Oct. 30, 2008

Weekly Match Notes in PDF Format

MATADORS HOST UC RIVERSIDE, UC IRVINE IN PENULTIMATE HOMESTAND OF 2008 Cal State Northridge (6-17, 1-9 Big West) returns to The Matadome this week as the Matadors begin their second-to-last homestand of the 2008 season. Northridge hosts UC Riverside (7-16, 2-6) on Friday and UC Irvine (10-11, 5-3) on Saturday with both matches scheduled for 7 p.m. The Matadors slipped to 1-9 in Big West matches after dropping conference matches at Cal Poly and UC Santa Barbara last week. Northridge, which defeated Pacific in its last home match, has traditionally been very good against both UC Riverside and UC Irvine at home. The Matadors are 19-3 all-time vs. the Highlanders in The Matadome and 10-4 against the Anteaters on the home floor.

NORTHRIDGE ON THE NET Both matches this week will be available via Gametracker at GoMatadors.com and both matches will also be available via live video streaming at BigWest.TV. Get exclusive coverage of Big West Conference action by logging on to BigWest.TV! Now in it's fourth year, BigWest.TV gives fans on-demand access to Big West sports as well as press conferences, features and Big West Conference Championships. If you can't make it to the gym or the field, head to www.BigWest.TV to catch up on your favorite team!

MATADORS DROP TWO ON THE ROAD AT CAL POLY, UC SANTA BARBARA After posting its first Big West win over Pacific, Cal State Northridge had trouble getting on track offensively as the Matadors opened their two-match road trip with a 25-12, 25-18, 25-15 loss at Cal Poly at Mott Gym. On a tough night for Northridge's hitters, sophomore Siara Grayson led the Matadors with seven kills but hit just .043. Grayson also matched Angela Hupp and Kayla Wright for the team-high in digs with seven. On Saturday, junior Tela Burnett had a team-high nine kills and hit .615 but Cal State Northridge fell 25-21, 25-12, 25-22 at UC Santa Barbara on Saturday at The Thunderdome.

MATADORS LOOK TO CLOSE OCTOBER WITH A "W" With just one match left in the month of October, the Matadors hope their Halloween night tilt with UC Riverside closes the month on a positive note. Northridge is currently 1-7 in October after posting a 3-9 record in September and a 2-1 mark in August. With seven matches remaining, the Matadors can still post double figures in wins for the sixth time in Jeff Stork's seven seasons on the bench. The last time Northridge did not post at least 10 wins was 2005 when the Matadors finished 4-23. Northridge can also match last season's total of seven conference wins if the Matadors can win their remaining six Big West contests.

BURNETT TAKES OVER STARTING ROLE After seeing limited action over the first 19 matches of the season, junior Tela Burnett has started the last four matches in the middle for the Matadors. She came up big with five kills and a match-high eight blocks as Northridge snapped its losing streak with a 3-1 win over Pacific on Oct. 18. Last weekend, Burnett had four kills and four blocks at Cal Poly and came back to post a match-high nine kills while hitting .615 to go with four blocks at UC Santa Barbara. The UCSB match marked the first time Burnett led the team in kills this season. For the season, she ranks fourth on the squad with 38 blocks (0.93 blocks/set).

MATADORS LOOK FOR IMPROVEMENT IN THREES Northridge's win over Pacific on Oct. 18 ended a string of three consecutive three-set defeats for Northridge. But in their ensuing road trip, the Matadors were then taken out in three against both Cal Poly and UC Santa Barbara last weekend and their record in three-set matches dropped to 3-10 for the season. The last time Northridge recorded a 3-0 sweep was over Montana on Sept. 12 when the Matadors stood with a 5-3 record. In fact, three of Northridge's five wins were of the 3-0 variety.

MATADORS LOOK FOR CONTINUED HITTING IMPROVEMENT After hitting a near season-high .283 against Pacific on Oct. 18, the Matadors upped their season team hitting percentage to .166. But a -.023 hitting effort against Cal Poly and a .139 hitting percentage against UC Santa Barbara dropped the team average to .159, ninth in the Big West. The Matadors still only have two hitters, middles Val Kepler (.253) and Lynda Morales (.243), hitting .200 or better. In Jeff Stork's seven seasons, the lowest a Matador team has hit is .170 in 2005.

NORTHRIDGE NOTES Sophomore Siara Grayson, who ranked as high as third in the Big West in aces on Sept. 29, has just one service ace in her last eight matches. Grayson served up 24 aces in the Matadors' first 15 matches but has since slipped to ninth in the conference averaging 0.29 aces/set ... Junior Angela Hupp posted her fifth double-double against Pacific to match Orlandini for team-high honors. With 16 kills and 16 assists in the Northridge win, Hupp now has 22 double-double's in her Matador career. Wright is the current team leader with 30 ... Seniors Kelley Hanson (394), Amy Hultner (392) and Val Kepler (386) are all closing in on 400 career sets played. Kepler, with 397 career block assists, looks to become the first player in Matador history with over 400 career block assists. With 91 career aces, Hultner could become just the fifth player in Northridge history with 100 or more aces.

MATADORS TABBED SEVENTH IN THE BIG WEST The Matadors earned 27 points and were picked to finish seventh by the conference's head coaches in the 2008 Big West Women's Volleyball Preseason Poll. Northridge, which returns six starters and 10 letterwinners, garnered 27 points from the conference's head coaches and was predicted to finish seventh among nine conference teams. Two-time defending Big West champion Cal Poly was a unanimous pick to win its third straight regular season crown as the Mustangs earned all nine first place votes and 81 points total. Long Beach State was predicted to finish second after receiving 68 points.

SCOUTING UC RIVERSIDE The Highlanders (7-16, 2-6 Big West) travel to Northridge on Friday and Cal State Fullerton on Saturday. UC Riverside has dropped four straight matches after at home to UCSB and UC Irvine last week. Senior OH Kelly Fink leads the Highlanders and ranks fifth in the Big West with 284 kills (3.51 kps) while junior OH Dominique Cowling adds 2.61 k/s. UCR is hitting .171 as a team. Head coach Sue Gozansky (Cal Poly Pomona, 1968) is in her 39th season with the Highlanders and sports a 679-512 overall and school record.

SCOUTING UC IRVINE The Anteaters (10-11, 5-3 Big West), who travel to Cal State Fullerton on Friday and Northridge on Saturday, split a pair of matches last week falling at Cal Poly (3-1) before defeating UC Riverside (3-0). Sophomore OH Kari Pestolesi averages a team-high 3.65 kills/set which ranks second in the Big West while senior OH Lauren Kellerman, last week's Big West Player of the Week, averages 3.26 k/s. Head coach Charlie Brande (UC Irvine, 1969) is in his ninth season at UC Irvine and owns a 128-133 career and school record.

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