|
Related Material
|
10.07.03.PDF
|
WAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK San Jose State outside hitter Kimberly Noble has been named the Western Athletic Conference Volleyball Player of the Week for the week of Oct. 6. This is the first player of the week honor for the senior.
Noble, a native of San Juan Capistrano, Calif., led San Jose State to a dramatic win over Nevada, as the Spartans overcame a 0-2 deficit to capture their first WAC win of the season.
Against Nevada, Noble hit .478 and added three aces, digs and four total blocks, as the Spartans won three-straight games to defeat the Wolf Pack. The win was only the third for San Jose State this season. Against Fresno State, she hit .392 despite the loss, adding 23 kills and three aces.
In two matches, the outside hitter had 51 kills and hit .433, adding six aces and eight digs. For the season she averaged 5.25 kpg, while averaging 5.67 last week. She averages 0.23 service aces a game for the season and 0.67 sapg last week.
Other nominees included: Tuli Peters, Fresno State; Kanoe Kamana`o, Hawai'i; Salaia Salave`a, Nevada; Rebeca Pazo, Rice; Beth Karasek, SMU and Lindsey Eaves, Tulsa.
DIGGING IN (WEEK SEVEN) The 2003 WAC season enters its third week with the four undefeated WAC teams trimmed down to two, Hawaii in the West Division and SMU in the East. SMU is in the midst of a season-high seven-match winning streak and return home this week to face two teams tied for second in the East, Tulsa and Rice. Louisiana Tech will also host the Golden Hurricane and the Owls. In an intra-conference matchup, UTEP will host San Jose State. The Miners are looking for their first WAC win, while the Spartans search for their second.
In the West, Hawaii has won 14-straight matches and are 3-0 in league play. This week, the Rainbow Wahine travel to Boise State and UTEP. Second-place Fresno State takes on third-place Nevada.
SPREADING THE WEALTH In the WAC's main six individual statistical categories four different schools lead the way. Hawaii leads three categories, including hitting percentage (Kim Willoughby, .427), kills (Willoughby, 6.76 kpg), service aces (Willoughby, 0.67) and assists (Kamana`o Kanoe, 13.20 apg). Fresno State's Tiffany Bishop leads the league in blocks, averaging 1.18 bpg. SMU's Beth Karasek is first in digs with 4.10 dpg. In WAC matches, the Rainbow Wahine lead in two categories, while the Bulldogs lead in two categories with the Mustangs leading in one. Fresno State and Hawaii are tied in one category. Willoughby once again leads in hitting percentage (.433) and service aces (0.89 sapg) She is tied with Fresno State's Kristen Fenton in kills (6.00 kpg). In league matches, Fresno State's Tuli Peters leads in digs, averaging 4.67 dpg. SMU's Kelly Larkan leads in blocks with 1.89 bpg.
TEAM MILESTONES On Sept. 26, the Rainbow Wahine beat San Jose State in their conference opener, picking up their 100th win in the WAC, since joining the league in 1996. Hawaii is now 102-1 overall in WAC play after defeating Fresno State and Nevada. Hawaii's only loss came to Brigham Young in 1998. Hawaii is currently in the midst of a 66-match winning streak in conference play.
Fresno State opened the conference season by defeating Rice in four games at home, and recorded the programs 100th WAC win on Sept. 25. The Bulldogs played their first WAC match in 1992. Fresno State will be gunning to collect the programs 200th league win overall in 33 years (six years unknown) against Nevada on Oct. 11.
WILLOUGHBY LEADS THE NATION The WAC is well represented in the NCAA national rankings. Hawaii senior Kim Willoughby leads the nation in kills per game, averaging 6.76 kpg. Rice's Rebeca Pazo ranks seventh (5.96 kpg), followed by Fresno State's Kristen Fenton (5.26 kpg) and San Jose State's Kimberly Noble (5.25 kpg). Willoughby is also ninth in hitting percentage (.427) and 15th in aces (0.67 sapg). As a team, the Rainbow Wahine are third in assists (16.58 apg), second in kills (18.08 kpg), fourth in hitting percentage (.343) and fifth in winning percentage (.938).
FRESNO STATE OPENS SAVE MART CENTER The Fresno State volleyball team will get a bigger stage in November when the Bulldogs host Hawai'i at the brand-new Save Mart Center (16,116) on Sun., Nov. 9, 12:00 p.m.
