WAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK Rice outside hitter Lindsey Carter has been named the Western Athletic Conference Volleyball Player of the Week for the week of Nov. 3. This is the first player of the week honor for Rice this season. The last Owl to earn the honor was Rebeca Pazo on Nov. 4, 2002.
Carter, a native of Orlando, Fla., led the Owls to two big wins over Eastern Division foes, including division-leading SMU and Louisiana Tech at home. Rice did not drop a game in two matches. The Owls move to 7-4 in league play. Rice is now tied with Nevada and San Jose State with nine points for seeding for the WAC Tournament.
The junior averaged 6.50 kpg and 4.50 dpg in two matches last week. She led the Owls with 11 and 15 kills against SMU and Louisiana Tech, respectively. Carter had her sixth double-double of the year against the Lady Techsters with 15 kills and 11 digs, hitting .467 (15-1-30). She was one of two Owls to record double-figure kills in each match, hitting .500 against SMU (11-1-20). Her three block assists against Louisiana Tech ties a season high.
Other nominees included: Carrie Hartt, Fresno State; Lily Kahumoku, Hawai'i; Lia Mora, Louisiana Tech; Salaia Salave`a, Nevada; Kimberly Noble, San Jose State; Allison Holder, SMU and Jennifer Abbruzzese, UTEP.
DIGGING IN (WEEK 11) The 2003 WAC season enters its seventh week with seeding in the WAC Tournament on the line. Hawaii is close to clinching the No. 1 seed in its fourth WAC Tournament. The Rainbow Wahine need to win one more WAC match to earn the top seed. SMU is on the heels of Hawaii with 13 points with Fresno State close behind with 12. The Rainbow Wahine and the Bulldogs both have three matches left with the Mustangs having only two remaining. A Mustang win and a Bulldog loss with secure the No. 2 seed for SMU. This week, the Rainbow Wahine will help make the picture more clear, taking on Fresno State at the new Save Mart Center on Sunday, Nov. 9. Fresno State will also take on San Jose State on Nov. 6. The Spartans and Nevada, both tied with nine points, will face off in Reno on Nov. 8.
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.
WEST LEADS EAST In the third year that the WAC has had divisional play for volleyball, the Western Division holds a dominating record over its Eastern Division foes. The West, led by Fresno State, Hawaii and Nevada, have won 17 of 25 matches against the Eastern Division this season. Both the Wolf Pack and the Bulldogs are 4-1 against the East, while the Rainbow Wahine hold a 5-0 mark. San Jose State is 3-2. SMU has captured four interdivisional wins, defeating Nevada, Fresno State, San Jose State and Boise State. SMU and Rice are the only Eastern Division squads to earn at least two wins against the West.
SMU TIES BEST WAC RECORD With a stellar 9-2 start in league play this season, SMU tied its best WAC record. In 1999, the Mustangs were 9-5 in the WAC, 20-13 overall and finished fourth in the league. The 20 wins is a program record and the 2003 Mustangs are two wins away from tying that mark. This season, SMU is 18-6 and has a solid lead in the Eastern Division of the WAC. The Mustangs only WAC losses this season were against undefeated and nationally ranked Hawaii and Rice. For seven-straight season's head coach Lisa Seifert's Mustangs have finished with at least 11 wins. SMU looks to secure the second seed in the WAC Tournament. With a win over Louisiana Tech on the road and Fresno State loss, the Mustang will secure the No. 2 seed.
FRESNO STATE'S FENTON REACHES 1,000 KILLS With a current career total of 1,002 kills, Fenton became the second-fastest Bulldog to reach the historic 1,000-career kill milestone after picking up 13 against Nevada last week at home. She is averaging 3.70 kills per game (271 games/75 matches) in her career a mark that currently ranks No. 5 all-time at Fresno State. While currently hitting at a career mark of .284 (No. 6 all time), Fenton has a .316 hitting percentage on the season and is one of eight players in school history to hit at least .300 in a season (last year she finished at .301 to rank No. 6). With a streak of 39 consecutive double-figure kill matches, dating back to last season (706 kills in 149 games for a 4.74 kill per game average), Fenton is averaging 19.35 kills per match (5.00 kpg) this fall. With 445 kills already collected in 23 matches (recorded 403 in 29 matches a year ago), she is 41 kills shy of ranking No. 10 all-time at Fresno State for most kills in a season.
WAC ATTACK San Jose State started off the season slowly in non-conference play. But the Spartans have come on strong in WAC play. San Jose State is 8-14 overall, but holds a solid 6-4 record in the WAC. The Spartans have secured a spot in the WAC Tournament and are tied with Nevada and Rice with nine points. The three teams are battling for seeding in the WAC Tournament.
