Stanislaus State Athletics

TURLOCK, Calif.--- Behind a total team effort that featured nine kills from Laila Greene, eight from Fallon Freeman and seven each from Lauren Hamilton and Maggie Olson, Stan State swept Central Valley rival UC Merced 25-21, 25-15, 25-15 Saturday evening at the Ed & Bertha Fitzpatrick Arena. The Warriors hit .340 as a team while recording 44 kills, 10 service aces and 10 team blocks to close out the opening weekend of their final four-match homestand with a 1-1 record. Hamilton hit a match-high .778 without committing an attack error, while Greene hit .500 and Freeman finished at .400. Lauren Gonzales recorded four service aces and 10 digs, while Leah Mendoza added 11 digs and two service aces.

Stan State improved to 7-15 overall and 3-8 in CCAA play, while UC Merced fell to 5-17 overall and 2-9 in conference action. The Warriors earned their second three-set victory of the season and avenged a five-set setback to the Bobcats in their previous meeting on Nov. 6, 2025, in Merced.

The Warriors received contributions throughout the lineup, with Bailey Morrison directing the offense with 16 assists and six digs, while Ireland Avalos added 11 assists and five digs. Hamilton recorded five total blocks, including one solo block, while Freeman added four total blocks, including one solo block. Sydney Hoffman contributed four block assists, while Greene and Olson each added two. Emily Meyer finished with six kills, while Olson recorded seven kills. Stan State held UC Merced to a .117 hitting percentage, including a -.100 mark in the third set, while recording 43 digs and 34 assists.

UC Merced was led by Yahaira Vazquez with eight kills, followed by Callie Neufeld with seven and Ayana Ruffin and Morgan Wilson with five apiece. Kyra Miller recorded 19 assists and seven digs, while Jazmine Banks finished with a team-high 13 digs. The Bobcats recorded 31 kills, four service aces, 37 digs and two team blocks.

Flowers at the Helm
With Saturday's three-set victory over UC Merced, Stan State head coach Lauren Flowers improved her career record to 70-64 (.522) in her fifth season leading the Warriors. Flowers ranks third on the program's all-time victories list behind Christina Lore (82) and Cindy Nikkel (78). Her .522 career winning percentage is the highest in program history. Flowers has guided Stan State to three CCAA Tournament appearances, highlighted by the program's first CCAA Tournament championship and NCAA Tournament appearance in 2024, when the Warriors established a program record with 22 victories.

First Set
Stan State jumped out to a 5-0 lead behind three service aces from Gonzales and kills from Forbes and Olson. The Warriors extended their advantage to 9-4 on a Meyer kill before building a 13-6 lead behind kills from Greene and Forbes.

UC Merced cut the deficit to 15-11, but Stan State responded with three consecutive points, including a Hamilton kill and solo block, to extend its lead to 18-11. Greene added a kill to make it 20-13 before the Bobcats rallied to pull within 20-16.

The Warriors extended their advantage to 23-17 on a Meyer kill, but UC Merced answered with three consecutive points to make it 23-20. Freeman recorded a kill to give Stan State set point at 24-20 before Hamilton closed out the frame with a kill for the 25-21 victory. Stan State hit .316 with 17 kills and four service aces in the opening set.

Second Set
Stan State opened the second set with a Freeman kill and quickly built a 4-2 advantage behind kills from Freeman, Hamilton and Greene. The Warriors extended their lead to 8-5 before Olson and Hamilton added kills to make it 12-9.
Greene recorded a kill to give Stan State a 13-9 advantage before Victoria Plumb delivered a service ace to extend the lead to 14-9. The Warriors built a 19-11 advantage behind a Mendoza service ace and a block by Hoffman and Greene.

Greene added another kill to make it 20-13 before Hoffman recorded a kill and Gonzales followed with a service ace to extend the lead to 22-14. Olson added a kill to make it 23-15 before the Warriors closed out the set with consecutive blocks, including a Freeman solo block, for the 25-15 victory. Stan State hit a match-high .406 with 14 kills and just one attack error in the frame.

Third Set
The Warriors opened the third set with a Hoffman kill before UC Merced briefly took a 2-1 lead. Stan State responded with four consecutive points, highlighted by a Hoffman service ace and kills from Hamilton and Olson, to take a 5-2 advantage.

Stan State extended its lead to 9-3 behind a block by Hamilton and Olson and an Avalos service ace. Hamilton added a kill before the Warriors recorded consecutive blocks to build a 12-4 advantage. Greene followed with a kill to extend the lead to 14-7 before Meyer recorded a kill to make it 15-8.

The Warriors continued to control the frame, building a 19-11 advantage behind blocks from Hoffman, Freeman and Olson. Stan State extended its lead to 21-11 before Freeman and Greene added kills down the stretch. Meyer recorded a kill to give the Warriors match point at 24-14 before Irene London closed out the match with a kill for the 25-15 victory. Stan State hit .300 in the final set while holding UC Merced to a -.100 hitting percentage.

Warrior Notables

• Greene led Stan State with nine kills while hitting .500 and adding two block assists.
• Freeman recorded eight kills without an attack error on 20 attempts, hitting .400, and added four total blocks.
• Hamilton finished with seven kills without an attack error on nine attempts, hitting .778, and recorded five total blocks, including one solo block.
• Olson added seven kills and two block assists.
• Gonzales recorded four service aces and 10 digs.
• Mendoza finished with 11 digs, five assists and two service aces.
• Morrison recorded 16 assists and six digs, while Avalos added 11 assists and five digs.
• Stan State hit .340 with 44 kills, 10 service aces, 43 digs and 10 team blocks.
• The Warriors held UC Merced to a .117 hitting percentage, including -.100 in the third set.

CCAA Standings
With two matches remaining in the regular season, No. 4 Fresno Pacific leads the CCAA standings with a perfect 11-0 conference record (23-0 overall), followed by No. 8 Cal State San Bernardino at 10-1 (21-2). Cal Poly Pomona is third at 9-2 (19-4), while Cal State LA is fourth at 8-3. Fresno Pacific, Cal State San Bernardino and Cal Poly Pomona have secured berths in the 2026 CCAA Volleyball Tournament. Cal State East Bay is fifth at 7-4, followed by San Francisco State at 6-5 and Cal State San Marcos at 5-6. Menlo and Cal State Monterey Bay are tied for eighth at 5-7, followed by Cal Poly Humboldt at 4-7. Stan State is 11th at 3-8, followed by Chico State and UC Merced at 2-9 and Cal State Dominguez Hills at 1-10. The top seven teams in the final conference standings will qualify for the CCAA Volleyball Tournament, beginning Nov. 10.

Up Next
Stan State (7-15, 3-8 CCAA) will conclude the regular season next weekend with two home matches at the Ed & Bertha Fitzpatrick Arena. The Warriors will host No. 8 Cal State San Bernardino on Friday, Nov. 6, at 5 p.m. before facing Cal State San Marcos on Saturday, Nov. 7, at 1 p.m. for Senior Day.
Prior to Saturday's match, Stan State will recognize five seniors: Lauren Hamilton, Irene London, Leah Mendoza, Emily Meyer and Maggie Olson. Both matches will be streamed live on FloCollege, the official streaming partner of the CCAA.