After turning away fans last year as nearly 1,400 packed the standing-room only North Gym last November, the Fresno State Athletics Department announced a new venue and a new date as the Bulldogs push for another postseason appearance. The Bulldog volleyball team was scheduled to play the Rainbow Wahine on Sat., Nov. 8, 7:00 p.m.
Being the first true athletic competition in the Save Mart Center, the volleyball team will follow the lead of the Bulldog Basketball Extravaganza (Nov. 5) and a concert by Andrea Bocelli ( Nov. 7) as the first week of Grand Opening activities.
HAWAII AND NEVADA INCLUDED IN 2003 CSTV VOLLEYBALL SCHEDULE College Sports Television (www.cstv.com), the first 24-hour college sports network, and the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) is presenting a national volleyball match of the week package, Sunday Night Spike 2003, this fall that will boast 15 teams who competed in the 2002 NCAA Championships, including national semifinalists Florida, Stanford and Hawaii. The schedule began on Sunday, Sept. 7 with Florida at Stanford and will include an October 26 doubleheader featuring Santa Clara-Pepperdine and Utah-Colorado State.
The WAC will have at least two teams featured. Hawaii defeated Santa Clara on Sept. 28 in California. The Rainbow Wahine also defeated Nevada on Oct. 5 in Honolulu. Finally, the WAC Tournament Championship match will be televised on Nov. 23 in Reno, Nev.
Five teams featured within the Sunday Night Spike 2003 schedule have won volleyball national championships (Hawaii in 1982, 1983, 1987; Nebraska in 1995, 2000; Pacific in 1985, 1986; Stanford in 1992, 1994, 1996, 1997, 2001; Texas in 1988) and seven won conference titles in 2002 (Florida, Hawaii, Northern Iowa, Notre Dame, Pepperdine, Sacramento St., Utah). In addition, Colorado State and Eastern Washington won regular season conference titles.
NON-CONFERENCE OPPONENTS So far this season, the WAC is 75-58 (.564) against non-conference opponents. The WAC is 7-7 against ranked teams. Hawaii is 7-1 with wins over Louisville, UCLA, Kansas State, Stanford, Minnesota, LMU and Santa Clara. San Jose State fell to No. 20 Santa Clara, and Nevada fell to No. 15 Long Beach State. Boise State and Louisiana Tech also have losses to ranked teams. Rice has lost to formerly ranked Ohio State, and Fresno State lost to No. 23 Long Beach State.
AROUND THE COURT News and notes from around the league:
Boise State is without the services of Kelsey Young, who broke her hand last week at practice.In a, 3-0, loss to Rice, Cameron Flunder led the Broncos with 12 kills, while Mindy Bennett recorded a double-double with 32 assists and 10 digs. Christina Moore added 10 kills. The Broncos tallied 45 kills, 40 assists, five aces, 56 digs and three blocks. The Broncos were also swept by Tulsa. Against Tulsa, the Broncos were led by Flunder who had 12 kills. As a team the Broncos had 43 kills, 43 assists, four aces, 51 digs and three blocks.
Fresno State senior Kristen Fenton eclipsed the 900-career kill plateau last week after netting 38 for a career total of 904. Just 96 kills shy of being just the ninth Bulldog to amass 1,000+ career kills, Fenton is on pace to become the second-fastest Bulldog to reach the historic milestone. She is averaging 3.65 kills per game in her career, a mark that currently ranks No. 5 all-time at Fresno State. While currently hitting at a career mark of .293, (No. 6 all-time), Fenton has a .355 hitting percentage on the season and is one of eight players in
school history to hit at least .300 in a season. In addition, she could set the schools single-season hitting percentage record at this clip (school record is .345 by middle blocker Tera Booker, 1995).
Hawaii has now won 68-straight WAC matches, dating back to 1998. The Rainbow Wahine is also on a 19-game winning streak and a 14-match winning streak. In their conference opener, the Rainbow Wahine beat San Jose State, picking up their 100th win in the WAC, since joining in 1996. After defeating Nevada and Fresno State, Hawaii is 102-1 overall in WAC play, with their only loss coming to Brigham Young in 1998. Senior Maja Gustin had 14 kills last week. The 14 kills were the exact number she needed to become the 14th member of the 1,000-kill club at Hawaii. The senior is hitting .374 on the year with 2.21 kills per game and 0.83 blocks per game.
