Photo by: Dylan Smith
Falcons Head to California for Two Conference Matches
10/29/2024 2:29:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
The Air Force volleyball team heads to Northern California this weekend to begin the "rematch" portion of the Mountain West season. The Falcons open action at San Jose State on Thursday, Oct. 21, before heading down CA-180 for a Saturday, Nov. 2, match at Fresno State.
MATCH INFORMATION
Thursday's match is slated for a 7:00 p.m. (PT) start at Spartan Gym in San Jose, while Saturday's 11:00 a.m. (PT) contest in Fresno will take place inside the Save Mart Center. Direct links to stats and video can be found on the Falcons' schedule page at GoAirForceFalcons.com
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
San Jose State and Fresno State enter the week ranked second and third, respectively, in the Mountain West, with matching 7-3 records. The Spartans are 11-3 overall, while the Bulldogs, who will host New Mexico on Thursday, hold an 11-10 record after splitting a weekend with Nevada (3-2 win) and Utah State (0-3 loss). The Spartans lead the league in opponent hitting (.175) and service aces (1.91), while Emma Testi (0.55) and Brooke Slusser (0.50) are ranked 1-2 in the conference in individual aces. Fresno State's Addison Haluska leads the league in kills (4.33) and points (4.93), while Brooke Cowie is one of just two MW setters to average 10-plus assists per set. The Bulldogs also boast the conference's top defensive specialist, as Dionii Fraga leads the MW in digs with 4.40 per set.
DID YOU KNOW?
With Addison Haluska retaking the Mountain West lead in kills from Colorado's State Malaya Jones, Air Force has faced the conference's top attacker in each of the last three weeks (Haluska-Jones-Haluska).
HISTORY 101
The Falcons are 7-17 lifetime against San Jose State and have just one win at Spartan Gym a wild 2014 contest that included the program's second-highest set score (34-32) and their highest four-set match total (114 points) of the modern era. Fresno State evened its all-time history with Air Force at 13 wins apiece following the 3-0 win in this year's earlier meeting at the Academy. The Falcons are 3-8 on the Bulldogs home court, but have a 1-0 mark in the current layout of the Save Mart Center after defeating Fresno State in four to open the 2023 season.
AROUND THE CONFERENCE
Jordan Suan is ranked sixth in the Mountain West for overall digs with a 3.69 per-set average, while holding a No. 7 placement in conference digs at 3.39. Grace Fiaseu is listed among the league's top 10 in hitting during MW play (eighth, .329), while Mia Loyd is ranked ninth in assist with a 5.24 per-set average. A complete list of Air Force's rankings in the Mountain West can be found on Page 3 of this release,
EARLIER THIS YEAR…
With the last home-and-home teams of the first half of the Mountain West season being the first opponents of the second half, just one week separated Air Force's two meetings with both Fresno State and San Jose State. Th Falcons dropped a 22-25, 20-25, 21-25 match to the Bulldogs on Oct 17, before falling 18-25, 25-23, 24-26, 19-25 to the Spartans on Oct 19.
WHAT'S ON DECK
Air Force returns to the Academy next week to host Utah State (Nov. 7) and Nevada (Nov. 9) at Cadet East Gym.
MATCH INFORMATION
Thursday's match is slated for a 7:00 p.m. (PT) start at Spartan Gym in San Jose, while Saturday's 11:00 a.m. (PT) contest in Fresno will take place inside the Save Mart Center. Direct links to stats and video can be found on the Falcons' schedule page at GoAirForceFalcons.com
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
San Jose State and Fresno State enter the week ranked second and third, respectively, in the Mountain West, with matching 7-3 records. The Spartans are 11-3 overall, while the Bulldogs, who will host New Mexico on Thursday, hold an 11-10 record after splitting a weekend with Nevada (3-2 win) and Utah State (0-3 loss). The Spartans lead the league in opponent hitting (.175) and service aces (1.91), while Emma Testi (0.55) and Brooke Slusser (0.50) are ranked 1-2 in the conference in individual aces. Fresno State's Addison Haluska leads the league in kills (4.33) and points (4.93), while Brooke Cowie is one of just two MW setters to average 10-plus assists per set. The Bulldogs also boast the conference's top defensive specialist, as Dionii Fraga leads the MW in digs with 4.40 per set.
DID YOU KNOW?
With Addison Haluska retaking the Mountain West lead in kills from Colorado's State Malaya Jones, Air Force has faced the conference's top attacker in each of the last three weeks (Haluska-Jones-Haluska).
HISTORY 101
The Falcons are 7-17 lifetime against San Jose State and have just one win at Spartan Gym a wild 2014 contest that included the program's second-highest set score (34-32) and their highest four-set match total (114 points) of the modern era. Fresno State evened its all-time history with Air Force at 13 wins apiece following the 3-0 win in this year's earlier meeting at the Academy. The Falcons are 3-8 on the Bulldogs home court, but have a 1-0 mark in the current layout of the Save Mart Center after defeating Fresno State in four to open the 2023 season.
AROUND THE CONFERENCE
Jordan Suan is ranked sixth in the Mountain West for overall digs with a 3.69 per-set average, while holding a No. 7 placement in conference digs at 3.39. Grace Fiaseu is listed among the league's top 10 in hitting during MW play (eighth, .329), while Mia Loyd is ranked ninth in assist with a 5.24 per-set average. A complete list of Air Force's rankings in the Mountain West can be found on Page 3 of this release,
EARLIER THIS YEAR…
With the last home-and-home teams of the first half of the Mountain West season being the first opponents of the second half, just one week separated Air Force's two meetings with both Fresno State and San Jose State. Th Falcons dropped a 22-25, 20-25, 21-25 match to the Bulldogs on Oct 17, before falling 18-25, 25-23, 24-26, 19-25 to the Spartans on Oct 19.
WHAT'S ON DECK
Air Force returns to the Academy next week to host Utah State (Nov. 7) and Nevada (Nov. 9) at Cadet East Gym.
Players Mentioned
Macey Donathan Interview Sept 30, 2025
Tuesday, September 30
Falcons open up MW play with sweep of Nevada
Thursday, September 25
Macey Donathan Interview Sept 23, 2025
Tuesday, September 23
Utah Tech gives Falcons a loss in four sets
Saturday, September 20