SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. (September 13, 2024) – For the first time since 2006, Lubbock Christian University is back in California, as they are participating in the Route 92 Classic, which is co-hosted by Cal State East Bay and San Francisco State. LCU will play all their matches at SFSU inside Nasser Family Plaza Main Gym, beginning with a pair of matches Friday, as they face Concordia Irvine (11 A.M. CT) and Hawai'I Hilo (6:30 p.m. CT).
 

ROUTE 92 CLASSIC
OPPONENT	LOCATION	DAY	TIME (CT)	WATCH	STATS
Concordia Irvine	San Francisco, Calif.	Fri, Sept. 13	11:00 a.m.	Video	Stats
Hawai'i Hilo	San Francisco, Calif.	Fri, Sept. 13	6:30 p.m.	Video	Stats

GAME NOTES (PDF)
 
LOOKING AT CUI
- The Lady Chaps and Golden Eagles are meeting for the second time all-time and for the first time since 2006, as the two faced in a season-opening tournament in Fresno, Calif. LCU dropped the contest 3-0, as both teams were NAIA programs.
- Concordia Irvine was preseason picked fifth in the 14-team PacWest Conference. They went 14-14 overall last season, going 10-10 in conference to finish fifth in the PacWest standings.  
- Concordia Irvine's women's volleyball team has started the 2024 season with a 3-1 record, as ther hosted the Golden Eagle Classic last weekend. They secured victories against Colorado Christian (3-1), Northwest Nazarene (3-1), and Cal State Dominguez Hills (3-2), but faced a loss against Alaska Fairbanks(1-3).
- Sophomore Delaney Risse has been a standout for Concordia Irvine, earning the first PacWest Defender of the Week award for 2024. She helped CUI to a 3-1 start by racking up 69 digs over four games, averaging 4.06 digs per set. Risse set a career-high with 27 digs in a five-set win against Cal State Dominguez Hills. She reached double-digit digs in her first three games and has also recorded at least one ace per match. In 2023, Risse totaled 276 digs, averaging 2.86 digs per set with 18 service aces.
- Concordia Irvine's volleyball team has notable early-season stats. They rank 23rd nationally and lead the PacWest in digs per set (18.06). They also rank 52nd nationally and 2nd in the conference in assists per set (12.29). Individually, Celia Dowell is 28th nationally and 1st in the PacWest with 0.80 aces per set, while Delaney Risse ranks 1st in total digs (69) in the conference. Kennedy Farley stands out with 37th nationally in kills (60).
 
LOOKING AT UHH
- LCU and Hawai'i Hilo have no prior meetings all-time.     

- Hawai'I Hilo is preseason picked sixth in the PacWest Conference. The Vulcans are returning eight players who saw starting time in 2023. Three of those returnees were Second Team All-PacWest selections: Tani Hoke, Taylor Tullo and Isabella Hadaller. They went 12-16 last season and finished tied for sixth in conference play with a 9-11 mark.  

- UHH is 4-2 on the young campaign, and already have six matches under their belt. They began strongly with back-to-back victories against Alaska Nanooks (3-2) and Alaska Anchorage (3-2) on August 30 in Honolulu. Following an exhibition match against Brock Badgers on August 31, they faced a busy schedule in September. They won a close match against Bemidji State (3-2) on September 5 but lost to Cal Poly Humboldt (1-3) later that day. They then secured a solid win against Saint Martin's (3-0) and had a narrow defeat to Western Oregon (2-3) on September 7. Their most recent match saw them triumph over Cal State East Bay (3-1) on September 12 in Hayward, Calif.

- Hawai'i Hilo's women's volleyball team is performing well in 2024, ranking first in the PacWest in multiple key statistics, including team kills (321, second nationally) and team service aces (53, third nationally). Madelyn Blandford is a standout, leading the conference with 13 service aces (seventh nationally).

- UHH is opening up their Route 92 Classic facing host Cal State East Bay Thursday.
 
LOOKING AT FPU
- LCU defeated Fresno Pacific 3-1 in Golden, Colo. On Sept. 7, 2019, which was the previous meeting between the two programs. It was LCU's first win over FPU, who has a 2-1 all-time series lead over LCU. The first two meetings were as NAIA foes. FPU won each of those meetings in straight sets, defeating LCU Dec. 4, 2002 at the NAIA National Championships in San Diego, Calif. and on Aug. 26, 2006 in Fresno, Calif.

- FPU is preseason picked ninth in the PacWest. They went 13-16 overall last season, producing a 9-11 record in conference to finish tied for sixth in the conference.