Louisiana Tech plays three home matches this week after opening the season with 17 of 18 on the road. Louisiana Tech brings a six-match homecourt winning streak into the week, including four in a row in WAC play dating back to last season. This week, the Lady Techsters face non-conference foe Louisiana-Monroe before facing WAC opponents Rice and Tulsa in Ruston. Freshman Ambra Hayes had five kills in seven attempts at SMU on Oct 4.
Nevada sophomore middle blocker Salaia Salave`a is now ninth on all three career Nevada blocks lists after last weeks action. Salave`a totaled six block assists last week to move into a tie with Carla Busalacchi (1990-93) ninth with 153 block assists apiece. Earlier this season she moved into ninth on the block solo and total blocks lists. She currently she has 40 solo blocks and 193 total blocks. She set two single season blocks marks a year ago and ranks in the top 10 in all three of Nevada's career blocking categories. Salave`as 132 total blocks and 106 block assists in 2002 were single season marks while her 26 solo blocks was the sixth best season in school history.
Rice improved to a perfect 8-0 at home this season with wins over Boise State and UTEP. Rice out-blocked both the Broncos and Miners, marking the 10th and 11th time, respectively, that Rice has out-blocked its opponent this season. Freshman Amber Wiedemann had a career-high two solos and six assists against UTEP, as Rice took the 14-4 block advantage. Rice out-blocked Boise State and UTEP 3.83 to 1.17 bpg this week. With 33 digs in two matches, senior Rebekah Neal surpasses the 1,000-dig mark for her career and now has 1,011, sixth all-time at Rice.
San Jose State broke a four-match losing streak and captured its first WAC win with a come-from-behind win over Nevada. The Spartans were led by Kimberly Noble who hit .478 and added three aces, digs and four total blocks. The Spartans won three-straight games to defeat the Wolf Pack, 3-2. The win was only the third for San Jose State this season. Against Fresno State, the WAC Player of the Week hit .392 despite the loss, adding 23 kills and three aces. In two matches, the outside hitter had 51 kills and hit .433, adding six aces and eight digs. For the season she averages 5.25 kpg, while averaging 5.67 last week.
SMU extended its WAC winning streak to seven with a win over Louisiana Tech. The Mustangs move to 3-0 in the WAC this season. The Mustangs in the Eastern Division and Hawaii in the Western Division are the only undefeated teams in WAC play this season. SMU has not lost since a Sept. 13 loss to Arizona State. This week, the Mustangs look to extend their WAC winning streak to four and their overall winning streak to eight against Tulsa and Rice at home. SMU holds a solid 5-1 record at home this season.
UTEP lost both of its WAC matches last week on the road. With the losses the Miners have now dropped their last seven matches overall and last seven WAC matches, dating back to last year. Injuries continue to take their toll on UTEP. Over the weekend, senior Brittney Bennett was lost due to an unspecified hand injury causing her to miss the majority of the Rice match. Her status is day-to-day. Senior Jennifer Abbruzzese extended her consecutive double-double streak to five matches with two more over the weekend moving her season-total to 12. The streak includes a double-double in each of the first four WAC matches. Freshman Nina Reeves also had a solid weekend with 17 kills and 19 digs against Tulsa for her eighth double-double of the season.
Tulsa has three players with 350 or more attacks and 160 kills on the season. Tulsa has won seven consecutive home matches dating back to the end of the 2002 campaign, including five this season. The Golden Hurricane has won its conference home opener only three times, including this season, since joining a conference in 1992. For the first time in school history, TU won its first two conference home matches.
