Volleyball set to play on the road

Fresh off a third place finish in the S anta Barbara Tournament Saturday, the Cal State Long Beach women's volleyball team travels to Logan, Utah this weekend for its Big West Conference season opener and two matches against Utah State.

Long Beach head coach Brian Gimmillaro is depending on senior outside hitter Nichelle Burton and senior middle blocker Traci Dahl to lead his squad to a successful Big West start.

Burton had season highs in kills (26) and hitting percentage (.589) in CSULB's last match against the Universit y of San Diego. She is also second in the conference with a .369 hitting percentage, and averages 5 kills a game.

Utah State is off to a 1-6 start and has not defeated the 49ers since 1985.

The Aggies will start a young squad featuring five fre shmen and four sophomores. Senior outside hitter Stacey Blackburn, who had 260 digs last season, and senior middle blocker Tara Popinga are expected to provide leadership for the 1994 Aggies.

Interim head coach Leanne Zeek took charge of the progra m on Aug. 2, eight days before Aggie players reported for practice. The 49ers swept Utah State twice last year and hold a 10-4 lifetime record against them.

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