Complete Release

Utah State volleyball will official open its 2018 campaign this weekend, traveling to Sacramento, Calif., to participate in the Hornet Invitational. The Aggies are slated to face host-Sacramento State and Arizona on Friday, Aug. 24, at 1 and 6 p.m. (MT), respectively. USU wraps up the tournament against CS Northridge on Saturday, Aug. 25, at 1 p.m. (MT).

How to Watch
All of the matches will have a live stat feed that will be available online at utahstateaggies.com. The match against Sacramento State will be streamed live through Pluto TV, online at pluto.tv, or linked online at utahstateaggies.com.

Scouting the Field
Utah State will face three teams in Sacramento, including tournament-host Sacramento State, along with Arizona and CS Northridge. All four teams will be opening their respective 2018 season at the tournament. The Aggies haven't faced any of the teams in more than 10 years, with the latest meeting coming against Arizona during the 2007 season. Utah State last faced CS Northridge during the 2006 seaosn and Sacramento State during the 1985 season.

Utah State leads CS Northridge in the all-time series with a 7-5 advantage, including victories in four of the last six matches. However, the Aggies trail both Sacramento State and Arizona, as the Hornets are 2-0 against Utah State and the Wildcats have won each of the last seven and lead 10-6 overall.

Utah State in Season Openers
Utah State is 6-6 all-time in season openers under head coach Grayson DuBose.

Utah State in Tournaments
Utah State is 45-50 in non-conference tournaments under head coach Grayson DuBose.

Dig Leader
Senior libero Tasia Taylor led Utah State last season with 525 digs, the fourth-most in a single season in USU history, and finished second in the Mountain West with 4.87 per set.

Dig Streak
Taylor finished the 2017 season recording double-digit digs in 13 straight matches.

Going the Distance
Taylor has appeared in every match and every set for the Aggies over the course of her three-year career at Utah State.

Blocking Leader
Senior middle Lauren O'Brien has led the Aggies in blocking each of the past two seasons, totaling 108 as a junior and 105 as a sophomore.

Assist Leader
Senior setter Kassidy Johnson led Utah State in assists last season, totaling 777 and finishing third in the Mountain West with 10.36 per set. 

Mountain West Leaders
Utah State was among the top five in the Mountain West in three statistics in 2017, finishing second in digs per set (14.72), third in service aces per set (1.41) and fifth in blocks per set (2.31).

What the Aggies Bring Back
Utah State saw most of its attack depart through graduation last season, but returns its  leader in digs in Tasia Taylor, blocks in Lauren O'Brien and assists in Kassidy Johnson. Also notable, Taylor finished second on the team in 2017 with 25 service aces. Below is the percentage that the Aggies return in 2018.
Kills: 23.2% (311/1,343)
Attempts: 21.4% (807/3,778)
Assists: 67.6% (873/1,291)
Aces: 40.8% (62/152)
Digs: 55.4% (883/1,593)
Blocks: 89.0% (222.0/249.5)

Tenured Helmsman
Head coach Grayson DuBose is the longest-tenured head coach in USU volleyball history, beginning his 13th year in 2018. Furthermore, DuBose is the second-longest tenured head coach in the Mountain West, second only to Tom Hilbert at Colorado State.

Father/Daughter
DuBose will have a unique opportunity this season as his daughter Cassandra DuBose is a freshman defensive specialist for the Aggies.

Wedding Bells are Ringing
Utah State had two players on its roster tie the knot during the offseason as Madi Olson-Shepherd was married in March, while Izzie Hinton-Belnap was married in May.

Summer in Europe
Utah State had two players that traveled with the Mountain West All-Stars during the summer of 2018 to the World Volleyball Challenge in Pula, Croatia. Senior libero Tasia Taylor and sophomore middle/outside Bailey Downing helped the team to a second-place finish at the event.

From Career Highs to Career Aggie
USU junior transfer Izzie Hinton-Belnap was a two-year starter at Utah Valley the past two seasons on the right side and logged a pair of career highs against the Aggies during her time as a Wolverine. Hinton-Belnap hit a career-high .556 (10-0-18) in a match against the Aggies as a freshman in 2016 and then tallied nine digs against Utah State during her sophomore year in 2017.

Homegrown Aggies
Six members of the Utah State roster are from the state of Utah, including senior Tasia Taylor (Taylorsville), redshirt junior Ally Packard (Bountiful), sophomores Madi Olson-Shepherd (Cedar Hills) and Gabbi Shumway (South Jordan), and freshmen Cassandra DuBose (Smithfield) and Corinne Larsen (Sandy).

Home Sweet Home
Utah State has had a winning season at home in 11 of the 12 years under head coach Grayson DuBose.

Departed Senior Class
Utah State's 2017 senior class of Lauren Anderson, Rachel Gale-Hammond, Kayla DeCoursey and Carly Lenzen combined to play in more than 1,100 sets and totaled more than 1,700 kills, 1,100 digs, 650 blocks and close to 150 service aces over the course of their careers.

Follow Along
Fans can follow the Aggie volleyball program on Twitter @USUVolleyball, on Facebook at USUVolleyball or on Instagram at @usuvolleyball. Aggie fans can also follow the Utah State athletic program at @USUAthletics, on Facebook at Utah State University Athletics or on Instagram at @USUAthletics.