TERRIFIC TOURNAMENTS Last week, the WAC added more tournament titles to its mantle. Fresno State traveled to the Northern Arizona Invitational and went 3-0 en route to the tournament win. SMU capture another title, winning the Loyola-Chicago Invitational. Last week, the WAC had a very good week at tournaments, Hawaii and Tulsa both won tournaments that they hosted. Louisiana Tech won its second tournament title of the season, capturing the Drake Tournament. The following players have also been named to all-tournament teams:
Cameron Flunder, BS Montana Invitational
Boise State Invitational
Gonzaga Invitational
Davidson Invitational
Tiffany Bishop, FS Northern Arizona Invitational
Kristen Fenton, FS Fresno State Invitational
Sacramento State Invitational*
San Diego Invitational
Northern Arizona Invitational*
Carrie Hartt, FS Northern Arizona Invitational
Robyn Keune, FS Sacramento State Invitational
Lily Kahumoku, UH State Farm Women's Volleyball Classic
Hawaiian Airlines Volleyball Classic
Aston Imua Volleyball Challenge
Sprint Invitational
Kanoe Kamana`o, UH Hawaiian Airlines Volleyball Classic
Lauren Duggins, UH Aston Imua Volleyball Challenge
Sprint Invitational
Kim Willoughby, UH State Farm Women's Volleyball Classic
Hawaiian Airlines Volleyball Classic*
Aston Imua Volleyball Challenge*
Sprint Invitational*
Lia Mora, LT UL-Lafayette Tournament
Texas State Tournament
Drake Tournament*
Tulane Tournament
Joy Okpa, LT Drake Tournament*
Cristine Sant'Anna, LT UL-Lafayette Tournament* Drake Tournament*
Tulane Tournament
Tristin Adams , UN CS-Fullerton Tournament
SBC/Sand Regency Tournament
Lauren Galler, UN SBC/Sand Regency Tournament
Christine Harms, UN Cal Golden Bear Tournament
Salaia Salave`a, UN CS-Fullerton Tournament
Lindsey Carter, RU Crowne Plaza/Rice Invitational
Rebeca Pazo, RU Crowne Plaza/Rice Invitational*
BYU Mizuno Classic
Kimberly Noble, SJSU Cowgirl Classic
SJSU Invitational
Jessie Shull, SJSU SJSU Invitational
Beth Karasek, SMU SMU Invitational
Loyola-Chicago Invitational
Kelly Larkan, SMU SMU Invitational
Jessica Mihm, SMU Loyola-Chicago Invitational*
Jennifer Abbruzzese, UTEPFiesta Bowl Tournament
Nina Reeves, UTEP Borderland Invitational
Fiesta Bowl Tournament
UMKC Kangaroo Classic
Ashley Ripple, UTEP Mean Green Classic
Kari Stacy, UTEP Borderland Invitational
UMKC Kangaroo Classic
Natalia Araujo, TU Dayton Flyer Classic
Kristin Bailey, TU Stephen F. Austin Tournament*
Lindsay Eaves, TU Stephen F. Austin Tournament
Ewing-Grover Olds/GMC Truck Invite*
Sam Rutherford, TU Ewing-Grover Olds/GMC Truck Invite
Brie Penaluna, TU Stephen F. Austin Tournament
Vanessa Thon, TU Ewing-Grover Olds/GMC Truck Invite
*Most Outstanding/Valuable Player
PACKING THE STANDS Once again, Hawaii is leading the nation in attendance. The Rainbow Wahine have drawn 101,015 in 14 home matches so far this season for an average of 7,165. The Rainbow Wahine have led the nation in attendance the last eight years. Hawaii also holds 14 of the top 15 single-match highs this season, including the nation-leading 9,345 fans that saw No. 1 USC defeat No. 2 Hawaii. The attendance for UH's win over Stanford was 8,740 on Sept. 13. On Oct. 4, 8,529 fans saw the Rainbow Wahine sweep Nevada.
2003 Division I Volleyball Attendance
School Avg. Total Matches
1. Hawaii 7,215 101,015 14
2. Nebraska 4,122 24,731 6
3. Wisconsin 4,071 28,494 7
4. Florida 2,749 21,991 8
5. Penn State 2,732 13,660 5
6. Minnesota 2,205 17,641 8
7. Illinois State 1,874 9,370 5
8. Pacific 1,702 13,615 8
9. Stanford 1,679 8,397 5
10. Northern Iowa 1,668 8,338 5
HAWAI`I'S WILLOUGHBY BREAKS WAC CAREER KILL RECORD Against Baylor on Sept. 6, Hawaii senior Kim Willoughby had three great feats. She tied the school record for single-match aces with six. She also broke the school record for career aces (140). To top both of those achievements, she surpassed the 2,000 career kill mark, breaking the WAC record for career kills. The two-time WAC Player of the Year has 192 kills this season, to give her 2,038 career kills, breaking the record previously held by San Jose State's Joslynn Gallop (1997-00). Gallop ended her illustrious career with 1,196 kills. Willoughby is currently first in the WAC in kills per game (6.81 kpg).