Nov. 10, 2016
SAN DIEGO – The San Diego State volleyball team will open its final home stand of the 2017 season when it hosts league-leader Colorado State this evening at 6:00 p.m. on Aztec Court.
Colorado State's record stands at 17-7 overall and 11-2 in league play as it has won 11 of its last 13 matches and sits atop the league standings tied with Boise State. CSU's top players include Sanja Cizmic (3.06 kps, 0.90 dps) and Jasmine Hanna (2.86 kps, 0.55 bps). Alexandra Poletto and Kirstie Hillyer are averaging 1.29 and 1.51 blocks per set respectively.
The Aztecs, meanwhile, enter this evening's match with a mark of 14-13 overall and 6-7 in Mountain West action. With five conference matches remaining, SDSU need to win three times to continues its streak of having finished at .500 or better in Mountain West contests since 2010.
Sophomore Alexandra Psoma has averaged 3.88 kills per set over SDSU's last four matches. She set a career high with 23 kills against Boise State on Oct. 29 and also had a personal career best of 23.5 points in the match. She continues to lead the SDSU offense with an average of 3.24 kills per set in all matches, a mark that ranks 10th in the Mountain West this week. After 13 Mountain West matches, she is averaging 3.46 kills per set in league play to rank fourth in the category.
Deja Harris' .342 hitting percentage in all matches this season stands seventh in the conference this week. Her mark of 1.00 blocks per set in all matches ranks 12th while her mark of 1.06 bps in league matches ranks 11th. She has averaged 1.16 blocks per set over San Diego State's last six outings. Harris is second on the squad in kills at 2.74 per set after averaging 3.00 kills per set in SDSU's two contests last week.
Danielle Bolden has recorded at least one service ace in 12 of the Aztecs' last 13 matches. Her mark of 0.52 aces per set in conference matches is second in the league this week while her overall mark of 0.36 aces per set stands fourth in the overall stats. In addition, Bolden's averages of 2.27 digs per set in all matches and 2.22 per set in conference play are second only to libero Devyn Pritchard for the team lead.
Sophomore Lauren Utchen took over as the Aztecs' starting setter in last Saturday's (Nov. 5) match at Fresno State. In that contest she tied her season high with 44 assists and also averaged 2.00 digs per set. Utchen has started four matches for the Aztecs this season and has averaged 10.36 assists per set in those contests.
Following tonight's match, the Aztecs will prepare for the visit of the Wyoming Cowgirls on Saturday, Nov. 12, at 6:00 p.m. on Aztec court.
Saturday's contest against Wyoming has been designated as Senior Night and the Aztecs will honor five athletes who are concluding their SDSU Careers this season. Those five players include defensive specialist Danielle Bolden, outside hitter Alexis Cage, middle blocker Emma Fuzie, setter Hailey Jones and defensive specialist Alexa Saba.