Spring Break
CSU sweeps SDSU
Stephen Meyers
Issue date: 11/14/08 Section: Sports
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Not looking ahead to its big weekend at BYU and Utah, the Rams easily swept the Aztecs (25-18, 25-18, 25-17) and have themselves pointed in the right direction after their loss at TCU.
"We had talked about this match, and in order to win the conference, every game is as important as the next," said junior middle blocker Tessa Nelson. "The Utah, BYU weekend is big, but we got to be prepared for every team we play in our conference. I think this was a step. It was a win, so we're going to learn from it and hopefully be more prepared next time we play."
Head coach Tom Hilbert rated his team's performance as "good," but also admitted SDSU is a team CSU should always beat.
"That's a team that we should beat," Hilbert. "I don't want to be disrespectful, but they're a young team, we're not. We should be beating them."
Freshman outside hitter Katelyn Steffan played perhaps her best game in weeks, as she led the team with nine kills, hitting at a .571 clip.
"It felt good to finally have a good game again," said Steffan, who has been battling knee problems the past few weeks. "I felt on, and they were leaving more of the court open for me."
Senior All-American Mekana Barnes finished with eight kills and five blocks, while Nelson finished with seven kills and four blocks. Five of Nelson's kills came in the final two sets.
"I think Tessa played great too, especially at the end of the match," Hilbert said.
The team recorded nine blocks and held the Aztecs to a -.02 hitting percentage.
"We've been working a lot on that (the block) this week," Nelson said, "trying to stay low on the net instead of high because, especially against a team like this, they want to tool off our hand a lot."
Hilbert was impressed with the team's block and overall performance, but was worried about the team's energy level at times.
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