SAN DIEGO -- After playing 12 of its first 14 matches away from "America's Finest City", San Diego State returns to the friendly confines of Aztec Court at Peterson Gym to open a season-long four-match homestand, beginning this week with Mountain West encounters vs. New Mexico and Air Force. The Aztecs will face the Lobos on Thursday, Sept. 30, beginning at 7 p.m. PT, before battling the Falcons on Saturday, Oct. 2, starting at 1 p.m. In addition to live stats, both contests will be streamed live via the Mountain West Network on GoAztecs.com.
QUICK HITS
> SDSU opened its conference slate last week by splitting two matches on the road at Nevada and San José State. The Aztecs swept the Wolf Pack in Reno (29-27, 25-17, 25-20) on Sept 23. However, the Aztecs experienced the opposite fate two days later, as the Spartans claimed a three-set decision in Silicon Valley (20-25, 21-25, 16-25).
> Senior Victoria O'Sullivan ranks seventh in the Mountain West with an average of 3.43 kills per set. The Aztec outside hitter has posted double-digit kills in 10 of her previous 11 starts and has surpassed that plateau in 42 of her last 56 appearances dating back to the start of the 2019 campaign.
> SDSU's clash with New Mexico has been designated the team's Vs. Cancer match, and the Aztecs will wear gold shoelaces in honor of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.
SERIES RECORD VS. NEW MEXICO
> The Aztecs have won the last eight meetings vs. the Lobos, raising their record to 44-21 in the all-time series.
> SDSU captured both encounters last spring in a weekend series at Aztec Court, posting a 3-0 sweep (25-13, 25-17, 25-21) before recording a four-set decision (25-20, 25-20, 23-25, 25-19) in the finale.
> In that series, the Aztecs were led by Victoria O'Sullivan, who averaged 4.71 kills in seven sets, hitting .313 with a team-high 33 kills on 67 attempts.
> Among SDSU returners in the first match, O'Sullivan knocked down a match-high 13 kills and hit .346, while Heipua Tautua'a launched seven put-aways of her own. In addition, Ashley Vanderpan dished out 38 assists and posted seven digs, while Brooklynn Hill served up three aces.
> Despite trailing in team blocks (7.0-6.0), the Aztecs held a sizable advantage in most statistical categories, including kills (45-27), digs (39-25) and service aces (6-1) while outhitting UNM .283 to .136.
> In the finale, O'Sullivan set a season-high with 20 kills and added two solo blocks, while Andrea Walker hit .417 for the match on seven kills against two errors on 12 attempts. Not to be outdone, SDSU received career-high performances from Vanderpan (40 assists) and Tautua'a (22 digs).
> Despite a deficiency in team blocks (13.0-5.0) and committing 31 attack errors overall, the Aztecs proved that quantity trumped quality on this day, maintaining a sizable 57-43 advantage in kills and a 64-36 edge in digs.
> Since the Mountain West's inception in 1999, the Aztecs are 28-14 against UNM overall, including a 17-4 mark at home.
SERIES RECORD VS. AIR FORCE
> Although the Falcons have captured six of the last 10 meetings, San Diego State still holds a sizable 38-8 advantage in the all-time series dating back to 1996.
> The Aztecs have not played Air Force since their last home date of the 2019 campaign when the Scarlet and Black claimed a hard-fought 3-1 decision (25-18, 23-25, 25-23, 25-22), which snapped a three-match losing streak to the Falcons.
> SDSU's two returners from that encounter, Andrea Walker (10 kills) and Victoria O'Sullivan (8 kills), each recorded a trio of block assists to help fuel the victory.
> The Aztecs were scheduled to face Air Force last April in the penultimate match of the spring; however, the match was canceled due to COVID-19 issues within the Falcon program.
NOTHIN' LIKE HOME COOKIN'
> Since the beginning of the 2009 campaign, the Aztecs have amassed a 109-57 (.657) record at home, highlighted by a 14-0 mark during the 2012 season when SDSU captured the Mountain West championship.
> During the 2021 spring slate, the Aztecs fashioned a winning record at home for the 10th time in the last 12 seasons after posting a 5-4 ledger.
SDSU IN MW RANKINGS
> As of Sept. 29, libero Natalie Smith ranks fourth in the Mountain West with an average of 4.36 digs per set (205 overall).
> In addition, outside hitter Victoria O'Sullivan occupies the seventh position with 3.43 kills per set, while setter Noa Miller ranks eighth with 5.92 assists per frame.
> Smith's 27 digs vs. Houston Baptist on Aug. 27 is tied for the third-best performance in the conference this season.
> Meanwhile, O'Sullivan's 19 kills vs. San Diego on Sept. 11 are the tied for the fourth-best effort in the league this year, while her 15 put-aways at UC Santa Barbara on Sept. 3 are also tied for the seventh-highest in a three-set match.
> Not to be outdone, the Aztecs own two of the top individual hitting percentages with a minimum of 12 kills in the Mountain West this season. Mikela Labno's .522 clip against (13-1-23) against Pepperdine at the Gaucho Invitational is ninth entering the weekend, while O'Sullivan's .519 efficiency (15-1-27) at UC Santa Barbara in the same tournament ranks 10th.
> Elsewhere, Serena Hodson's eight total blocks at Sam Houston on Aug. 28 is tied for the eighth-best total in the MW thus far, while Sara Mukaj's four service aces the previous day against the same Bearkat squad is tied for eighth as well.
> Collectively, the Aztecs occupy the fourth spot in the conference with an average of 13.68 digs per set while ranking eighth in team kills (12.10/set) and hitting percentage (.201).