CURRENT POINT STANDINGS The current point standing for seeding in the WAC Tournament are as follows:
Hawaii 15
SMU 13
Fresno State 12
Nevada 9
Rice 9
SJSU 9
Louisiana Tech 3
Tulsa 3
Boise State 2
UTEP 2
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.
Sunday Night Spike 2003 (all times ET)
Sept. 7 Florida def. Stanford, 3-0
Sept. 14 Pepperdine def. Pacific, 3-1
Sept. 21 Illinois State def. No. Iowa, 3-1
Sept. 28 Hawaii def. Santa Clara, 3-0
Oct. 5 Hawaii def. Nevada, 3-0
Oct. 12 E. Washington def. Sacramento State, 3-0
Oct. 19 Kansas State def. Texas, 3-2
Oct. 26 Pepperdine def. Santa Clara, 3-1
Oct. 26 Colorado State def. Utah, 3-1
Nov. 2 Nebraska def. Northern Iowa, 3-0
Nov. 9 Miami (Fla.) at Notre Dame, 6:00 p.m.
Nov. 16 Best of Sunday Night Spike, 6:00 p.m.
Nov. 23 WAC Championship, 6:00 p.m.
WAC TOURNAMENT CREDENTIAL DEADLINE Request forms for credentials to the 2003 WAC Volleyball Tournament in Reno, Nev., are now available through the league office. Media requesting hotel rooms must have their credential forms in by Monday, Nov. 3. If no room is requested, the deadline is Monday, Nov. 17. The WAC Volleyball Tournament is slated for Nov. 21-23 at the Virginia Street Gym.
NON-CONFERENCE OPPONENTS So far this season, the WAC is 82-62 (.570) 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 averages 13.36 kills, 12.25 assists, 1.37 service aces, 12.66 digs and 1.69 blocks per game. The team has put down 1229 kills with 668 errors on 3481 attempts for a hitting percentage of .161. In WAC action, the Broncos average 13.27 kills, 12.00 assists, 1.24 aces, 12.16 digs and 1.59 blocks per game. The team hits .139 in conference with 491 kills and 289 errors on 1451 attempts. Individually, the Broncos are led in kill average by freshman Cameron Flunder (3.32). She is followed by fellow rookie Jessica Childress (2.54), senior Christina Moore (1.95) and freshman Sarah Johnson (2.00). Freshman Christina Melvin averages 9.54 assists. Freshman libero Jackie Stroud averages 3.41 digs. Moore averages 0.80 blocks per game and Flunder is at 0.80.
Fresno State closes out the regular-season by playing four of its final five matches at home, including a matinee match against 2002 National Semifinalist and second-ranked Hawai'i to christen the Save Mart Center on Sun., Nov. 9, 12:00 p.m. Having opened the month with a victory over Nevada, the Bulldogs entertain San Jose State and the Rainbow Wahine this week before closing out their four-game homestand with CS Northridge on Wed., Nov. 12, 7:00 p.m. The Bulldogs close out regular season and WAC play at Boise State on Sat., Nov. 15. Fresno State went 1-0 last week in WAC play after picking up its sixth sweep of the season over Nevada. The Bulldogs posted their first 1,000-fan match of the year as they own a six-match win streak at home. The attendance of 1,016 drawn against the Wolf Pack is the program's 18th 1,000 attendance mark and it ranks No. 16 all-time. Fresno State won its fifth- straight WAC match at home and is one shy of tying the school record, set a year ago for consecutive conference home victories
Hawaii has now won 75-straight WAC matches, dating back to 1998. All-American Lily Kahumoku broke the school record for hitting (with a minimum of 10 attempts) in a single-match in the rally scoring era (since 2001) with her .846 hitting percentage against Boise State on Oct. 30. It was also the sixth-best hitting percentage by a Hawaii player ever. It was Kahumoku's first match back since missing three road matches with lower back spasms. Despite All-Americans Kahumoku and Kim Willoughby both missing matches this season due to injury, the Rainbow Wahine have managed to win 23-straight matches. The last Hawaii loss came on Aug. 23 against defending champion USC. The Women of Troy remain undefeated this season with a 22-0 record. Hawaii has not lost a game against a WAC opponent this season. The Rainbow Wahine have won 72 games this season, while only losing 10.
Louisiana Tech is in the position to top last season's WAC win total of four. With three wins and two matches remaining, the Lady Techsters need only one more win to tie last seasons league win total. The win over Tulsa gave Louisiana Tech its first three-game road sweep in WAC play. It was also the first season sweep of a WAC opponent since joining the league in 2001. Junior Megan Rush tied a career-high with nine blocks against Tulsa. Senior Cristine SantAnna became the fourth person in Lady Techster history with 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs in a career, earning her 1,000 dig last week. The senior now has 1,400 kills and 1,030 digs in her career. Libero Heather Anderson averaged 5.00 digs per game in two matches last week.
