ROBERT HUSKEY/ Daily Titan
The Cal State Fullerton women’s volleyball team (10-10 overall) looks to continue its four-game winning streak in two away games against UC Santa Barbara and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. The Titans hope for two wins on the road to improve their chances of making the playoffs, which begin late November. The Titans have played excellently in Big West Conference play and now hold a 4-3 conference record.
In Big West standings, CSUF is in a three-way tie with UCSB and the University of the Pacific for third place. These next two matches will be instrumental for the Titans in establishing themselves as a top team in the conference.
The Titans are coming off a huge performance in their four-set victory over rival Long Beach State. The win Saturday was also historic since CSUF had not beaten Long Beach State in women’s volleyball since 1982.
CSUF travels to UCSB to take on the Gauchos Friday. This will be a pretty evenly matched contest.
UCSB is 4-3 in conference play and 11-11 overall. UCSB defeated CSUF, 3-1, in its most recent match last October.
Senior outside hitter Kayla Neto leads the team in kills with 316. She also has 4.05 kills per set and is hitting at a rate of .184. She played excellently in CSUF’s last two wins against UC Irvine and Long Beach State. She led the team in kills (17) and digs (22), recording a double-double in the win against Long Beach State. She also led the team in kills with 27, tying her career-high in the comeback win against UCI. For her recent successes, Neto was named the Big West Women’s Volleyball Player of the Week. It is the second time this year that Neto has received this honor, the first time being Oct 1.
UCSB has a two-game winning streak by way of having recently defeated UC Davis and Pacific. The Gauchos’ outside hitter Leah Sully leads the team in kills with 335 and total attacks with 1,093 on the offensive side of the ball. Defensively for the Gauchos, middle blocker Britton Taylor leads the team in hitting percentage with .251 and solo blocks with six. Katey Thompson, who plays both outside hitter and middle blocker, leads the team in service aces with 23.
CSUF will take on the Cal Poly SLO Mustangs Saturday in their final game of the road trip. The Mustangs look to end a 17-game losing streak. The Mustangs are 1-18 overall and 0-7 in conference play. In their last matchup, the Mustangs defeated CSUF 3-0 last October.
Junior outside hitter Holly Franks leads the Mustangs in kills with 59 and kills per set with 2.57. Senior outside hitter Molly Pon leads the team in total attacks with 206 and hitting percentage with .180. Megan McConnell leads the team in digs with 61, solo blocks with 3, total blocks with 15, and 9 service aces.
The Titans play UCSB Friday at UCSB’s Thunderdome at 7 p.m. They will then play Cal Poly SLO at Mott Gym Saturday at 7 p.m.
For more information on the volleyball team, visit FullertonTitans.com.
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