Aztecs Prep for Flo Hyman Classic in Houston

SAN DIEGO -- The San Diego State volleyball team continues its early season road show this weekend when it travels to the Lone Star State for the Flo Hyman Classic, Sept. 4-6, in Houston, Texas.

The Aztecs open tournament play on Thursday when they square off against the host Houston Cougars at 7 p.m. CT/5 p.m. PT, before battling LSU on Friday at 4:30 p.m. CT/2:30 p.m. PT, followed by Saturday’s finale vs. Omaha at 1 p.m. CT/11 a.m. PT.

All three matches will feature live stats, while Thursday’s encounter with Houston will air live via subscription basis on ESPN+.

SDSU split two matches last weekend at the season-opening California Tournament in Berkeley, California, falling to the host Golden Bears on Aug. 29 in four sets (21-25, 28-26, 12-25, 22-25) before rebounding the next day with a sweep of San Francisco (25-16, 25-19, 25-20).

Aztec freshman Zara Stewart was named to the all-California Tournament team following the two season-opening matches.

SERIES RECORDS
> San Diego State faced Houston on six occasions between 1979-85, maintaining a 4-2 advantage in the all-time series.
> The Aztecs played the Cougars in consecutive years at the AIAW National Championships, dropping a five-set thriller in the sixth match of the tournament in 1979 at Carbondale, Illinois, en route to a seventh-place overall finish before avenging that defeat the following year in 1980 with a two-set sweep in the first round of the same event in Santa Barbara, California, where they placed sixth nationally.
> In all, SDSU is 1-0 vs. Houston at home, 1-1 on the road and 2-1 at a neutral site.
> The Aztecs have compiled a 92-99 record against the current volleyball alignment of the Big XII Conference. Subtracting an 18-40 mark against Big XII newcomer Brigham Young, a former Mountain West rival, SDSU sports a 74-59 ledger against the remaining Big XII squads.
> The Aztecs have faced every Big XII school at least once with the exception of Iowa State, UCF and Oklahoma State, the latter of which does not sponsor women’s volleyball.
> SDSU last engaged a Big XII team at the 2023 Rose City Showdown in Portland, Oregon, where it dropped a three-set decision to Kansas State.
> The Aztecs own a slim 3-2 advantage in five all-time meetings against LSU.
>  SDSU last played the Tigers in the finale of LSU’s home tournament in 2013, when the Scarlet and Black was edged in five sets (17-25, 25-18, 22-25, 25-21, 11-15).
> Overall, the Aztecs are 1-0 vs. Tigers at home, 0-1 on the road and 2-1 on a neutral court.
> San Diego State has racked up a 27-17 record against 13 of 16 schools the Southeastern Conference.
> The Aztecs have never faced the three remaining SEC volleyball affiliates in Auburn, South Carolina and Vanderbilt.
> Saturday’s match will mark SDSU’s inaugural meeting against Omaha. 
> The Aztecs last played a Summit League team in 2023, when it defeated Denver 2023 UCSD Invitational when it swept Denver in three sets to grab a 3-2 lead in that all-time series.
> SDSU has played just one other school currently aligned with the Summit League, splitting two matches with Oral Roberts in 2003 and 2004.

SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
> Houston (3-0) swept all three matches at Duke’s tournament last weekend in Durham, North Carolina, where it defeated Florida International (25-18, 25-23, 26-24), the host Blue Devils (25-19, 25-13, 26-24) and Bryant (25-12, 25-21, 25-18). Senior outside hitter Brenya Reid led the Cougars with 36 kills (5.14/set), featuring 19 put-aways in the opener vs. FIU. In addition, junior outside hitter Halle Schroder launched 25 non-returnables of her own (3.57/set), followed by senior middle blocker Kellen Morin, who blasted 15 kills (1.67/set) and hit .414 while posting a team-high 15 blocks (1.67), including four solo stops. Not to be outdone, senior setter Lottie Scully topped the squad in assists (85, 9.44/set) and digs (23, 2.56/set), highlighted by a double-double (28 assists, 10 digs) against FIU. In addition, freshman libero Gillian Pitts contributed 21 scoops (2.33/set) in her collegiate debut, while senior middle blocker Barakat Rahmon (12 kills, 14 blocks) and  senior outside hitter Avery Shimaitis (12 kills, 10 blocks) both recorded double-digit kill and block totals for the weekend. Entering its home tournament, Houston leads the Big XII Conference in blocks (3.33/set), which is tied for 11 nationally. Elsewhere, the Cougars are slotted second in the league in service aces (2.22/set), while ranking fifth in hitting percentage (.310) and ninth in kills (3.11/set). Prior to the 2025 campaign, the Cougars were picked to finish 11th out of 15 teams in the Big XII preseason coaches poll after placing ninth in the conference last year with a 7-11 mark and a 12-16 record overall. Houston is under the direction of seventh-year head coach David Rehr, who guided the squad to consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances in 2022 and 2023.

