Houston Remains Undefeated, Outlasts San Diego State in Home Opener

HOUSTON – Houston Volleyball remained perfect on the season as it defeated San Diego State in a five-set thriller at Fertitta Center on Thursday night.

Three Cougars reached double-figures in kills as senior Brenya Reid (18), junior Halle Schroder (14) and senior Avery Shimaitis (11) reached the threshold. Shimaitis paced Houston (4-0) in hitting percentage, hitting .391 with an 11-2-23 line while adding five blocks, including two solo stops, and two digs.

Defensively, the Cougars continued to shine. Houston tallied 12.0 blocks against San Diego State (1-2), limiting the Aztecs to a .144 hitting percentage and forcing 31 attack errors, the most errors by a Houston opponent since Cincinnati also tallied 31 on Nov. 1, 2024. Shimaitis and redshirt senior Kellen Morin tied for the team lead in blocks with five each while freshman Gillian Pitts paced the Cougars with 13 digs.

The first set remained close for much of its duration. Seeing 12 ties and two lead changes, neither team saw more than a two-point edge until San Diego State took a 19-16 lead late in the frame. While Houston closed the gap to one, a 4-1 stretch for the Aztecs closed the set as San Diego State claimed a 25-21 win.

Houston rebounded in the second. Using an early 8-0 run to claim a 11-3 advantage, Houston cruised through the rest of the set, keeping its eight-point lead at 18-10 and winning the set, 25-15. The Cougars hit .357 behind six kills from Reid while stifling the Aztec offense who hit .033 in the set on a 10-9-30 line.

San Diego State answered in the third. Another tight set, the frame saw 13 ties including as late as 15-15 before a 5-2 run put the Aztecs in front for good, winning the frame 25-21.

The Cougars forced a fifth with more early dominance in the fourth. Tied at 3-3, Houston won 10 of the next 15 points to claim a decisive edge, eventually going on to win the set, 25-20.

While San Diego State took an early lead in the fifth, Houston answered with a 3-0 run to take a 5-4 lead. While the Aztecs tied the set at 11-11, they never took the lead again as the Cougars won the match with a 4-0 run to claim the fifth, 15-11.

NOTABLES

Senior Lottie Scully recorded her second double-double of the season behind 41 assists and 10 digs.
Houston did not commit an attacking error in the fourth set, hitting 13-0-36 (.361). It marked the first errorless set for Houston since the first set against Washington State on Aug. 31, 2024.
Head Coach David Rehr recorded his 670^th career win.
Sitting at 4-0 on the year, Houston recorded its third perfect start through four matches under Coach Rehr.
The Cougars are 25-21 in five-setters under Coach Rehr.

UP NEXT
Houston continues play at the Flo Hyman Classic with a 7 p.m., Friday, meeting against Omaha.

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