- Fresno Pacific's volleyball team has had a solid start to their 2024 season, boasting a 3-1 overall record and a current three-game winning streak. Their season began with a tough 1-3 loss to Stanislaus State on September 5 at their home venue, the Special Events Center. They quickly rebounded with a strong performance, securing a 3-0 victory over Chico State on September 6, followed by another 3-0 win against the Academy of Art later that day. They continued their winning streak with a 3-0 victory over Jessup University on September 7. All their games so far have been played at home, where they have a 3-1 record.

- FPU's squad has several standouts in the national rankings. They are 36th in the nation for assists per set (10.08), driven by Cambria Waites, who ranks second in the PacWest. Additionally, the team ranks 38th nationally with a .252 hitting percentage, and 31st for kills per set (13.69). Makayla Smith is another key player, ranked second in the conference and 75th nationally for kills per set (3.62), and 100th nationally for points per set (4.00).

- The Sunbirds are under the direction of Kelsee Montagna, who is in her first season coaching the program. The eighth head coach in FPU volleyball program history joined the FPU staff from Fresno City College.
 
LOOKING AT SFSU
- LCU and San Francisco State have no history and Saturday's meeting marks the first all-time meeting.     

- SFSU is preseason picked fourth in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA), which has 12 programs. They went 18-11 overall last season, going 13-5 in conference.

- The Gators opened with a close 2-3 loss to No.22 Central Washington on Sept. 6 at the WECU Court at Carver Gym in Bellingham, Wash. The following day, they faced another setback with a 3-0 defeat against No.7 Metropolitan State of Denver, also in Bellingham. However, they ended their trip on a high note with a 3-0 victory over Western Washington later that day.

- San Francisco State's volleyball team notably excels in assists per set and kills per set, ranking 23rd nationally with 13.09 assists and 27th with 13.82 kills, showcasing their offensive strength. Individual standout performances include Kimberly DeBoer, who ranks 30th nationally in assists per set (10.27, leads their conference), and Tamiya Wilson, who is 32nd in kills per set (4.18, ranks fifth in PacWest) and 32nd in points per set (4.68). Despite these strengths, the team struggles with aces per set (249th) and blocks per set (114th), areas where they trail behind both national and conference leaders.

- SFSU is coming off a season in which they went 8-1 at home inside Don Nasser Family Plaza's Main Gym. 
 
LADY CHAP NOTES
- Lubbock Christian University's volleyball team has started the season with a 3-1 record and a current two-match winning streak. On September 6, the Lady Chaps won their first match against Cal State East Bay (3-0) at the Massari Arena in Pueblo, Colorado. However, they faced a setback later that day with a 1-3 loss to Colorado State-Pueblo. They rebounded strongly on September 7, securing back-to-back wins against Lake Superior State (3-0) and Minnesota Crookston (3-2). Kiana Fallaha, Lili Bickley and Kayton Genenbacher each earned All-Tournament honors at the event.

- Lubbock Christian University stands out with a remarkable team hitting percentage of .234, ranking 56th nationally, which is a significant achievement compared to the national leader's .415 and the conference leader's .267. Their strong performance in kills per set is also noteworthy, as they are ranked 32nd with 13.67 kills per set. In terms of team stats, they rank fourth nationally in team attacks per set with 41.53. Individually, Bryleigh Schweer from Lubbock Christian shines with the highest hitting percentage of .475, ranking 21st nationally (leads LSC). Additionally, Kiana Fallaha has excelled with 3.40 kills per set, ranking eighth in the LSC, and 3.77 points per set, ranking seventh in LSC.

- This season marks LCU's fourth season under coach Giboney. The Lady Chaps seventh head coach in program history has jumped into his 20th year of NCAA coaching. Giboney, who has four NCAA Tournament appearances and seven conference titles on his resume, surpassed 400 coaching victories in his first season with LCU and has a career coaching mark of 435-205. The Chaps head coach entered the season as the 29th best-active head coach in win percentage (.679) and as the 27th best-active head coach in victories (432). He has the third-highest win total of head coaches with less than 20 years of head coaching experience. Giboney is a native of Southern California and LCU's games scheduled in San Francisco will mark the first time he will have ever coached on California soil.

- Setter Kayton Genenbacher moved into 10^th all-time in LCU's career record books for assists. Genenbacher has 148 assists on the season and 2,226 in her LCU career. She ranks third in conference in assists per set with a value of 9.87, and also her total assists (148) with 148 assists (third in LSC). Additionally, Genenbacher ranks 15^th in the LSC in digs per set with 3.60. She has two double-doubles on the season.

- LCU is making their first trip to California since opening the 2006 season in Fresno, Calif.

- All of Lubbock Christian University's games in California will be available for live streaming on FloSports. FloSports has recently partnered with the Lone Star Conference to offer a subscription-based service that provides live video coverage. This platform also has agreements with several conferences and programs, including the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA), of which San Francisco State University is a member. A subscription to FloSports gives you access to all content on their platform. For more details, visit www.lcuchaps.com/live.