SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. (September 14, 2024) – It was a rough Saturday on the West Coast for Lubbock Christian University, as they suffered a pair of defeats to close out their stay at the Route 92 Classic. LCU fell 3-1 to Fresno Pacific and 3-0 to event co-host San Francisco State inside Nasser Family Plaza Main Gym.
GAME 1 – FPU 3, LCU 1
The Lady Chaparrals took the first set, but couldn't hang on and fell in four sets (25-20, 20-25, 16-25, 22-25) to the Fresno Pacific Sunbirds. The Lady Chaps were led by a double-double from Kiana Fallaha, who registered 15 kills and 12 digs on the day. Lily Bickley also added 15 kills to help the offense. Kayton Genenbacher also provided a double-double with 40 assists and 12 digs. On the defensive end, Leddy Rae Guinn chipped in with 19 digs and they also received five blocks from Bryleigh Schweer.
Game Notes
» Lubbock Christian had four players in double figures in digs. Along with 19 by Guinn, Fallaha and Genenbacher each had 12 and Abby Benitez had 10.
» Kiana Fallaha had 59 attacks, which is the second-highest total in LCU's NCAA-era (since 2015 season), and the most since Ashley Vanfleet had 65 at West Texas A&M on August 25, 2018.
» Fallaha's double-double (15 kills and 12 digs) was her third of the season (in consecutive games) and 15th of her career.
» Lily Bickley co-led LCU with 15 kills, which marked her fourth consecutive game of double figures in kills.
» Fresno Pacific (3-3), led by 10 blocks from Madison Girnius and double-doubles from Mia Gilcrest (18k,12d) and Makayla Smith (13k,11d), recorded 17 team blocks, which is the most by an LCU opponent since MSU Billings had 18 on Sept.2, 2023.
» Lubbock Christian attackers were helped by a team-high 40 assists from Kayton Genenbacher, who also completed her fourth double-double of the season and 28th of her career.
» FPU improved to 3-1 all-time against LCU. They were meeting for the first time since LCU defeated them 3-1 in Golden, Colo. On Sept. 7, 2019.
How It Happened
SET 1 | The Lady Chaps grabbed the first set 25-20 propelled by a solid performance on the attacking end. Lubbock Christian put together a .432 attack percentage with 19 kills in the set victory. The Lady Chaps opened up a 24-18 lead in the stanza and coasted to victory from there. Bickley (7) and Fallaha (6) combined for 13 of the kills, and Genenbacher produced 16 assists.
SET 2 | Lubbock Christian dropped set two 25-20 to tie the match 1-1. Fresno Pacific grabbed the advantage for good at 19-18 in a set that was knotted up 14 times before the Sunbirds took over in the second half of the stanza. LCU, receiving four kills each from Bickley and Fallaha, was scarred by 11 attack errors in the frame.
SET 3 | Lubbock Christian dropped the third set, as they fell behind on the first point and fought from behind the rest of the way before falling in the set 25-16. Gilcrest produced seven kills for FPU in the set.
SET 4 | Lubbock Christian lost set four and the match, falling 25-22. The Lady Chaps fell behind on the first point and fought from behind the rest of the way before losing the set. Freshman Jade Workman led LCU in the set with four kills.
GAME 2 – SFSU 3, LCU 0
The Lady Chaps closed their California stay falling to the San Francisco State Gators 3-0 (16-25, 13-25, 17-25). The non-conference loss dropped Lubbock Christian to 4-4 on the season. Jade Workman and Kiana Fallaha each finished with eight kills on the day to lead the Lady Chaps attack. Workman also had a hitting percentage of .333.
Game Notes
» Lily Bickley had a team-high four aces in the loss. The mark is a career high.
» Freshman Jade Workman co-led the team in kills and had a team-high eight kills for Lubbock Christian. She has consecutive games with eight kills and has 22 kills in the past three combined matches.
» Kiana Fallaha co-led LCU with eight kills. Her career-long streak of consecutive games with at least 10 kills came to an end at seven games.
» Lubbock Christian got a team-high 10 digs from Abby Benitez.
» SFSU (5-2) had 17 digs and 16 kills from Izzy Issak, who recorded a double-double. They had a .385 attack percentage in the win.
» The meeting marked LCU's first-ever meeting against San Francisco State in program history.
How It Happened
SET 1 | The Lady Chaps found themselves in an early hole, losing a tough first set 25-16. Lubbock Christian trailed by as many as 11 points as San Francisco State never surrendered the lead in a set in which the Gators hit .538. Fallaha led LCU with four kills, while SFSU had three players with at least five kills.
SET 2 | Lubbock Christian then lost set two 25-13 to fall behind in the match two sets to none. Lubbock Christian trailed by as many as 12 points as San Francisco State grabbed the advantage for good at 7-6 in a set that was knotted up just once before the Gators took over the lead. Workman was solid with five kills on six chances for LCU.
SET 3 | San Francisco State finished the sweep with a set-three victory. The Lady Chaps fell in a tough set 25-17. Lubbock Christian trailed by as many as eight points as San Francisco State grabbed the advantage for good at 12-11 in a set that was tied up six times before the Gators took over the lead. Issak posted six kills to close out the match.
WHAT'S NEXT
A preview of conference play takes place Friday in Laredo, Texas, as LCU participates in the LSC Crossover and faces UT Permian Basin in a non-conference neutral site match. LCU (4-4 on the season) will also play Texas A&M International on Saturday, and the two matches mark LCU's first games of the season in the Central time zone.
