desiree Sukhov leads the MW in kills per set (4.07) & points per set (4.69).

Scouting UNLV (12-9, 8-2 MW)

UNLV comes into Thursday's match with a 12-9 overall record & a 8-2 mark in the MW sitting in third place in the conference.
The Rebels have won eight straight matches since its last loss on Sept. 28 vs. Colorado State.
UNLV is 5-5 at home this season and is on a four-match winning streak at home.
UNLV leads the MW in service aces (160), kills (1,168) and assists (1,080).
The Rebels are second in the MW in aces per set (1.78), kills per set (12.98) & digs (1,214).
Junior outside hitter Mariena Hayden leads the MW in aces (42) and aces per set (0.66).
Sophomore middle blocker Kate Brennan leads the Rebels with 77.0 blocks.

Scouting New Mexico (6-16, 1-9 MW)

New Mexico is 6-16 on the season with a 1-9 mark in Mountain West play.
The Lobos, who are in 11th place in the league, are 0-4 at home this season.
UNM picked up its first MW win at Nevada on Oct. 17 and has lost in five sets to both Wyoming and Utah State.
Senior outside hitter Lauren Twitty ranks third in the MW in points (321.5) and attacks (798).
The Lobos are fourth in the MW in total attacks (2,890) and fifth in digs (1,163).

First Things First

Fresno State has won the first set in 12 of its 22 matches of the year.
The Bulldogs are 10-2 this year when winning the first set but only 2-8 when losing it.

'Dogs tied for fifth place in MW

With four weeks of Mountain West play remaining, the 'Dogs find themselves in a tie for fifth in the league tied with Air Force at 5-5.

Des Delivers

In her first season with the Bulldogs, junior Desiree Sukhov leads the Mountain West with 4.07 kills and 4.69 points per set.
Sukhov's 4.07 kills per set ranks 44th in NCAA Div. I and she has led the team in kills in 15 of 22 matches this year.
In the 'Dogs five-set win over Santa Clara on Sept. 6, Sukhov tallied 30 kills, tied for the fourth most kills in a match in program history and the most since Korrin Wild had 31 kills in a match in 2012.

Halteman climbing the career charts

Madelyn Halteman, the longest tenured Bulldog and the lone fifth-year senior on the 2019 roster, became just the fifth player in program history to record 3,000 career assists as she reached the plateau during the second set against CSU Bakersfield on Sept. 5.
Halteman moved into third place in program history in career assists at No. 15 CSU on Oct. 10 and enters Thursday with 3,655 career assists as she is 690 away from second place (Diann Aufdermaur - 4,345).
Halteman currently ranks ninth in program history in career aces with 125. She sits only 11 shy of third place (Korrin Wild -136) and is only 12 sets shy of moving into the top 10 in career sets played (Lauren Berger - 432).
- Career Aces
  - No. 9 - Madelyn Halteman (2015-19): 125
  - No. 8 - Jacqueline Hutcheson (2014-17): 126
  - No. 7 - Ruth Lawanson (1982-84): 127
  - No. 6 Kellie Dyer (1982-85): 131
  - No. 4 Brenda Gregersen (1992-95) & Kathy Handcock (1981-84): 132
  - No. 3 Korrin Wild (2010-13): 136

Digs all Around

A big factor in Fresno State's defensive success has been depth in digging helping the squad rank third in the MW in digs per set at 14.54.
Reagan Leonard leads the way with 4.64 digs per set to rank first in the MW.
Leonard moved into eighth place in program history in digs on Saturday against UNLV on Oct. 5 and is only 38 shy of seventh place (Korrin Wild - 1,203).

Aces Advantage

Fresno State ranks first in the MW and ninth nationally with 1.82 service aces per set while having more aces than its opponent in 16 of 22 matches with a 138-83 edge in aces for the year.
Halteman leads the team and ranks second in the MW with 33 aces while Grace Doyle has added 23 and Sukhov & Jocelyn Rodriguez have 22 apiece.
The 'Dogs had a season-high 12 aces in the win over Utah State on Oct. 24, just three shy of the program three-set match record.

Sweep happy

Nine of the 'Dogs 12 victories this season have come by sweep.
The 'Dogs last seven victories have all been sweeps.
Five of the 'Dogs six victories at home have been by sweep.

New Kid on the Block

Freshman Grace Doyle recorded a career high and team season-high nine blocks in Fresno State's win over South Dakota State on Sept. 13.
Doyle added 12 blocks in three matches at the Roadrunner Classic and leads the team with 68 on the season.
The nine blocks were the most in a match by a Bulldog since Jessica Gilbert had 11 blocks at UNLV last November.

Up next
The 'Dogs are back home next week hosting No. 14 Colorado State (20-1, 10-0 MW) on Nov. 7 and Wyoming (14-7, 9-1 MW) on Nov. 9.

Prior to the 'Dogs match with the Cowgirls next Saturday, the Fresno State volleyball program will hold the Ruth Lawanson Jersey Unveiling Celebration to honor a Bulldog legend who was the first Fresno State student-athlete to have her jersey number retired in 1985.

-- For the full news and notes release, click on the Fresno State Notes link at the top of the page.

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Bulldogs travel to UNLV & New Mexico

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Players Mentioned

Grace Doyle

Jessica Gilbert

Madelyn Halteman

Reagan Leonard

Jocelyn Rodriguez

Desiree Sukhov

Fresno State Athletics

Bulldogs travel to UNLV & New Mexico

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Players Mentioned

Grace Doyle

Jessica Gilbert

Madelyn Halteman

Reagan Leonard

Jocelyn Rodriguez

Desiree Sukhov

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