Nevada moved to .500 in WAC play (5-5) after dropping a match at Fresno State last week. Nevadas five wins have come over Tulsa, Rice, UTEP, Boise State, and Louisiana Tech. The Wolf Packs five losses were to Hawaii, San Jose State, SMU and to Fresno State, twice. This week, the Wolf Pack hosts second-ranked Hawaii and San Jose State. The Rainbow Wahine won the first meeting this season, 3-0, in Honolulu. The Spartans rallied from an 0-2 deficit in the first meeting to take the match, 3-2, in San Jose, Calif., on Oct. 2. Sophomore Salaia Salave`a has posted double-doubles in her last three matches. At Louisiana Tech, she had 20 kills and 18 digs. Salave`a followed that up with 16 kills and 10 blocks against UNLV. Saturday at Fresno State she had 13 kills and 10 digs. This season, she has seven double-doubles, one less than team leader Christine Harms eight.
Rice improved to 11-1 this season at home with two wins last week against SMU and Louisiana Tech. The Owls handed the Mustangs their first loss to an Eastern Division team this season. The win also helped secure a spot for Rice in the WAC Tournament. Junior outside hitter Rebeca Pazo averaged 6.80 kpg and 4.80 dpg in five games. Pazo led all hitters with 21 kills against SMU. Senior libero Rebekah Neal had 29 digs in two matches and now stands in third on the Rice alltime digs list with 1,139 for her career. The Owls out-blocked both SMU and Louisiana Tech, making it 17 times this season the Owls have out-blocked their opponent. Freshman Tessa Kuykendall had three solo blocks and three block assists against SMU, marking the fourth time this season she has posted three solo blocks.
San Jose State senior Kimberly Noble had 22 kills to lead the San Jose State volleyball team to a, 3-0, win over Boise State on Nov. 1. Noble and fellow senior Danielle Lewis were playing in their final home match of the season. Noble hit .390 for the match with 22 kills on 41 attempts and six errors. She added five digs in the match. Lewis came in off the bench and had two digs and an assist in two games. The win helped secure the Spartans a spot in the upcoming WAC Tournament. San Jose State is currently tied with Nevada and Rice with nine points. The Spartans and Wolf Pack both have three matches remaining, while the Owls have two.
SMU has passed last season's total league win total. Last season, the Mustangs were 6-7 in WAC matches and 12-17 overall. SMU is currently 18-6 and 9-2 in WAC matches. The Mustangs had a 10-match winning streak broken by Hawaii three weeks ago. SMU suffered its first loss in the Eastern Division after being swept by Rice on the road last week. SMU maintains a one-point lead over Fresno State for the second seed in the WAC Tournament with two matches remaining. The resurgence of the Mustangs is due in part to their young team. Jacky Niederstadt guided the Mustangs to two big wins over Western Division foes, Nevada and Fresno State. SMU will hold the tie-breaker over Fresno State if the two teams were to tie.
UTEP earned a split last week. The Miners brought their five-match road swing to an end losing to Texas-Pan American, 3-1, on Halloween and spoiling Texas A&M-Corpus Christi's senior night with a 3-2 win on Saturday. For the week, Jennifer Abbruzzese recorded 48 kills (5.33 per game) while hitting at a .352 clip. The senior also amassed a team-high in service aces and digs with five and 33, respectively. Abbruzzese established a new career-high with 33 kills against TAMU-CC, while digging 22 for her second 20-20 match of the season and the fifth of her four-year career. Sophomore Heather Brisnahan also had a solid weekend for the Miners recording 25 kills and 10 total blocks in nine games. This week UTEP will close out its 2003 home schedule with three matches starting on Nov. 4 with the New Mexico State Aggies. NMSU defeated the Miners, 3-0, in the championship game of the Borderland Classic on the season's opening weekend.
Tulsa junior Vanessa Thon now owns record for most career assists by a Tulsa player with a total of 2,803. The Golden Hurricane has five players with 400 or more attacks and three with 200 or more kills this season. Tulsa won seven consecutive home matches, dating back to the end of the 2002 season, including its first five matches this season. It was the longest home winning streak in school history. Since joining the conference in 1992, the Golden Hurricane has won its conference home opener only three times, including this season. For the first time in school history, Tulsa won its first two conference matches at home.
TERRIFIC TOURNAMENTS The WAC performed very strong in tournaments this season. 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
Kelly Larkan, SMU SMU Invitational
Jacky Niederstadt, SMU Loyola-Chicago 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 123,194 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's second best, 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 7,214 129,844 18
2. Nebraska 4,295 47,242 11
3. Wisconsin 4,164 45,807 11
4. Florida 2,708 29,791 11
5. Penn State 2,619 26,189 10
6. Minnesota 2,278 27,331 12
7. North Carolina 2,130 21,304 10
8. Stanford 1,718 17,177 10
9. Texas A&M 1,840 16,556 9
10. Kansas State 1,833 18,326 10