Aztecs Set for UCR/CBU Challenge in Riverside

SAN DIEGO – The San Diego State volleyball team opens a six-match road swing this weekend when it battles UC Riverside and California Baptist as part of the UCR/CBU Challenge, Sept. 13-14, in Riverside, California.

The Aztecs (4-2) will square off against the Highlanders on Friday at 2:30 p.m. PT before facing the Lancers on Saturday at 1 p.m. Both matches will be contested at CBU’s Van Dyne Gym, with Saturday’s clash airing on ESPN+ via subscription basis.

The Lancers will also play host to the Highlanders on Thursday, Sept. 12 at 5:30 pm, before locking horns with Nevada on Friday at 6 pm. Additionally, the Wolf Pack from Reno will battle CSUN in a neutral-site encounter at Van Dyne Gym on Friday at 11 a.m., before heading across town the following day to face UCR on its own home floor, SRC Arena, on Saturday at 1 p.m. to round out the tournament.

SDSU INVITATIONAL REDUX
The Aztecs opened their 2024 home slate with a 2-1 record at the San Diego State Invitational, Sept. 5-7, toppling DePaul in four sets (25-21, 20-25, 25-16, 25-22) before outlasting Portland State in a five-set nail-biter (25-10, 21-25, 18-25, 25-21, 15-13). However, the Scarlet and Black was unable to complete an unblemished weekend, as Tulane captured a narrow 3-1 decision in the tournament finale (26-28, 21-25, 25-14, 24-26).

Following the event, middle blocker Shea Rubright collected her second straight all-tournament honor after leading the Aztecs in hitting percentage (.596), points (47.5, 3.64/set) and total blocks (13). The Washington State transfer combined for 37 kills (2.85/set), committing just three errors in 57 attempts across three matches.

Additionally, Taylor Underwood paced the Aztecs with 42 kills and 3.23 kills per set last weekend, finishing second on the squad with 46 points (3.54/set) while tying for the second position with six total blocks. The Norco, California, native surpassed the double-digit kill plateau in all three matches, tying for team-high honors with 16 put-aways against DePaul before launching 13 non-returnables vs. Portland State (.429) and Tulane (.370).

Not to be outdone, Madison Corf also reached double figures in kills throughout the weekend, equaling Underwood’s output with 16 put-aways vs. DePaul before smashing 14 non-returnables against Portland State with a season-best .345 efficiency while adding 11 vs. Tulane. She also completed her fourth career double-double with 14 digs in that contest with PSU.

Elsewhere, libero Gianna Bender led the Scarlet and Black with 46 digs and 3.54 digs per set for the tournament, adding 17 setting assists and four aces. The Aztec freshman extended her streak of double-digit digs to five straight matches after surpassing that barrier in all three encounters at the SDSU Invitational. Bender led all players with a career-best 19 digs vs. DePaul, helping the Aztecs limit the Blue Demons to a .144 hitting percentage, their lowest of the tournament. She also contributed 11 additional scoops against Portland State before finishing with a match-high 16 vs. Tulane.

Despite last Saturday’s loss, San Diego State is off to a 4-2 start for the first time since 2019.

SERIES RECORDS
The Aztecs boast a 14-2 advantage against UC Riverside in 16 varsity meetings since 1976. SDSU completed a three-set sweep of the Highlanders (25-15, 25-21, 25-19) in the last match between the two squads on Sept. 18, 2021, at the Wildcat Classic in Tucson, Arizona. Mikela Labno is the lone Aztec returner from that encounter, finishing with five kills, 13 digs and one service ace.

With the victory, the Aztecs raised their record to 4-1 in neutral-site affairs against UCR. In addition, SDSU is 5-0 vs. the Highlanders in true road matches and 5-1 at home.

San Diego State is 169-114 against current members of the Big West Conference after dropping a tough five-set decision to CSUN at the Idaho State Tournament on Aug. 31.

Despite the relative proximity to both schools, SDSU has never played California Baptist in varsity volleyball competition.

The Aztecs faced just two teams in the current alignment of the Western Athletic Conference, sporting a 5-0 record against Seattle U, including a three-set sweep in their final match of the ISU Tourney on Sept. 1. Additionally, SDSU suffered a 3-0 whitewash at the hands of host Grand Canyon at the GCU Invitational in 2019.

TOURNAMENT CONNECTIONS
UCR outside hitter Kailyn Jager graduated in 2021 from La Costa Canyon High School in Carlsbad, California, before attending San Diego Mesa College, where she led her squad to the state championship in 2023, earning 3C2A all-state and all-region honors to go with AVCA All-America accolades.

Aztec setter Andrea Campos, a graduate transfer from Villanova, and Highlander freshman outside hitter Isabella Jeffery both prepped at Archer School for Girls in West Los Angeles.

SDSU middle blocker Kat Cooper and CBU outside hitter Toree Tiffee played for rival high schools in the Arkansas 6A West Conference during their prep careers. After dropping a pair of narrow 3-2 decisions in 2020, Cooper’s Har-Ber High team swept all three encounters vs. Tiffee’s Southside squad, including a whitewash in the third round of the 6A state playoff bracket.

Lancer outside hitter Kali Wolf played four seasons at New Mexico, where she appeared in seven previous matches against the Aztecs, including a 13-kill performance with four aces on Sept. 30, 2021, in San Diego.

