Aug. 23, 2017
SAN DIEGO -
AZTEC INVITATIONAL PREVIEW
Eastern Kentucky at San Diego State
Friday, Aug. 25 | 7:30 p.m. PT | Aztec Court at Peterson Gym
Portland State at San Diego State
Saturday, Aug. 26 | 11:30 a.m. PT | Aztec Court at Peterson Gym
CSUN at San Diego State
Saturday, Aug. 26 | 7:30 p.m. PT | Aztec Court at Peterson Gym
LET THE SEASON BEGIN
> San Diego State opens its 2017 volleyball season on Friday, Aug. 25, when it faces Eastern Kentucky as part of the four-team Aztec Invitational. That match gets underway at 7:30 p.m. PT on Aztec Court at Peterson Gym. SDSU will then square off against two opponents on Saturday, Aug. 26, battling Portland State (11:30 a.m. PT) and CSUN (7:30 p.m. PT) to wrap up the tournament.
> Live stats will be available for all matches this weekend as well as live video webcasts with links located at GoAztecs.com. Navigate to the volleyball page and click on the 2017 Aztec Invitational Tournament page under the Quick Links on the right side of the page.
SERIES RECORDS
> San Diego State will lock horns with Eastern Kentucky for just the second time in program history. The Aztecs claimed the first meeting by a 3-0 count during the 1983 campaign in a neutral-site clash at the University of Kentucky Invitational.
> The Aztecs also boast a spotless 3-0 record against Portland State, including a 3-0 sweep in the last encounter between the two squads at the 2000 Nike Conference Challenge in Portland, Oregon.
> In addition, SDSU owns an 11-3 all-time mark against CSUN. The two sides last faced one another in 2013, when the Matadors rallied from a 2-1 deficit to emerge triumphant in five sets at Aztec Court.
FOR OPENERS
> San Diego State's record in season openers stands at 22-19 since the program's inception in 1976.
> Friday's clash with Eastern Kentucky marks the Aztecs' second straight opener at home after the Scarlet and Black posted a 3-0 blanking of Marist last year.
> Prior to that victory, the Scarlet and Black last opened at home in 2012, when it recorded a 3-0 whitewash of Delaware.
> SDSU sports a record of 17-13 when it begins the season on Aztec Court at Peterson Gym.
HEAD COACH Deitre Collins-Parker
> San Diego State head coach Deitre Collins-Parker enters her ninth season with the Aztecs after becoming the fourth head coach in program history prior to the 2009 campaign. Her record at San Diego State stands at 130-112 (.537).
> Collins-Parker previously served as head coach at UNLV for eight seasons (1996-2003) and at Cornell for five years (2004-2008). Her career record stands at 290-303 (.489).
> A three-time All-American as a collegiate player at the University of Hawai'i, Collins-Parker led the Rainbow Wahine to consecutive national titles (1983-84) and was twice named the national player of the year.
> Collins-Parker was a member of the U.S. Olympic Team and competed at the Goodwill Games and Pan Am Games prior to playing professionally in Europe for four years.
> Collins-Parker is one of six players named to the NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball 25th Anniversary Team in October 2005 and was inducted into the AVCA Hall of Fame in the fall of 2008.
> This past summer, Collins-Parker was head coach of the Mountain West All-Star volleyball team that competed in the European Global Challenge. Current Aztecs Baylee Little and Indigo Thompson were also named to that squad.
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
> Eastern Kentucky returns its entire starting lineup from last year's squad that posted a 15-15 overall record and finished fifth in the Ohio Valley Conference with a 9-7 mark. Leading the returners are senior outside hitter Nikki Drost and sophomore setter Rachel Woody. Last season, Drost garnered first-team all-OVC accolades in 2016 on the strength a team-best 369 kills (3.13/set), while Woody was tabbed OVC Freshman of the Year after topping the Colonels with 828 assists (6.96 per set). EKU was 6-8 away from home last year during its non-conference slate. Colonel assistant coach Johnna Fouch starred at setter for San Diego State during her collegiate playing career (2010-13), earning AVCA All-America honorable mention as a junior to go with all-region accolades.
