Earlier this season, San Diego State volleyball faced two of the toughest opponents in the Mountain West: Colorado State and University of Wyoming. The Aztecs lost both of those games, but are now presented with the opportunity to redeem themselves on the road this week.
Since its last San Diego meeting, CSU has dropped from No. 20 in the nation to No. 36. The Rams still hold a dominant lead in conference, however, boasting an undefeated record of 10-0.
Wyoming has also gone down in national ranking, from No. 25 to No. 54, since it last faced the Aztecs. Despite this, the Cowgirls remain strong in the MW and are currently third in the conference.
SDSU has won three games and lost four since facing off with CSU and Wyoming in the beginning of October. The Aztecs are currently tied for seventh in the MW along with University of Nevada and San José State, holding a 4-6 conference record.
The team has been working to reduce its errors and improve its on-court presence during tough games. Head coach Deitre Collins-Parker is hopeful about the rest of the season.
“I think right now everything we do is just about our energy and focus behind the game,” she said. “For us, I think it’s been the right combination of people playing hard and just our attention to detail. We just have to be ready to go in and battle.”
Throughout the season, SDSU has had different players step up and make huge impacts on the court. In the most recent game against University of New Mexico, freshman outside hitter Alexandra Psoma had 14 kills with a career-best 13 digs to complete her double-double effort.
In the same game, junior middle blocker Baylee Little led all players with 17 kills, a career high. Sophomore defensive specialist Danielle Bolden also contributed 12 kills, 10 digs, two blocks and two assists. The game went into five sets, and the Aztecs came out with the win.
“I think we’ve found that we have more people that can do more things for us,” Collins-Parker said. “It’s more about depth than who’s on the floor at the start of the game.”
It is that depth that’s going to help SDSU face top-ranked teams, such as CSU and Wyoming. Last time these teams duked it out, the Aztecs started with a fiery energy and cohesiveness that at first seemed formidable. However, that enthusiasm seemed to burn out more and more with every error.
In more recent games throughout October, SDSU has consistently brought a high level of competitiveness and positivity to the court. The energy is there and the confidence is there.
The errors are coming less and less, too.
This time around, SDSU will be on the road against CSU and Wyoming. The Aztecs will have to maintain their new vibrancy and confidence on the road in order to put up a good fight against these powerhouses.
“We’re kind of comfortable being on the road,” Collins-Parker said. “Last year I couldn’t say that. It shouldn’t affect our play at all. We know what to do, we have a routine. Our away record is better than our home record right now so maybe that means we’ll do better.”
SDSU will try to give CSU its first conference loss of the season on Thursday night, and will then play in Wyoming on Saturday afternoon.
