Irvine, CA—The Big West announced today that UC Riverside middle blocker Yuliya Ushakova is the conference Women's Volleyball Freshman Player of the Week.

The San Diego, CA native helped UCR to a 3-0 mark at the Fullerton-UC Riverside Classic, as the Highlanders matched their best six-match start to a season in their Division I era with a 5-1 record.

Ushakova hit .349 with 19 kills and just four errors in 43 attempts as the Highlanders knocked off Chicago State, San Jose State and Howard. She had eight kills against Chicago State, seven versus San Jose State and four against Howard.

Ushakova added 10 blocks in the three wins, and is tied for ninth in the conference in blocks per set.  Her .366 hitting percentage ranks No. 5 in the Big West.