When CSUN’s women’s volleyball team kicked off the 2009 season in late August by placing second in the Bronco Invitational in Boise, Idaho, the prospects for the rest of season seemed high.

But the following weekend, during the Asics/Coca-Cola Invitational hosted by the University of San Francisco, CSUN lost all three of their matches.

Northridge finished preseason tournament play at the Nike Cougar Challenge in Pullman, Wash., with mixed results.

Thus began a season-long trend of hard-fought battles and inconsistency with very few actual victories.

“We did well on paper,” said senior Tela Burnett. “We performed well, we just didn’t win.”

“At the tournament in Boise (we) played really well … we showed what we could do this season,” junior Lynda Morales said. “We set the standard really high … we just fell a little short.”

The Matadors continued preseason play with matches at Loyola Marymount University, which they lost in five sets, a home loss to Fresno State and a home victory against Portland.

From late September to early October, CSUN hit a five-match slump containing three five-set heartbreakers against UC Davis, CSU Bakersfield and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.

During the lull, senior outside hitter/setter and team captain Angela Hupp recorded her first triple-double of the season, eleventh in her career, in the loss to Bakersfield.

Pulling themselves from the midseason five-match losing streak, the Matadors had back-to-back wins against UC Riverside and CSU Fullerton, both in four sets. The victory at Fullerton marked Northridge’s first conference road match win.