October 6, 2007

Cal Poly Volleyball: Atherstone leads Mustangs to win
By Brian Milne

It seemed like every time the Mustangs needed a boost, Kylie Atherstone was there to provide a booming lift.

Cal Poly’s opposite-side hitter pelted Cal State Fullerton with a match-high 19 kills on just 32 swings Friday in the Mustangs volleyball team’s 3-0 sweep in Mott Gym.

The 30-23, 30-27, 30-17 victory kept the Mustangs (10-7, 4-1) atop the Big West Conference standings and pushed their record to 21-3 at home under head coach Jon Stevenson. Cal Poly, coming off a brow-raising loss at what has become a House of Horrors in Pacific’s Spanos Center, has now swept six straight conference matches at home.

“I think that loss was a good lesson learned,” Atherstone said of the four-game letdown in Stockton. “This past week we had an amazing week of practice, and we knew that we shouldn’t be disappointed after the loss because it helped us refocus.”

Atherstone, who came in ranked fourth in the Big West at 4.29 kills per game, had seven kills on 11 attempts in the opening game.

The Titans had no answer for last year’s co-Big West Player of the Year again in the second game as Atherstone hammered home another seven kills, including the game winner.

Atherstone finished with 10 more kills than the next closest hitter—teammates Ali Waller, Jaclyn Houston and Dominique Olowolafe each added nine kills. The junior’s match totals included three aces and a six digs.

“Atherstone is just hammering, it’s like she’s punishing the ball every time she’s hitting it,” Stevenson said. “It’s amazing, the hand speed that she has.… I told the team (during a time-out) to make sure we find our hot hitters and not force something that’s not there. In other words, read between the lines and set Kylie.”

Olowolafe, a freshman middle blocker, continues to fill the hole left by departed senior Candace Milton at the net. Along with her nine kills, Olowolafe had two blocks.

Setter Chelsea Hayes distributed 46 assists, helping the Mustangs outhit the Titans (7-8, 2-2) .327 to .178.

Jennifer Francisco and Alex Wolnisty each had nine kills to lead Cal State Fullerton, which fell to 3-40 all-time against the Mustangs.

Stevenson said he hopes his team continues its offensive onslaught over the next two weeks as Cal Poly plays four straight matches on the road. The Mus-tangs are at rival UC Santa Barbara (6-10, 1-3) on Thursday.

“All in all, if we can play offense like that,” Stevenson said, “it’s pretty hard to lose when you’re siding out all the time.”