California State University at Northridge
2-0,0-0Big West
Missouri S&T
0-2,0-0DI Independent
Phillips' 13 Kills Leads No. 15 CSUN Past Missouri S&T in Straight Sets
1/10/2025 9:58:00 PM | Men's Volleyball
CSUN won by set scores of 25-18, 25-20, 25-20, improving to 2-0 on the season. Phillips led all hitters with 13 kills, hitting .500 on 22 swings with four digs and two blocks. Senior Lorenzo Bertozzi also reached double figures in kills with 11 (.450) along with a team-high six digs.
After hitting .403 in Thursday's season-opening win over Tusculum, the Matadors hit .478 against the Pioneers. CSUN committed just nine hitting errors in the match while limiting Missouri S&T to a .200 team hitting clip. Joao Pedro Avila led the Matadors with a .636 clip, putting down a season-high eight kills on 11 attacks while Stilian Delibosov added seven kills on 10 swings to hit .600.
SET 1: CSUN 25, MISSOURI S&T 18
The opening set proved to be the closest of the night as the teams played to 15 ties while the lead changed hands twice. CSUN overcame a 9-7 deficit as kills from Joao Favarim and Bertozzi tied the score. The teams would trade sideouts until 17-17 when a Bertozzi kill sent Favarim to the service line. The Matadors would go on to claim seven straight points behind Favarim's serving as CSUN would close the set on an 8-1 run to take a 25-18 decision.
SET 2: CSUN 25, MISSOURI S&T 20
After hitting an impressive .565 in set one, the Matadors cooled to a .500 hitting clip in set two. CSUN led 8-6 following a Delibosov kill which would propel the Matadors on a 4-1 run that opened up a 12-7 advantage. CSUN would lead by as many as eight (16-8) following another Bertozzi kill and despite a late run by the Miners that trimmed the deficit to two, CSUN would claim five of the final seven points to seal the 25-20 win.
S2 l Miner swing is wide on set point and #CSUN opens up a 2-set lead over Missouri S&T
— CSUN Men's Volleyball (@CSUNMensVB) January 11, 2025
1?? CSUN 25-18
2?? CSUN 25-20#GoMatadors pic.twitter.com/yr0OJIH8fW
SET 3: CSUN 25, MISSOURI S&T 20
The Matadors would out-hit the Miners .375 to .192 in taking the final set by the same 25-20 score. In a see-saw battle, neither team could gain more than a one-point lead until a Missouri S&T service error followed by an Avila kill gave the Matadors a 19-17 edge. Out of a Miners timeout, CSUN would score three more times behind kills from Phillips and Delibosov and a hitting error. Missouri S&T would pull within four in the final stages before Phillips slammed down his 13th kill on match point.
Phillips slams down his match-high 13th kill on match point as #CSUN improves to 2-0 on the season#GoMatadors pic.twitter.com/NwsHHv7xPk
— CSUN Men's Volleyball (@CSUNMensVB) January 11, 2025
NOTES
- The match was the first-ever meeting between CSUN and Missouri S&T.
- CSUN improves to 55-37 all-time at the UCSB ASICS Invitational.
- The loss drops the Miners to 0-2 on the season.
HEAD COACH THEO EDWARDS SAID
"Reflecting on yesterday into today, I thought we stepped up and played a little bit better tonight. Missouri S&T is a physical team with a lot of size so it was nice to see us execute a game plan and really take it to them. Lorenzo (Bertozzi) hit .450 and had 11 kills, thought he was great, Jalen (Phillips) was back to his old self tonight with 13 kills on 22 swings to hit .500. Just really pleased with our progress and want to keep getting better."
Q&A with head coach Theo Edwards following No. 15 #CSUN's 3-0 win over Missouri S&T#GoMatadors pic.twitter.com/zVhE8ZzoAE
— CSUN Men's Volleyball (@CSUNMensVB) January 11, 2025
UP NEXT
CSUN plays its final match of the 2025 UCSB ASICS Invitational on Saturday at 2 p.m., as the Matadors take on Menlo (1-2) at Rob Gym on the UC Santa Barbara campus.
#GoMatadors
