SAN FRANCISCO - The San Francisco State volleyball team got back to their winning ways on Saturday, sweeping the Academy of Art to conclude the D2 West Region Showcase.
SF State could not overcome Hawai'i Hilo to start off Saturday, falling in straight sets, 25-18, 25-21, 25-23, however they swept the Urban Knights 25-16, 25-13, 25-13 for their fifth sweep this season.
Payton Jensen earned All-Tournament Team honors, alongside Leafatiaituliagi "Tati" Yandall from Cal State Dominguez Hills, Eavan Taylor from Montana State Billings, and Mina Grant from Hawai'i Hilo.
Match One
- Bailey Johnson hit .647 which is the fifth-best hitting percentage in program history.
- Drew Morris once again led the Gators in kills, notching 12 to go with seven digs.
- Marlena Billings recorded a season-best six kills in the start.
- Hawai'i Hilo hit .353 against the Gators, which is the highest hitting percentage allowed this season.
SF State (5-2) came out of the gate strong to take a 6-2 lead early, which started with a Billings kill. Hawai'i Hilo surged to take a 12-11 lead before Jessica Haynie notched a kill and followed with a service ace to regain the lead. The Vulcans (3-2) tied it up once again 15-all on a kill by Evelin Solyomvari, and later utilized a 7-0 run to capture match point at 24-17 before taking the first frame 25-18. The Gators struggled in that first frame, hitting just .213 and committing seven errors.
Johnson dropped in a kill to tie things up early 4-4, and Morris followed with a big swing of her own to regain the lead. However the Vulcans once again strung together a run to take a 10-7 advantage on a kill by Bria Beale. Johnson continued her strong performance with a swing near the sideline and followed with a block alongside Morris to tie things up at 12-12 and prompt a Hawai'i Hilo timeout. The back-and-forth continued with SF State going up 19-17 following a block by Johnson and Olivia Tabron, However the Vulcans scored six of the final seven points to take the 25-21 set two win.
Morris began the third with a kill off an assist from Payton Jensen, and Jensen would later dish to Johnson for a swing that tied things up 3-3. Knotted at 5-all, the Vulcans scored the next five points too widen their lead. SF State bounced back after a timeout, benefiting from a service error and a big Sophie Anderson kill across the court to cut it to three. The Purple and Gold found themselves down five again at 15-10, but inched closer starting with a block by Tabron and Billings. Trailing 19-17, a ball handling error regained the Gator serve. The home team would get the next four points to go up 22-19. However as they had done all morning, the Vulcans went on a rally to take a 23-22 lead and later the match.
Match Two
- SF State held the Urban Knights (0-8) to a -.058 hitting percentage, which is the lowest allowed this season. The Gators also held a 43-17 kill advantage as well as a 39-16 mark in digs.
- Tabron and Billings both notched seven digs to lead SF State. Vanessa Ditz notched 10 digs, and has registered double-digits in the category in every match so far this season.
- Jenson was named to the All-Tournament Team following the win for her play this weekend. The freshman notched 134 assists and 25 digs over the four matches.
SF State was down early to the Urban Knights 5-1 before cutting to two on a Morris kill and Academy of Art service error. The Gators would mount a comeback yet again trailing 11-7, and they scored the next six points to go up 13-11 due in part to kills by Tabron and Morris and aces by Gillespie. SF State continued to roll with six-straight points to capture match point at 24-15 and and attack error gave the Gators set one 25-16.
A Jensen kill put the Purple and Gold up 7-4 in the second, and she would later assist on a Haynie swing to put SF State up 8-6. Billings got her first kill of the frame to make it a 13-7 advantage, and back-to-back attack errors widened that lead. Ashley Cosey notched a kill to make it 22-12, and the Gators wrapped up the match with a Kaitlyn Clemann swing to take the set 25-13.
A Cosey kill and an attack error by the Urban Knights makes it a 6-3 Gator lead in the third. Billings notched another kiil and Eden Fukushima joined the party with a service ace as SF State made it a 13-7 advantage. The Gators wrapped up the match with more big plays by Cassandra Fong, Clemann, and Cosey to get back to their sweeping ways in the 25-13 set three victory.
Up Next
The Gators stay home next weekend as they begin CCAA action when Cal State Dominguez Hills come to town on September 7 at 7 p.m. SF State will then take on Cal State Los Angeles on September 8, and live stats and a stream will be provided.