> LSU (1-2) dropped two matches to a pair of ranked teams at home last week but still finds itself receiving five votes in the latest AVCA Division I coaches poll released Sept. 1. The Tigers sandwiched a 3-0 sweep of South Alabama (25-21, 25-21, 25-15) between a narrow five-set decision to No. 10 SMU (20-25, 25-20, 25-23, 16-25, 12-15) in the season opener and a four-set loss to No. 20 Baylor (20-25, 25-23, 20-25, 23-25). LSU was led by the 1-2 punch of outside hitters Jurnee Robinson and Nia Washington, who totaled 62 and 46 kills last weekend, respectively. With those performances, Robinson leads the SEC with 5.17 kills per set, which ranks ninth in the country as of Sept. 3, while Washington occupies the ninth spot in the conference with 3.83 kills per frame. Elsewhere, sophomore middle blocker totaled 15 blocks last week, which ranks fourth in the league, while junior setter Lauren Brooker, a UC San Diego transfer, displayed her versatility across three matches, compiling 82 assists (6.83/set), 12 digs (1.00/set) and seven blocks. Collectively, the Tigers enter the tournament ranked seventh in the SEC in kills (13.50/set), 12th in both blocks (1.67/set) and digs (12.25/set), while occupying the 13th position in hitting percentage (.240). Prior to the 2025 campaign, LSU was pegged for an eighth-place finish in the SEC preseason coaches poll after tying for eighth with a 7-9 mark in conference play last year and a 15-12 record overall.  The Tigers are led by fourth-year head coach Tonya Johnson, who guided the team to an NCAA Tournament berth in her first season at the helm in 2022.

> Omaha (2-0) opened the 2025 campaign with a pair of sweeps at home over Milwaukee, Aug. 29-30.  The Mavericks dispatched the Panthers by scores of 25-16, 25-20, 25-18 in the season lid-lifter before replicating the feat the following day with tallies of 25-13, 25-22, 25-21. Omaha was led by senior outside hitter Kali Jurgensmeier, who launched 31 kills (5.17/set) and hit .538 for the weekend, committing just three errors on 52 attempts. Sophomore right-side hitter Ella Tiarks and freshman outside hitter Faith Venable (5 aces) also got into the act with 20 kills apiece (3.33/set), while sophomore middle blocker Celia Spilker contributed seven blocks (1.17/set). In addition, sophomore Julia Owens (42 assists, 7.00/set) and junior Davis Guetterman (29 assists, 4.83/set) split the setting chores, while sophomore libero Sarah Gallagher anchored the Mavericks’ back row with 25 digs (4.17/set). As a team, Omaha leads the Summit League in assists (14.50/set), hitting percentage (.349) and kills (15.33), which rank fourth, ninth and 10th in the nation, respectively. Prior to the 2025 campaign, the Mavericks were predicted to finish fourth in the Summit League preseason coaches poll after placing fourth in the conference with a 14-2 mark and a 17-13 record overall. Jurgensmeier joined junior middle blocker Emily Huss on the league’s preseason watch list. Matt Buttermore is in his seventh season at the helm of the Omaha program and is the longest tenured Division I volleyball head coach in the state of Nebraska.

TOURNAMENT CONNECTIONS
> SDSU opposite hitter Natalie Hughes and Houston outside hitter Halle Schroder have faced one another as prep players in Texas. Schroder’s Reedy High School squad ended Hughes’ McKinney North’s season in consecutive years at the University Interscholastic League 5A Regions 1 & 2 playoffs. In a regional semifinal match when both players were seniors in 2022, Hughes finished with 16 kills and a solo block, according to MaxPreps, but it wasn’t enough, as Schroder totaled 12 kills, two solo blocks and a pair of aces, propelling Reedy to the victory.  The previous season in the 2021 regional semifinals, Schroder launched 11 kills and contributed five digs and two aces, helping Reedy emerge triumphant over McKinney North, as Hughes racked up four kills two blocks and one dig that day.

> In addition, Hughes crossed volleyball paths with LSU middle blocker Jessica Jones in high school. In a non-conference match during the 2022 campaign between McKinney North and Jones’ Wakeland High squad, Hughes blasted 16 kills and came up with 11 blocks, including four solo rejections, according to MaxPreps. Despite her huge numbers, Wakeland came away with a four-set triumph, as Jones tallied 10 kills and six blocks that day.

> San Diego State middle blocker/outside hitter Talea Mitchell and Omaha setter Julia Owens also faced one another as prep players in Arizona. In 2023, Owens’ Corona del Sol High School team defeated Mitchell’s Millennium High squad by a 2-1 count in a non-conference clash. Owens racked up 11 assists, seven digs and two kills in that match, while Mitchell finished with 11 kills and three block assists, according to MaxPreps. Ironically, Corona del Sol High’s athletic mascot is the Aztec.

ON THE HORIZON
> San Diego State will remain road warriors for another week when it makes the short drive up the freeway for the Long Beach State Tournament, Sept. 11-13. The Aztecs will battle Oregon, UC Riverside and Long Beach State on successive days at Walter Pyramid in Long Beach, Calif.