Photo by: Steve Fitzgerald
Men's Volleyball Gets Fall Off to a Good Start at Pepperdine
10/27/2023 11:02:00 AM | Men's Volleyball
NORTHRIDGE, Calif. - The CSUN men's volleyball opened the fall exhibition season with a strong effort against nationally-ranked Pepperdine on Saturday (Oct. 21) at Firestone Fieldhouse.
The two teams, that were both ranked in the AVCA Top-15 at various stages of the 2023 season, played 10 total sets during the afternoon with each team's starters taking on each other in a five-set match to begin the day.
For the Matadors, Kyle Hobus led all CSUN hitters with 17 kills on 33 swings to hit an impressive .466. Fellow outside Griffin Walters added 11 kills hitting .258 on 29 swings while middle Jano Tello chipped in 11 kills on 14 attacks to hit .642.
"It's really nice to have an opportunity to see all of our young guys play," said head coach Theo Edwards. "With our second group, we got to see almost everybody and to get to see them play with the lights on was awesome. Having an older, more experienced team it's really just about continuing to build. With our first group, I'd say we're further along at this point of the year than we were last year."
Other notable statistics from the match:
Nathan Merren had nine kills hitting .617 on 15 swings in three sets.
Taylan Cook was steady passing and defensively.
Donovan Constable had a solid day from the service line with three aces while also setting the Matador hitters to a .536 clip.
In his CSUN debut, Nir Eitan served three aces and posed a strong blocking presence at the net.
The Pepperdine exhibition was the first in a series of fall exhibition matches for the Matadors. CSUN will host the first annual Grass Tournament on campus this Saturday (Oct. 28) before playing in the USC Tournament on Nov. 11, then closing the fall at the UCLA Tournament on Nov. 17.
#GoMatadors
The two teams, that were both ranked in the AVCA Top-15 at various stages of the 2023 season, played 10 total sets during the afternoon with each team's starters taking on each other in a five-set match to begin the day.
For the Matadors, Kyle Hobus led all CSUN hitters with 17 kills on 33 swings to hit an impressive .466. Fellow outside Griffin Walters added 11 kills hitting .258 on 29 swings while middle Jano Tello chipped in 11 kills on 14 attacks to hit .642.
"It's really nice to have an opportunity to see all of our young guys play," said head coach Theo Edwards. "With our second group, we got to see almost everybody and to get to see them play with the lights on was awesome. Having an older, more experienced team it's really just about continuing to build. With our first group, I'd say we're further along at this point of the year than we were last year."
Other notable statistics from the match:
Nathan Merren had nine kills hitting .617 on 15 swings in three sets.
Taylan Cook was steady passing and defensively.
Donovan Constable had a solid day from the service line with three aces while also setting the Matador hitters to a .536 clip.
In his CSUN debut, Nir Eitan served three aces and posed a strong blocking presence at the net.
The Pepperdine exhibition was the first in a series of fall exhibition matches for the Matadors. CSUN will host the first annual Grass Tournament on campus this Saturday (Oct. 28) before playing in the USC Tournament on Nov. 11, then closing the fall at the UCLA Tournament on Nov. 17.
#GoMatadors
Players Mentioned
S
/ Men's Volleyball
L
/ Men's Volleyball
OH
/ Men's Volleyball
OPP
/ Men's Volleyball
MB
/ Men's Volleyball
OH
/ Men's VolleyballPeter J. Accardy Pool Naming Campaign
Wednesday, October 29
CSUN Women's Soccer vs. UC Riverside Recap
Tuesday, September 30
CSUN Men's Basketball Big West Championship Preview
Friday, June 06
CSUN Baseball Robert J. Hiegert Field
Friday, June 06