Cougs road stretch continues in Minnesota with pair of top-25 tests

>> WSU is riding a six-match winning streak after going 3-0 at the Cougar Challenge in Bohler Gym, followed by another 3-0 weekend on the road at the Fairfield Invitational in Fairfield, Conn., last week.
>> The Cougars did not drop a single set in last weekend’s trip east, winning 3-0 over Howard (25-13, 25-17, 25-22), Fairfield (25-17, 25-12, 25-22), and Fairleigh Dickinson (25-9, 25-15, 25-15), respectively. 

Cougar Quick Notes:

>> WSU owns the second-best hitting team in the nation and No. 1 in the Pac-12 at .329 and ranks fifth in the NCAA and second in the conference in opponent hitting (.121).

>> The Cougs are No. 26 in all of Division I and tops in the conference with 2.10 aces per set.  They also rank 14th in the nation and fourth in the Pac-12 with 2.85 blocks/set.  

>> Washington State’s 85.5 total blocks as a team is also the best in the Pac-12 and its 2.85 blocks/set rank 14th in the nation.

Opponent Notes:

Pepperdine Notes

>> WSU and Pepperdine tied both of their previous all-time meetings, 1-1.  The two previous matchups came before rally scoring had been implemented with the first coming in 1978 at the NIVT and the second in 1979 at the UCLA Invite, both in Los Angeles, Calif.

>> Pepperdine went 2-1 last weekend at the Alaska Airlines Invitational hosted by Washington.  The Waves beat 13th-ranked Washington and Cal Poly before losing its last match to Northwestern.

>> Pepperdine now has a pair of ranked wins on the season after taking out ninth-ranked Baylor in its home-opener back on Sept. 1.

Minnesota Notes

>> Saturday’s matchup with the Golden Gophers will be the first all-time meeting between the two programs.

>>  Minnesota was No. 5 in the nation preseason after a run to last season’s NCAA Tournament Elite Eight.  The Golden Gophers went 1-1 last week with a 3-1 win over Oregon before dropping a four-set match to…