Sunday, February 2
Fairfax, Va.
10:00 a.m.
California State University at Northridge
7-2,0-0Big West
3
at
1
George Mason
4-4,0-0EIVA
1
2
3
4
F
CSUN
25
25
24
25
3
George Mason
23
23
26
16
1
Photo by: Chuck Marvel
#16 Matadors Knock Off No. 20 George Mason in Four Sets
2/2/2025 3:09:00 PM | Men's Volleyball
FAIRFAX, Va. – Sophomore Jalen Phillips had 22 kills to lead the 16th-ranked CSUN men's volleyball team to a 3-1 victory over No. 20 George Mason in four sets to conclude the Uvaldo Acosta Memorial Tournament Sunday at Recreation Athletic Complex.
At 7-2, the Matadors are off to their best start since 2016 when CSUN was also 7-2 through nine matches.
Phillips led all hitters in the match, hitting .319 on 47 attacks to go with a career-high 12 digs and two aces. The double-double was his first as a Matadors. Senior Lorenzo Bertozzi also reached double figures in kills, matching his career-high with 14 on .407 hitting. Joao Avila added seven kills (.250) while middles Stilian Delibosov and Joao Favarim each chipped in five kills.
For the match, CSUN hit .333 with 55 kills and 17 errors on 114 swings while limiting the Patriots to a .205 hitting clip. Barron, Starkey, and Paige Sentes each had two aces as the Matadors served six as a team to two for Fullerton. CSUN also had a sizable lead in blocks (7-2) while each team had 45 digs. CSUN also had a 10-7 edge in blocks behind six each from Delibosov and Donovan Constable. Constable finished the match with 45 assists, nine digs, and two kills along with six blocks.
S1 - CSUN 25, GMU 23 – CSUN led by as many as two in the early stages when Delibosov's ace gave the Matadors a 7-5 lead. After Mason battled back to take a 9-8 lead, multiple ties ensued, the last at 15-15. A Phillips kill and a Favarim block put CSUN back in front 17-15. The hosts rallied back to take a 22-20 lead when Delibosov's third ace capped a 3-1 CSUN run. The Patriots were then called for being out of rotation giving the Matadors set point. Favarim's kill capped a 4-0 run, sending CSUN to the 25-23 win.
S2 - CSUN 25, GMU 23 – The Patriots claimed eight of the first 12 points of set two forcing CSUN into its first timeout. A 3-0 run, capped by an Avila kill, pulled the Matadors within 8-7. A Phillips ace gave CSUN its first lead at 12-11 before the teams traded sideouts until 21-21. After Mason took a 23-22 lead, Bertozzi answered with a kill, and a GMU hitting error and a Phillips kill sealed a second consecutive 25-23 CSUN win.
S3 – GMU 26, CSUN 24 - Mason jumped out to an 11-7 lead forcing a CSUN timeout. The lead swelled to as many as six at 14-8 following a 6-0 run by the Patriots. A 4-1 run by the Matadors trimmed the deficit to 15-12 before two straight points by the hosts forced CSUN's final timeout. A Matador triple block fueled a 6-0 run that pulled the Matadors within one at 18-17 and CSUN eventually knotted the score at 21-21. CSUN would lead 24-22 late and had a swing at the match but Mason would claim the final four points to take a 26-24 win.
S4 - CSUN 25, GMU 16 - The Matadors opened the final set by outscoring the Patriots 10-5. CSUN opened up a 15-9 cushion on a Constable/Delibosov block before a Phillips ace extended the lead to 16-9. The Matadors would lead by as many as nine at 20-11 before Phillips connected on match point sending CSUN to the 25-16 win.
HEAD COACH THEO EDWARDS SAID
"Trips like this give us an opportunity to get closer as a team. We had a lot of guys get some playing time this week, and overall, I felt like we really matured as a group."
UP NEXT
CSUN returns home next week to host Dominican (NY) on Friday at 6 p.m. inside Premier America Credit Union Arena. The Matadors then travel across the Valley on Saturday (Feb. 8) to take on No. 10 Pepperdine in Malibu at 5 p.m.
#GoMatadors
At 7-2, the Matadors are off to their best start since 2016 when CSUN was also 7-2 through nine matches.
