Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 MENLO, Calif.—The Cal State San Marcos women's volleyball team kicked off play in the Menlo Volleyball Tournament Friday, winning their opening match against William Jessup in straight sets before falling in a tough four set match against Oklahoma Baptist.

The Cougars had no trouble with William Jessup, winning 25-16, 25-16, 25-11 and recording the third best hitting percentage (.404) in the program's three-year history, and second best this season. CSUSM has had their way with the Warriors in 2013, hitting .409 against them in a straight set sweep back in August.

Leading the way offensively was junior Alyssa Hubbard, who followed up a breakout 20 kill, 17 dig performance with a game high 15 kills, nine digs, and a .519 hitting percentage with only one error in 27 attempts.

Erin Talafus had a strong day offensively as well with eight kills, a .500 hitting percentage, three block assists and a solo block. Alyssa Foster led all competitors with 38 assists, and libero Waverly Richards had a team high 12 digs.

The Cougars battled well, but came out on the short end 27-25, 20-25, 17-25, 23-25 against Oklahoma Baptist, who is receiving votes in the NAIA Coaches' Poll. "We just seemed to lose some focus and didn't play with our usual intensity," said head coach Andrea Leonard. "We realize we have to close up some gaps and play with a little more intensity. We'll put it in perspective and will focus on learning from it."

Taylor DeGraaf led the Cougars with 14 kills and added 12 digs for her sixth double-double of the season. Kara Barkdoll had a season best 12 kills and a .333 hitting percentage and Erin Talafus had 11 kills for a .375 hitting percentage. Talafus also tallied the most blocks for a Cougar this season with seven, including two solo blocks.

After the win and loss Friday, CSUSM now stands at 10-3 on the season. The Cougars will have two more games tomorrow against host Menlo College and Mills College before heading back to San Marcos for their home opener Monday, September 9 at 7:00 pm against Hope International.