Three biggest events of the season
The beginning of the year harbored great expectations for Fresno State sports teams.
Some considered the 2005 football team the best in school history and in other fall sports:
Top runners Andrea Buckner and Zinzi Evans returned for their junior years in cross country.
In the second year of the women’s golf program, coach Angie Cates brought in two freshmen, Taylor Siebert and Jennifer Shipley, to challenge her sophomore star Laura Luethke.
Joseph Vasquez / The Collegian
Football's Jermaine Jamison and Joe Fernandez |
Volleyball was anticipating Ruben Nieves’ return to coaching. In 1997, Nieves led the Stanford men’s volleyball team to an NCAA championship. And in soccer the women’s team was predicted to finish second in the new-look conference.
But the biggest three events this semester?
1. Football plays USC
As the No. 16 seed, Fresno State prepared itself to take on the No. 1-ranked USC Trojans on Nov. 19.
The Bulldogs played well against the Trojans in the first half, taking a 21-13 lead into halftime.
But ill-timed interceptions dug a hole too deep for the the Bulldogs to pull out of.
Joseph Vasquez / The Collegian
Volleyball's Robyn Keune |
Despite the turnovers, Fresno State took USC down to the wire, forcing the Trojans to come up with a big defensive play in the last two minutes to secure a win.
Not only was the game a marker in how the team has progressed during Pat Hill’s tenure, but it also showed the loyalty of Bulldog fans.
2.) Volleyball dismisses three players
The volleyball team endured a tumultuous season in Ruben Nieves’ first year.
Fresno State went from a team that was challenging Hawaii for a WAC title to a seventh-place finish this season with a 4-13 record.
Some players had a tough time adjusting to his new system and Nieves dismissed those who were unable to adjust.
On the upside, senior Robyn Keune finished her career third among all Fresno State players in career assists with more than 3,500.
Joseph Vasquez / The Collegian
Soccer's Kortney Lewis |
3.) Women’s soccer wins the WAC tourney
Entering the WAC tournament, the women’s soccer team sported a 7-9-2 record, including an unlikely 1-0 win over conference-leader Hawaii.
Despite the odds, the Bulldogs, led by senior Korney Lewis and junior Cortney Sobrero, beat Utah State, Hawaii and San Jose State on the way to their first conference title since 2002.
With the tournament crown, Fresno State earned an automatic berth to the NCAA tournament but lost to No. 5 Santa Clara 5-0 in the first round.
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