The Fresno State volleyball team got off to a running start this season, going 2-1 in the El Paso Sports Commission Invitational on Aug. 24-25 ”” the Bulldogs first tournament of the season.
The Bulldogs defeated host University of Texas-El Paso in five sets on Friday, and swept Idaho State 3-0 Saturday after losing in three sets to tournament champion Arizona State.
Junior outside hitters Marissa Brand and Korrin Wild led the offense, netting 42 and 35 kills, respectfully, in the two-day tournament. Both were all-tournament selections.
“Right now our offense is pretty strong. As long as we’re passing balls we are pretty unstoppable after the net,” Bulldogs’ coach Lauren Netherby-Sewell said.
“It was a much tougher tournament than we expected, the teams were pretty evenly matched,” she said. “We definitely had the capability to beat any of the teams in that tournament, but we’re happy with our results.”
Fresno State’s demonstrated solid attacking. In their first two wins of the season, the offense out-killed the opposition 105-94 and hit a combined .292 on 234 attempts.
Defensively, however, the Bulldogs played with less blocking efficiency than the other teams in the tournament. All three opponents out-blocked the Bulldogs in their matchups, 30-22 overall. For the Bulldogs, the 25-11 loss in the second set against Arizona State was their most lopsided set loss in the tournament.
“Defensively, that’s where we are struggling and we’re trying to work out the kinks,” Netherby-Sewell said. “We’ll be hitting that pretty hard this week. We’ve got to become a better team defensively. If we do, we are going to be tough to beat all the way around.”
Compared to the last four seasons, this year’s campaign started an unusual fashion. The last time the team began its season on the road was in 2007 at a University of Washington tournament in Seattle.
Fresno State does not open at home until Sept. 7, when they host Sacramento State, UC Davis, and Utah Valley in the Fresno State Classic.
Netherby-Sewell said that going on the road is a more ideal way to start the season.
“Actually, I’ve been trying to get the team on the road for the first week for a while now,” she said. “It finally worked out this year, and it’s great because we get to work out the bugs and know each other a little bit better as we’re traveling together and be without distractions.
“ I think it was a really positive thing and I’m happy that this is the first year we got to do it. Another road trip next week will really enhance our team experience and by the time we get to the Save Mart Center we should be looking pretty good.”
Fresno State was tabbed in the preseason coaches’ polls to place fourth in the Mountain West this year. The Bulldogs open conference play Sept. 20 at Boise State.
“I think it’s respectable,” Netherby-Sewell said. “They don’t know us, they just know where we’ve come from and the progress we’ve made over the past two years.
“We fully expect to be competing for a championship at the end of the year.”
Fresno State will go on the road again this Friday to compete in the Omni Hotels Colorado Tournament in Boulder, Colo.