CEDAR CITY, Utah - Fresh off of three straight wins at the Southern Utah Tournament last weekend, the Southern Utah University women's volleyball team will look to keep momentum going as they face off against Fresno State and Santa Clara on Friday, Sept. 13.

Head Coach Kacey Nady Said:

"We are looking to continue our momentum from last weekend into this one. The team is very hungry to get after it and take these opportunities against competitive teams to continue progression in our growth!"

Tournament Info

Date: Friday, Sept. 13

Location: Santa Clara, California

Venue: Leavey Center

Match Schedule

• Fresno State vs. Southern Utah, 12:00 p.m. MT
• Santa Clara vs. Southern Utah, 7:00 p.m. MT

T-Bird Tidbits

• Andrea Spasojevic leads a hot start to the season, averaging 3.05 points per set to go along with 52 total kills.
• Teniyah Leuluai continues to share the wealth, dishing out an impressive 7.52 assists per set.
• Spasojevic (2.30) and Arianna Rossi (2.88) each bolster the defensive backcourt with over two digs per set.
• Carissa Richie protects the net with 19 total blocks on the year.

Last Time Out

On Saturday, the 'Birds wrapped up the Southern Utah Tournament against the University of Idaho Vandals.

The Thunderbirds came out of the gate hot, scoring the match's first five points, and kept that momentum going throughout the first set. Led by a balanced offense that saw kills from Charlotte Wilson, Molly McDermott, and Marlee Ervin, Southern Utah increased its lead by as much as 12 and took the opening set 25-14.

Set number two was a much closer affair, with the Vandals taking advantage of errors from the 'Birds to lead 14-11 halfway through the set. After a 3-0 run tied things up and a 4-0 run gave them the slight lead, the Thunderbirds held serve the rest of the way, shutting down all the momentum for Idaho and taking the frame 25-20.

The Vandals took an early 3-0 lead to start the third, but Southern Utah rattled off four straight points to go along with a 13-1 run led by the service of Molly McDermott and some spectacular kills by Spasojevic. As Idaho looked to respond, the Thunderbirds turned to their young players once again with kills from Madison Walker and Muniz shutting the door on any chance for a comeback, giving the Thunderbirds the set 25-11 and their third 3-0 win of the weekend.

Fresno State Bulldogs

The Bulldogs enter the match at 2-4, following three straight losses at the Buffs Classic hosted by the University of Colorado.

Fresno State is led on the attack by Ella Rud, who comes into the weekend with 103 kills on the season, averaging 4.48 per set. Defensively, Kasey Purry (24.0) and Mya Sellers (16.0) lead the team in total blocks.

Santa Clara Broncos

Santa Clara is 3-2 on the season after winning two of three last weekend at the UT Arlington Tournament.

Alayna Crabtree (53), Oren Abutdul (48), and Cate Shanahan (47) lead a balanced offense, each going for over 40 kills on the year. Nive Tuileta leads the defensive effort with 44 digs.

History

The Bulldogs lead the Thunderbirds 2-1 all-time, with Southern Utah's lone win coming in a five-set thriller last season.

This will mark the first ever meeting between the Thunderbirds and the Broncos.

Tickets

For single-game tickets, be sure to visit tbirdtickets.com.

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