OTHER TRENDS
> All four of San Diego State's victories this season have been recorded when the Aztecs have finished with more kills and digs, as well as a greater hitting percentage.
> SDSU's lone loss when posting a better efficiency occurred vs. Sam Houston in its final match of the Bearkat Invitational on Aug. 28, when the Aztecs outhit the host Bearkats, .230 to .179 but fell short in five sets. In addition, the Scarlet and Black registered more kills in that contest (59-52).
> San Diego State also recorded more kills (57-49) in a four-set defeat to No. 25 San Diego at home on Sept. 11.
> The Aztecs are 2-0 when hitting above .300 this season, notching a season-high .384 clip in a sweep at UC Santa Barbara on Sept. 3, followed by a .303 efficiency in another blanking of UC Riverside at the Wildcat Classic on Sept. 18.
> When Victoria O'Sullivan posted a team-leading nine kills in SDSU's sweep at Nevada on Sept. 23, it marked the first time in three matches this year the Aztecs emerged victorious without player reaching the double-digit plateau in that statistic.
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
> Picked to finish 10th this year in the Mountain West coaches poll, New Mexico has been one of the league's surprise teams of the early season, posting an 11-2 record thus far, including a pair of home victories in its first two MW matches of the 2021 campaign last week. The Lobos opened their conference slate with a 3-0 sweep of Air Force (25-20, 25-16, 25-17) on Sept. 21, before duplicating the feat against Fresno State (26-24, 25-14, 25-16) on Sept. 23. Including non-conference tournament matches, UNM sports a 6-1 record away from home this fall. The Aztecs and Lobos have faced two common opponents so far this season, with both squads recording 3-0 whitewashes over UC Riverside and Texas Southern. UNM defeated the Highlanders at Cal State Fullerton's Titan Classic on Aug. 28, before knocking off the Tigers at Abilene Christian's Wildcat Classic on Sept. 4. Offensively, New Mexico has been led by junior outside hitter Kaitlynn Biassou, who enters the weekend ranked fifth in the Mountain West with 3.55 kills per set, while sophomore outside hitter Uxue Guereca occupies the ninth spot with 3.10 put-aways per frame. In addition, the Lobos have received a boost senior middle blocker Avital Jaloba, a transfer from Arizona State who ranks second in the conference with a .380 hitting percentage, while sophomore setter Melissa Walden is fourth in assists (9.17/set). Not to be outdone, junior libero Alena Moldan leads a stout New Mexico defense with a conference-best average of 4.83 digs per set, while Walden occupies the eighth spot in that statistic with 3.31 scoops per frame. At the net, freshman middle blocker Elizabeth Woods enters the week ranked sixth in the MW with 1.11 blocks per set. As a team, the Lobos lead the nation with a .106 opponent hitting percentage, while their league-high 16.43 digs per set is tied for 38th in the country. Additionally, UNM ranks second in the MW in hitting percentage (.263), kills (13.52/set) and assists (12.14/set). New Mexico is under the direction of third-year head coach Jon Newman-Gonchar, who arrived on the Albuquerque campus after spending the previous three seasons at Arkansas as associate head coach. Newman-Gonchar has also had stints as an assistant coach at Iowa State (2013-15), Loyola Marymount (2010-12), as well as UC San Diego with both the men's and women's teams (2007-09).
> Air Force is off to a 4-8 start this year after splitting its first two Mountain West matches last week. The Falcons fell in three sets at New Mexico (20-25, 16-25, 17-25) on Sept. 21, before turning the tables at home against Fresno State with a 3-0 whitewash of the Bulldogs (25-20, 25-23, 25-20). Prior to Saturday's clash with the Aztecs, Air Force will battle defending league champion UNLV on the road Thursday night. Individually, the Falcons sport three players who are averaging over two kills per set, including senior outside hitter Bailey Keith (2.18), junior middle blocker Taleah Cooper (2.12) and sophomore middle blocker Joi Harvey (2.11). Entering the weekend, Harvey ranks second in the conference with 1.40 blocks per set and occupies the fourth position with a .371 hitting percentage, while Cooper holds down the ninth spot with a .360 clip. Cooper recorded 12 kills and hit .786 with one error in 14 attempts in Air Force's sweep of Fresno State. Sophomore libero Allie Griffith also finds herself among the conference leaders this week, landing in the 10th spot with 3.21 digs per set, while freshman middle blocker Mac Russ shares the 10th position with 1.00 blocks per frame. The Falcons' setting duties are shared by sophomore Caroline Reinkensmeyer (4.83 assists/set) and senior Abigail Collins (4.03 assists/set). Collectively, Air Force is third among MW teams this week in blocks (2.36/set) and rank fifth with a .184 opponent hitting percentage. However, the Falcons occupy the ninth spot with 11.25 kills per set and a .201 efficiency. Air Force is guided by Keith Barnett, who was elevated to head coach prior to the 2019 campaign after serving a four-year stint as a Falcons assistant, including the 2018 season as the team's associate head coach. Last spring, he directed Air Force to a 7-6 record--all against MW competition--for the squad's second winning ledger since 1999. The Falcons' seven wins also tied their program record for conference victories set by the 2018 club. Prior to his arrival at the Academy, Barnett was an assistant coach at West Texas A&M (2013-14) and the head coach at the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs (2009-12). He played collegiately at Pepperdine, where he received second-team All-American honors at setter in 2001.
ON THE HORIZON
> Following this weekend's matches, San Diego State continues its homestand on Tuesday, Oct. 5, when defending MW champion UNLV invades Aztec Court at Peterson Gym. SDSU will also play host to Fresno State on Thursday, Oct. 7. Both matches are set for 7 p.m. PT.
Aztecs Open Homestand vs. New Mexico, Air Force
