SAN MARCOS, Calif. –  The Cal State San Marcos volleyball team (4-11, 2-6 CCAA) will host No. 6 Cal Poly Pomona (14-1, 8-0 CCAA) on Friday at 5 p.m. in The Sports Center before heading to Pomona on Saturday for a 3 p.m. match. 

LAST WEEK

• CSUSM once again went 1-1 last weekend at home.
• The Cougars dropped a heartbreaking five-set match (24-26, 25-23, 25-16, 18-25, 13-15) on Friday to Cal State Monterey Bay. 
• CSUSM rebounded with a sweep over Cal State East Bay on Saturday.
• For the weekend, Isabelle Bakken tallied 20 kills on 39 attempts and made only three errors for a .436 attack percentage. 

BY THE NUMBERS

• The Cougars hit a season-best .359 against Cal State East Bay with 45 kills on 92 attempts and made only 12 errors.
• CSUSM flip-flopped and now rank third in the CCAA in digs per set (15.51) and fourth in blocks per set (1.90). 
• The Cougars' 915 total digs are the third most in the conference.
• Jackie Phillips ranks second in the CCAA in digs per set with 3.98. 

NO. 6 CPP X2

• As CSUSM's travel partner for the 2024 season, the Cougars and the Broncos will play each other twice this weekend with each team getting a home match. 
• CSUSM is 6-9 in the all-time series against Pomona.
• The Cougars snapped a four-game losing streak against the Broncos last season, taking down then-No. 17 ranked Cal Poly Pomona in five sets (15-25, 25-15, 26-24, 16-25, 15-13) in The Sports Center.  
• The Broncos are on top of the CCAA standings with a one-game lead over second-place San Francisco State (7-1). 
• CPP has tallied nine sweeps this season and lost only seven sets. 
• The Broncos' lone loss of the season, a five-set decision (25-23, 20-25, 23-25, 25-11, 14-16), came against Central Washington on Sept. 12. 
• CPP is on a 10-match win streak. 
• The Broncos are leading the CCAA in aces (2.15) and digs (16.25) per set, while ranking second in assists (12.17), blocks (2.22) and kills (13.83) per set. 
• CPP is boasting a conference-best .261 hitting percentage. 
• Three-time CCAA Setter of the Week, Caitie Mueller is dishing out 10.46 assists per set, ranking her second in the CCAA and 31st in the NCAA Division II statistics. 
• CPP was selected to finish second in the 2024 CCAA Volleyball Preseason Coaches Poll.

LOOK INSIDE THE COUGARS

• The 2024 CSUSM roster consists of eight players competing in their final collegiate season with five being four-year members of the Cougar family – Mya Galvan, Alyssa Gurrola, Kelli Miechowicz, Jackie Phillips and Jessica Thomas. 
• Two new Cougars will only play one season for CSUSM – Danielle McCasland, a graduate transfer from Concordia University Irvine, and Gracie Zaitz. 
• Five others are donning Cougar Blue for the first time with three being true freshmen and two junior college transfers. 
• The Cougars finished their 2023 campaign with a 12-15 overall record, were 10-8 in CCAA play and returned to the CCAA Tournament for the program's fifth appearance. 
• As a team in the CCAA statistics, CSUSM concluded 2023 ranked seventh in blocks per set (1.93) while holding opponents to 1.74, the third lowest in the conference. 
• In the 2024 CCAA Volleyball Preseason Coaches Poll, the Cougars were picked to finish seventh.

THE LEONARD FILE

• Head coach Andrea Leonard enters her 14th season in charge of the Cougar volleyball team, a program she has built from the ground up since arriving on campus in 2010.
• Leonard has a 212-172 (.552) record as CSUSM's head coach.
• In 20 seasons as a collegiate head volleyball coach, Leonard holds a 304-298 (.505) career record.
• Leonard was CSUSM's first-ever CCAA Coach of the Year after guiding the Cougars to a third-place finish in the overall standings during the 2017 season.