CBU assistant coach Michelle (Waber) Wright played two seasons at San Diego State in 2012-13 before transferring to California Baptist for her final collegiate season in 2014. After collecting WAC Freshman of the Year honors at Hawai’i in 2010, Waber was named Mountain West Newcomer of the Year in 2012, helping the Aztecs capture the Mountain West championship and secure a berth in the NCAA Tournament. She received her bachelor’s degree in social science from SDSU before completing her master’s in disability studies at CBU.

SDSU IN MW RANKINGS
Entering the weekend, Shea Rubright leads the Mountain West with a .538 hitting percentage, which ranks second in the nation as of Sept. 11. The Aztec middle blocker is also slotted seventh in points (3.85/set) while occupying the 10th position in both blocks (1.00/set) and service aces (0.38/set).

Elsewhere, Gianna Bender ranks sixth in the league with 3.58 digs per set, while Taylor Underwood is slotted seventh with a team-leading 3.25 kills per frame.

Additionally, the setting duo of Fatimah Hall (5.83/set) and Andrea Campos (5.46/set) occupy the seventh and eighth spots in assists, respectively.

SDSU boasts five of the top 10 hitting performances in the Mountain West thus far, including Talea Mitchell’s second-best .696 clip vs. Seattle, while Rubright’s two percentages from last weekend (.667 vs. Tulane) and (.640 vs. Portland State) rank third and fifth, respectively. In addition, Amber Keen’s .500 efficiency against Idaho State ranks ninth, followed by Underwood’s .476 pace vs. Portland State.

Elsewhere, Rubright’s four service aces against Seattle is tied for the second spot in the league, while Keen’s 7.0 blocks vs. CSUN is tied for ninth.

Likewise, Mitchell’s 16 kills against Seattle represents the fourth-best total for a three-set match in the MW this season, while Bender’s 19 digs against DePaul mark the fifth-best total for a four-set contest.

As a team, the Aztecs lead the Mountain West in kills (14.42/set), hitting percentage (.290) and assists (13.46/set) while ranking sixth in blocks (2.21/set) and service aces (1.38/set). On the national level, SDSU’s kill and assist average are good for ninth place as of Sept. 11, while its hitting percentage is slotted 12th.

San Diego State’s 68 kills against CSUN is tied for the third-highest team performance in the MW thus far, while its three of its best attack percentage’s rank among the league’s top 10, including .366 vs. Seattle (4th), .348 against Portland State (6th) and .331 vs. Tulane (8th).

In addition, the Aztecs posted 12.0 team blocks against both Seattle and CSUN, which is tied for eighth in the conference.

SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
UC Riverside (1-5) split two matches at the Southern Utah Invitational on Sept. 6, notching its first victory of the season with a four-set triumph over Idaho (25-16, 18-25, 25-17, 25-21) before suffering a sweep at the hands of the host Thunderbirds (16-25, 18-25, 21-24).

In their triumph over the Vandals, right-side hitter Trinity Sheridan led the Highlanders with 12 kills and five block assists, while libero Jessica Dean collected 23 digs.

Entering the weekend, Sheridan tops the squad with 2.70 kills per set, while fellow right side Carissa Wiles is averaging 2.37 put-aways per frame. In addition, Beatriz Silva ranks ninth in the Big West with 5.26 assists per set, sharing the setting responsibilities with Makena Tong (3.25/set).

UCR’s defensive efforts are led by Dean, whose 4.86 digs per set would lead the conference if she played the minimum number of sets, while Kailyn Jager (2.26/set) and Sheridan (2.09/set) are also averaging over two scoops per frame.

At the net, Sheridan has flashed her versatility with 12.0 total blocks, trailing middle blocker Syndee Rowe (14.0) for the top spot on the team.

Collectively, the Highlanders are slotted fifth in the Big West this week in service aces (1.52/set) while occupying the seventh position in digs (13.30/set). However, UCR ranks just 10th in hitting percentage (.150), kills (10.65/set) and blocks (1.52/set).

After tying for eighth in the league last year with a 5-13 mark against conference opponents and posting a 6-24 overall record, the Highlanders tied for 10th in the Big West preseason coaches poll.

California Baptist (0-6) has dropped its first six matches of the 2024 campaign, suffering five sweeps, including three last weekend at the University of Iowa’s Hawkeye Invitational against Delaware (16-25, 19-25, 26-28), Iowa (17-25, 22-25, 21-25) and San José State (5-25, 24-26, 25-27).

Offensive, the Lancers are led by Eliana Posada, who ranks eighth in the WAC with 2.88 kills per set, while Emery DeJong (2.33/set) and Nicole Mauser (2.00/set) are also averaging two put-aways per frame or more.

Despite missing the last three matches, Amanda Darling still tops the conference with 4.09 digs per set, while fellow teammate Mia Jerue is slotted eighth in that statistical category (3.30/set).

Elsewhere, Avery Barber (4.20/set) and Reese Reed (3.80/set) have shared CBU’s setting chores this season, with Barber slotted 10th in the WAC this week.

Additionally, Laura Waleswska tops the squad with 16 blocks (0.80/set), followed by Mauser’s 11 rejections (0.61/set).

Collectively, the Lancers rank eighth in the league in several categories, including hitting percentage (.131), kills (10.15/set), service aces (1.25/set) and blocks (1.40/set).

UP NEXT
Following the UCR/CBU Challenge, the Aztecs will be back in action for a return trip to the Gonzaga Tournament in Spokane, Washington. SDSU will face the host Zags on Friday, Sept. 20 at 5 p.m. PT, before tangling with Eastern Washington on Saturday, Sept. 21 at noon. Last season, the Aztecs posted a pair of 3-0 sweeps against the same teams at the event.