> Portland State returns 10 letterwinners and five starters this season after logging a 17-12 record and a sixth-place ledger of 9-7 in the Big Sky Conference a year ago. The Vikings lost first-team all-Big Sky selection Pati Anae (473 kills in 2016) to graduation, but return senior setter Erin Clark, who ranked fifth in the league last season with 1,044 assists (10.34/set). Also back in the mix are outside hitters Caitlin Bettenay (So., 196 kills, 183 digs) and Sarah Brennan (Jr., 139 kills). PSU posted a 6-4 mark away from its home gym last year during its non-conference schedule.
> CSUN, which finished with an 11-17 overall record and a 7-9 ledger in the Big West Conference last season, welcomes back five starters and the libero for the 2017 campaign. The Matadors are led by junior outside hitter Aeryn Owens, who blasted 375 kills (3.57/set) and finished with 178 digs (1.70/set) in 2016 to earn first-team all-conference honors. In addition, senior defensive specialist Katie Sato received all-Big West honorable mention a year ago after posting 464 digs (4.26/set), while middle blocker Melissa Eaglin (155 kills (1.42/set), 103 blocks (0.94/set)) landed a spot on the league's all-freshman team a year ago.
AZTEC VETERANS
> SDSU returns four starters and the libero from a team that compiled a 17-15 overall record and a 9-9 mark in Mountain West play (6th).
> Those starters include outside hitter Alexandra Psoma (3.27 kps, 1.27 dps), middle blocker Deja Harris (2.76 kps, 1.04 bps), outside hitter Alexis Cage (2.09 kps, 1.64 dps), setter Indigo Thompson (9.10 aps, 1.91 dps), along with libero Devyn Pritchard (3.24 dps).
> Harris and Psoma were both named to the 2016 Mountain West all-conference team at the conclusion of last season.
> Other returnees who saw significant playing time in 2016 include outside hitters Ashlynn Dunbar (1.84 kps, 0.90 dps), Hannah Turnlund (1.80 kps, 0.55 dps) and middle blocker Tamia Reeves (1.51 kps, 0.80 bps). In addition, the Aztecs welcome back middle blocker Baylee Little (2015 - 2.29 kps, 0.55 bps), a 2015 all-MW selection who sat out last season with an injury.
> Also in the mix are redshirt freshmen Sam McGrath, Loren Teter and Charlee Thomas, all of whom did not compete during the 2016 campaign.
MEET THE NEWCOMERS
> San Diego State welcomes three true freshmen for the 2017 campaign.
> Setter Gabi Peoples spent her first three years of high school in Santa Barbara, California (San Marcos HS) before moving to Beaverton, Oregon (Beaverton HS) for her senior season.
> While at San Marcos High, Peoples garnered all-city accolades as a sophomore and was an all-Channel League selection in 2015 and 2016. She was named to the AVCA Phenom List the past three years and received PrepVolleyball.com "Soph 79" honorable mention in 2015.
> Middle blocker Erin Gillcrist hails from a volleyball family as both of her sisters played Division I volleyball -- Marie is currently at Rhode Island while Rachel played at Saint Mary's (CA). In addition, her mother and aunts played collegiately at the University of Tennessee.
> A native of Lakewood, Colorado (Lakewood HS), Gillcrist averaged 4.7 kills per set during her senior season to go with a .547 kills percentage and a .350 hitting mark. She also averaged 0.9 blocks, 0.5 aces and 1.9 digs per set over 25 matches.
> Middle blocker Andrea Walker graduated from Vanden High School in Fairfield, California, where she collected all-Solano County Athletic Conference honors following the 2016 season. During her prep career, Walker spent time playing as a right-side hitter after entering the game as a setter.
> As a senior, Walker averaged 1.6 kills per set to go with a .459 kill percentage and a .204 hitting mark.
RETURNEES AMONG LEAGUE LEADERS
> Three returning players ranked among the top 10 in the Mountain West in various statistical categories last year.
> Middle blocker Deja Harris was fourth with a .349 hitting percentage in all matches and ranked eighth with a .300 clip in conference outings. She also finished ninth in blocks for all matches (1.04/set) as well as in league contests (1.11/set). > Outside hitter Alexandra Psoma finished eighth with an average of 3.34 kills per set in overall matches, but was fifth in MW encounters with 3.56 per frame.
> Libero Devyn Pritchard was seventh in digs (3.24/set) for all matches ranked ninth in that category with an identical pace (3.24/set) during the conference slate.
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