Phillips led all hitters in the match, hitting .319 on 47 attacks to go with a career-high 12 digs and two aces. The double-double was his first as a Matadors. Senior Lorenzo Bertozzi also reached double figures in kills, matching his career-high with 14 on .407 hitting. Joao Avila added seven kills (.250) while middles Stilian Delibosov and Joao Favarim each chipped in five kills.
For the match, CSUN hit .333 with 55 kills and 17 errors on 114 swings while limiting the Patriots to a .205 hitting clip. Barron, Starkey, and Paige Sentes each had two aces as the Matadors served six as a team to two for Fullerton. CSUN also had a sizable lead in blocks (7-2) while each team had 45 digs. CSUN also had a 10-7 edge in blocks behind six each from Delibosov and Donovan Constable. Constable finished the match with 45 assists, nine digs, and two kills along with six blocks.
S1 - CSUN 25, GMU 23 – CSUN led by as many as two in the early stages when Delibosov's ace gave the Matadors a 7-5 lead. After Mason battled back to take a 9-8 lead, multiple ties ensued, the last at 15-15. A Phillips kill and a Favarim block put CSUN back in front 17-15. The hosts rallied back to take a 22-20 lead when Delibosov's third ace capped a 3-1 CSUN run. The Patriots were then called for being out of rotation giving the Matadors set point. Favarim's kill capped a 4-0 run, sending CSUN to the 25-23 win.
S2 - CSUN 25, GMU 23 – The Patriots claimed eight of the first 12 points of set two forcing CSUN into its first timeout. A 3-0 run, capped by an Avila kill, pulled the Matadors within 8-7. A Phillips ace gave CSUN its first lead at 12-11 before the teams traded sideouts until 21-21. After Mason took a 23-22 lead, Bertozzi answered with a kill, and a GMU hitting error and a Phillips kill sealed a second consecutive 25-23 CSUN win.
S3 – GMU 26, CSUN 24 - Mason jumped out to an 11-7 lead forcing a CSUN timeout. The lead swelled to as many as six at 14-8 following a 6-0 run by the Patriots. A 4-1 run by the Matadors trimmed the deficit to 15-12 before two straight points by the hosts forced CSUN's final timeout. A Matador triple block fueled a 6-0 run that pulled the Matadors within one at 18-17 and CSUN eventually knotted the score at 21-21. CSUN would lead 24-22 late and had a swing at the match but Mason would claim the final four points to take a 26-24 win.
S4 - CSUN 25, GMU 16 - The Matadors opened the final set by outscoring the Patriots 10-5. CSUN opened up a 15-9 cushion on a Constable/Delibosov block before a Phillips ace extended the lead to 16-9. The Matadors would lead by as many as nine at 20-11 before Phillips connected on match point sending CSUN to the 25-16 win.
HEAD COACH THEO EDWARDS SAID
"Trips like this give us an opportunity to get closer as a team. We had a lot of guys get some playing time this week, and overall, I felt like we really matured as a group."
UP NEXT
CSUN returns home next week to host Dominican (NY) on Friday at 6 p.m. inside Premier America Credit Union Arena. The Matadors then travel across the Valley on Saturday (Feb. 8) to take on No. 10 Pepperdine in Malibu at 5 p.m.
#GoMatadors
.png&width=84&height=84&quality=100&type=webp)
Team Stats
CSUN
GMU
Kills
55
46
Errors
17
22
Attempts
114
117
Hitting %
.333
.205
Points
73.5
59.5
Assists
52
40
Aces
8
6
Blocks
10.5
7.5
Game Leaders
Kills
22
Aces
2
Blocks
1
Kills
14
Aces
3
Blocks
2
Kills
7
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
5
Aces
3
Blocks
6
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Men's VolleyballOH
/ Men's Volleyball
S
/ Men's VolleyballMB
/ Men's Volleyball
MB
/ Men's VolleyballOPP
/ Men's Volleyball
L/DS
/ Women's VolleyballCalHOPE Award Nathan Merren
Thursday, March 02
MVB vs. Stanford Highlights
Monday, February 20
A Conversation With Jeff Campbell
Thursday, May 28
National Student-Athlete Day 2019 - Ryan DeWeese
Friday, April 05