FULLERTON, Calif. - After their thrilling win against Howard University yesterday, the Thunderbirds split matches today. They suffered a four set loss to Chicago State in the first match of the day and rebounded with a five set victory against CSU Fullerton in their final match of the tournament.

Chicago State 3, SUU 1

Southern Utah started off strong to begin the match still energized by their roller coaster win against Howard University yesterday. They jumped ahead with a 10-5 lead by picking up a few kills and forcing some errors from the Cougars. Then, however, outside hitter Lauryn Dela Cruz started to pick things up for Chicago State. She racked up a total of 29 kills for the match with a .333 hitting percentage. Things were tied up at 16-16. At which point, the Cougars hung tooth and nail with the Thunderbirds until the finally pulled away and won the first set 25-23.

In the second set, Chicago State eagerly held on to the momentum they gained in the first set and were up to a quick 15-8 lead. They didn't look back from there in this set. The Cougars took the advantage 2-0 by winning the set 25-20.

The Thunderbirds were not about to go out in three sets though.

For the first half of the set, neither team was able to gain the advantage by more than a couple points. With the score at 12-12, Southern Utah went on a ferocious 9-0 run going up 21-12. Big credit goes to Macky Fifita and Janet Kalaniuvalu who scored 14 kills each and are a vital part of the Thunderbird's offensive attack.

Southern Utah took the third set 25-18.

Same as the third set, the fourth set was pretty neck at neck at the beginning. With things tied up 16-16 in the fourth it was anyone's ballgame. Cruz came though in a big way for the Cougars once again. She had kills in three of the next four points putting Chicago State up 20-16. Southern Utah fought back to get things tied up at 21-21, but the Cougars took the next two points after that and edged out the win 25-22.

Along with the kills from Fifita and Kalaniuvalu, MaCail Evans and Miranda Canez picked up eight and seven kills respectively. As the season has progressed, they have both began to establish themselves as formidable offensive weapons. Evans also made her presence known at the net on defense participating in 11 blocks for the match.

SUU 3, CSU Fullerton 2

Southern Utah opened their performance at the Fullerton/Riverside Classic in dramatic fashion winning a five set, two-and-a-half hour long match. It was only fitting that they end it the same way.

The Thunderbirds came out swinging in the first two sets. They led off in the first set with a solid hitting percentage of .261. Macky Fifita once again led the charge recording 22 kills and a .224 hitting percentage. Southern Utah's defense also did a good job of slowing down the Titan's offense attack. They held CSU Fullerton's hitting percentage to .143 in the first set and .047 in the second. With all that considered, the Thunderbirds were able to take a commanding 2-0 set lead.

With the threat of a sweep looming above them, the Titans started to turn things up in the third set. Junior, Madeline Schneider led the charge for them picking up 20 kills for the night along with freshman, Jayla Norman, who had 13 kills. Despite the increased pressure from CSU Fullerton, the Thunderbirds held their ground. It wasn't until things were tied up at 24-24, that the Titans pulled out two straight points and won the set 26-24.

CSU Fullerton used the momentum from the end of the third set to help carry them in the fourth. They capitalized on a few mistakes from the Thunderbirds and went on to even things up at two sets a piece.

In the final set, Southern Utah dug their feet in and played some strong, consistent volleyball. Although they only hit six kills in the set, they only had one error. Errors were the downfall for Titans. They recorded nine kills for the set but hit six errors as well. The Thunderbirds took advantage of these openings and finally pulled through winning the marathon match 15-11 in the final set.

Along with Fifita's strong net performance, MaCail Evans had 10 kills and an impressive .429 hitting percentage. On defense, Fifita had 26 digs along with 17 from Sarah Vang. Evans also assisted on seven blocks for the match.

Moving Forward

The Thunderbirds will be back in action next weekend at the Amy Svoboda Memorial Classic in Colorado Springs, Colo. They will play Friday, September 8th, at 10 a.m. MT against Liberty University followed by a match against Air Force Academy at 6 p.m. MT later in the day. Saturday, September 9th, they will play their last match of the tournament against Air Force again at 2 p.m. MT.

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