SAN FRANCISCO --- A new year, a new team, a new coach. A fresh slate. The SF State volleyball team has been spending the last two weeks preparing for its season to start and the wait is finally over. The Gators head to Seaside, Calif., to compete in the Otter Volleyball Classic hosted by Cal State Monterey Bay, hoping to start the fresh season on a high note.

First up for the Gators at the tournament on Friday at 1 p.m. is Cal Baptist, a team in its first year of post-season eligibility. The Lancers, who are in their first season as active National Collegiate Athletic Association Div. II members, come off a successful 2012 campaign, finishing with a 19-8 record. CBU held on to a close 3-2 decision (27-29, 25-23, 20-25, 25-23, 16-14) over SF State at the Cal State East Bay/Notre Dame de Namur Route 92 Showdown last season.

SF State will have a quick turn around after its first match, facing fellow San Francisco resident Academy of Art at 5 p.m. The Urban Knights opened last season with a 2-2 showing at the Otter Classic, but struggled to keep momentum building as they finished the year at 8-18. At the Route 92 Showdown, SF State came-from-behind to pull out a deciding set 3-2 victory over the Urban Knights (24-26, 18-25, 25-19, 25-20, 15-9).

In the last contest of pool play, the Gators will face Dominican University of California at 9 a.m. on Saturday. The matchup will be the first time in three years the two squads face each other. In 2010 at the Seawolf Spike, SF State claimed a 3-0 victory over the Penguins, sweeping them 25-12, 25-19, 25-18.

New head coach Jill Muhe, who implemented sand training into preseason practices, has high expectations for her squad, which made its second-ever appearance to the NCAA Div. II West Region tournament last year. The Gators were picked to finish eighth in the California Collegiate Athletic Association, after ending the season in second place, and will get a chance to showcase their talented mix of returners and newcomers.

The Gators lost a crucial starter in the CCAA Most Valuable Player Iris Tolenada, but Muhe brought three new setter options into the mix: junior transfer from Seattle University Jacquie Brice and freshmen Malia Muin and Nicole Efseaff. Brice averaged 9.67 assists per set at Seattle, picking up 14 aces, 26 blocks and 232 digs.

Jessica Nicerio returns as a defensive specialist/libero after leading the Gators with an average of 4.82 digs per set, second best in the CCAA. Adding depth to the defensive specialist column are sophomore returner Arianna Cruz and two freshmen newcomers in Krista Forte and Mali Gonzalez.

Rounding out the team is a mix of hitters led by last year's CCAA Freshman of the Year middle hitter Meagan Wright, junior outside hitter Kelly Ostello and senior outside hitter Katie Judd. Wright tallied 348 kills last season while picking up 71 total blocks and 38 aces in her collegiate debut. Ostello averaged 3.19 kills per set and laid down 21 aces herself. Also returning to the hitting group are sophomores Jaclyn Clark, Jazmine Williams, Melissa Horton and Kaileen Mejia. Making their Gator debuts are junior outside hitters Kayce Skocko, who transferred in from Gavilan College, and Liz Wyrsch, a transfer from Monterey Peninsula JC.

SF State will play the three pool play matches before a finals schedule is released Saturday following the conclusion of pool action. Following the Otter Classic, the Gators hit the road again to Sonoma State's Seawolf Spike before starting CCAA action at home on Sept. 20 at 7 p.m. against UC San Diego.