UC Irvine Opens Big West Conference At CSUN, No. 25 Long Beach State

  • UC Irvine goes into Big West action this week with a 6-6 record under first year head coach Ashlie Hain.
  • The Anteaters take on CSUN Friday (Sept. 25) at the Matadome and then faces its third ranked team when UCI travels to 25th-ranked Long Beach State for a Black and Blue Rivalry match Saturday (Sept. 26).
  • First serve for both matches is set for 7:00 p.m.
  • The first of three appearances on ESPN3 for the Anteaters is slated for Saturday's match-up against the 49ers.


KEKAUOHA, AKPAKPA WIN BIG WEST HONORS

  • Harlee Kekauoha and Idara Akpakpa captured the team's first Big West weekly awards after leading UCI to wins against Oregon State and No. 21 San Diego.
  • Kekauoha, who was named the Big West Freshman of the Week, recorded her second error-free performance against UCLA, hitting .571 with 16 kills against the Bruins.
  • She then posted a career-high 18 kills in the win against Oregon State and hit .441 while adding three aces and a personal-best six block assists.
  • To cap the weekend, Kekauoha tied for the team lead in kills with 13 and bested her mark at the net with seven block assists.
  • Kekauoha jumped into the Big West top 10 in kills with a 3.22 average and is one of two freshmen ranked in the category.
  • She moved up one spot to fifth with a .340 hitting percentage and is also seventh in aces at .30 per set.
  • Akpakpa is making noise in her freshman campaign and came away with Defensive Player of the Week recogniztion.
  • She leads the  Anteaters with 41 total blocks on 36 block assists and five solos.
  • The middle blocker tied a career-high with seven block assists against OSU and nearly matched the feat again, falling one block assist shy against USD.
  • She had her best offensive outing against San Diego with a career-high eight kills and logged just one miscue for a career-high .389 hitting percentage.


ANTEATER BLOCK PLAYS KEY ROLE IN WINS

  • As a team, UCI is up to fourth in the Big West in blocking with an average of 2.04
  • The Anteaters edged No. 14 UCLA 4-3 in team blocks and kept pace with Oregon State with both teams posting 11.5 blocks.
  • UCI then dominated against San Diego with a 17.5 - 7 advantage.
  • The team nearly matched its season high of 30 block assists, recorded against UCF, with 29 against San Diego.


SEASON, CAREER-BESTS FOR DENNIS

  • Victoria Dennis committed just one error offensively against No. 21 San Diego, putting away 13 kills in 35 attempts for a season-best .343 hitting percentage.
  • She also was a presence at the net, recording a career-high three solo blocks to go along with four block assists for a personal-best seven total stuffs.
  • The outside hitter leads the team with a 3.33 per set kill average and holds the team high with an impressive 10 solo blocks.
  • Dennis has 153 kills on the year and is fifth in the Big West Conference.


PAIR OF CAREER-HIGHS DAM UP BEAVERS

  • The Anteaters won big in the dig column against Oregon State as the team posted a 73-52 advantage.
  • Luna Tsujimoto and Chloe Hakim led the team with the duo posting career numbers that night.
  • Tsujimoto picked up 26 digs, besting her previous mark of 24 recorded against North Dakota State.
  • Tsujimoto climbed up one spot to sixth in the Big West with a 3.78 dig average.
  • Hakim had 14 digs to eclipse her previous best of six digs against Army.


ANDERSON QUARTERBACKS ANTEATERS TO BIG WIN

  • Shelley Anderson guided UCI to its first win over a ranked team since 2008 when the Anteaters handed No. 6 California a five-set loss.
  • The win over a ranked team was the first for the junior, who handed out a season-high 48 assists.
  • Against Oregon State, Anderson tied a season-best with six kills while hitting .357 and then chipped in four against San Diego, again committing just one error for a .375 clip.
  • Anderson jumped up two spots in the conference and is fourth with an 8.16 assist per set average.
  • She made the move to fifth in the UCI career records with 2,534 assists to pass Anteater alumna, Vesna Sepic, who had 2,477 from 1990-93.


DAVIS HIT 1000 DIG MARK

  • Arden Davis totaled 27 digs over three matches last weekend to reach 1,000 career scoops.
  • The junior, who has 1,016 in her career, passed Scotleen Risley's 1982-92 total of 1,000.
  • Davis is second on the team with 124 digs and is averaging 2.70 on the year.


ROSENFELD PROVES TO BE ANTEATER DOUBLE THREATS

  • Ella Rosenfeld and Idara Akpakpa have been delivering on both offense and defense, becoming a deadly duo.
  • Rosenfeld is having her best year offensively and is third on the team with 101 kills and second in the conference with a .376 hitting percentage.
  • She also has been one of the leaders at the net for the team and is second with 32 block assists, seven solo blocks and a .85 average.  
  • She tied a personal-best with eight block assists against San Diego last week.


ON LATOUR WITH LENA

  • Lena Latour made her presence felt in the win against the Toreros as the sophomore had an impactful match with a career-best nine kills.
  • Latour had seen limited action this year but delivered when she was needed most, scooping up a pair of digs and delivering two blocks for the 'Eater defense.


ABOUT CSUN

  • CSUN is 1-11 on the year and looks to snap an eight-match losing streak this week.
  • The Matadors have had a tough schedule, playing three ranked teams, including No. 8 Washington on back-to-back nights.
  • The team is led by Cieana Stinson, who has 143 kills and is averaging 3.33 per set to rank sixth in the Big West.
  • UCI trails 25-24 in the all-time series record with both teams securing a road win.


ABOUT LONG BEACH STATE

  • Long Beach State is 10-3 and second in the conference in overall record.
  • The 49ers have won eight of the last nine contests with the only loss in that span coming against UCLA.
  • The team is led by Nele Barber, who is third in the Big West in kill average at 3.84 with 192 on the year.
  • Long Beach State leads the all-time series 68-8 with the 49ers winning 10 straight against UCI.
  • The Anteaters' last Black and Blue Rivalry win came in 2009 at home.

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