SDSU Volleyball Begins Mountain West Action This Weekend

Details: Written by Martin Foley Martin Foley; Category: Sports News Sports News; Published: 20 September 2018 20 September 2018

San Diego, California - SDSU Volleyball Begins Mountain West Action This Weekend:

Match Week Preview

Aztec Storylines

OPENING UP CONFERENCE: San Diego State begins Mountain West play this weekend, hosting Fresno State on Friday, Sept. 21 at 6:00 p.m. PT before traveling to Air Force for a match on Sunday, Sept. 23 at 1:00 p.m. MT. San Diego State enters its match against Fresno State having won three of its last four conference openers.

DEJA HARRIS, PRETTY GOOD: Despite a tough weekend record-wise for SDSU, Deja Harris had a weekend to remember at the SDSU/USD Challenge, registering 4.07 kills per set with a .412 hitting percentage over 14 sets played. Harris, who eclipsed 1,000 career kills earlier this season, set a then-career-high 20 kills against UTEP last Saturday morning, only to later better that mark a few hours later, logging 26 against Louisiana. Harris is the first Aztec in over a decade to record 26 or more kills, being the first since Lauren Salisbury logged 28 kills against UTEP on Sept. 15, 2008.

Harris currently ranks ninth in the country and second in the Mountain West with 66 total blocks this season. Among active NCAA players, Harris ranks ninth with 455 career total blocks.

ALL-TIME AGAINST FRESNO STATE/AIR FORCE: SDSU is a collective 68-18 all-time against this weekend’s opponents, owning a 31-12 mark against Fresno State and a 37-6 record against Air Force. SDSU split last year’s season series with Fresno State, but the Aztecs have won nine of the last 12 meetings with the Bulldogs, while SDSU has won 11 of its previous 15 meetings with the Falcons.

TOUGH ROAD SO FAR: As of Wednesday, SDSU’s 11 opponents during the 2018 season own a collective 79-54 record (.594). Of those 11 previous opponents, seven currently have records of .500 or better. SDSU has played Portland (currently 12-0) twice this season, and the Pilots are one of just six remaining undefeated teams in the nation.

A RECAP OF THE SDSU/USD CHALLENGE: SDSU faced a bit of tough luck last weekend at the SDSU/USD Challenge, having more kills (185-162), a better hitting percentage (.207-.198), more assists (173-154), more digs (166-156), and an even amount of blocks (35-35) depite going 0-3 against its three opponents last weekend. Deja Harris (4.07 kills per set, .412 hitting percentage, 1.29 blocks per set) and Hannah Turnlund (3.07 kills per set, 1.50 digs per set) were both named to the 2018 SDSU/USD Challenge All-Tournament Team. Harris’ selection marked as her fifth regular-season all-tournament team selection over the last two seasons.