PLAYER OF THE WEEK ? Utah State outside hitter Melissa Osterloh has been named the Western Athletic Conference Volleyball Player of the Week for the week of Sept. 26-30. This is the first career WAC Player of the Week for the junior.
The Sandy, Utah (Portland State) native, led Utah State to a 2-0 WAC road record last weekend with a pair of wins at San Jose State (3-0) and Fresno State (3-1). Against San Jose State, Osterloh recorded her team-leading fifth double-double of the season with 10 kills and 10 digs to go along with four blocks and two service aces, while hitting a season-high .429 (10-1-21). She followed that performance up with another double-double against Fresno State, as she had 18 kills and a season-high 16 digs to go along with two blocks and two service aces, while hitting .300 (18-3-50). For the weekend, Osterloh hit .338 (28-4-71) and averaged 5.00 points, 4.00 kills, 3.71 digs, 0.86 blocks, 0.57 service aces and 0.29 assists per game.
The Aggies only lost one game last week, improving to 5-1 in conference play. Utah State’s only loss came against No. 24 New Mexico State.
Other nominees included: Alisha McKee of Fresno State led the Bulldogs with 43 kills and nine digs as the Bulldogs went 0-2 ... Jamie Houston of Hawai?i had 24 kills in the Rainbow Wahine’s only match last week ... Kristen Fairbanks led the Lady Techsters to their first conference win since 2005 with 22 kills against Boise State ... Teal Ericson of Nevada had 35 kills and eight digs as the Wolf Pack went 2-0 last week ... Kim Oguh of New Mexico State had 33 kills, as the Aggies went 2-0 last week.
WEEK SEVEN IN THE WAC ? Week seven in the WAC sees matches being played every day except Monday. Idaho will step out of conference to begin the week with a match against Eastern Washington on Oct. 2. New Mexico State will also play a non-conference match on Oct. 3 against Utah. The Aggies will remain in the Beehive State to take on Utah State on Oct. 4. Both Aggies, New Mexico State and Utah State are 5-1 in conference action which is second behind first-place Hawai?i. Utah State will also host Louisiana Tech this week. San Jose State will also host the Lady Techsters and the New Mexico State. No. 13 Hawai?i will host Nevada and Fresno State.
TWO WAC TEAMS EARN TOP 25 RANKINGS ? Both Hawai?i and New Mexico State moved up in the AVCA/CSTV poll. The Rainbow Wahine are now No. 12, while the Aggies are now No. 22. This is the second consecutive year NMSU has reached the top-25, getting as high as No. 21 in 2006. They finished the 2006 year at No. 23, while entering the 2007 season receiving votes, as they have done all season. The Aggies’ only losses came at the hands of No. 1 Nebraska and No. 7 Texas and No. 13 Hawai?i.
AGGIES REMAIN TIED ? Utah State has started WAC play with a 5-1 record, which is its best start to a league season since 2005 when that team started WAC play with a 6-1 league record. Overall, it is just the third time since the 1984 season that Utah State has begun league play with a 5-1 record. The New Mexico State Aggies are also 5-1 to start the conference season. The two Aggies will meet in Logan on Oct. 4.
WAC IN THE NCAA STATS ? In this week’s NCAA stats, No. 22 New Mexico State is third in the nation in assists per game (16.16 apg) behind No. 1 Nebraska. The Cornhuskers average 16.78 this season. The Aggies are also up to fourth in the country in kills per game, averaging 17.39kpg. Once again, Nebraska is first averaging 18.08 kpg. Individually, Haley Larsen is third in the nation in kills per game, averaging 5.41 kpg. Hawai?i’s Jamie Houston is seventh in the nation in kills per game, averaging 5.22 kpg, while Nevada’s Teal Ericson is up to 17th (4.89).
UTAH STATE CONTINUES HOT STREAK ? Utah State has won each of its last three matches, all on the road, and six of its last seven overall since starting the season with a 2-6 record. The last time Utah State won three- straight road matches and won at least six of seven matches was during the 2005 season, when that team advanced to the NCAA Tournament. Utah State recorded its first road sweep in the WAC since the 2005 season when that team won at Boise State (3-0) and Idaho (3-0).
RAINBOW WAHINE TAKE CONTROL OF FIRST ? The two ranked teams in the WAC, No. 13 Hawai?i and No. 24 New Mexico State battled on Sept. 22. Hawai?i defeated New Mexico State in five close games, handing the Aggies their first conference loss of the season. Last season, New Mexico State stopped the Rainbow Wahine’s streak of 114 consecutive WAC victories, Friday, Oct. 13, 2006 at Las Cruces High in front of a crowd of 2,803. The Aggies stopped the Rainbow Wahine in five games. In Honolulu, Hawai?i defeated New Mexico State, 3-1. The Rainbow Wahine also defeated the Aggies, 3-1 in the 2006 WAC tournament in Reno.
PACKING THE STANDS ? Once again the Rainbow Wahine is leading the nation in attendance. This is the sixth-straight season that Hawai?i has led the nation in attendance. Hawai?i has drawn 70,621 fans so far this season for an average of 6,420 fans. New Mexico State is 14th in the nation attendance with a total of 13,835 fans for an average of 1,976. Fresno State is also in the top 25 in national attendance, ranking 24th. The Bulldogs have drawn 8,484 fans so far this season for an average of 1,060.
AGGIE VISION ? With great success, Aggie Vision has provided three matches on television for New Mexico State volleyball. The first match televised was on Sept. 4 against New Mexico, the second came on Sept. 11 versus UTEP, while the third was on Sept. 27 against Boise State. Future matches that will be televised include the following: Louisiana Tech at NMSU on Oct. 11 at 7:00 p.m.; Nevada at NMSU on Oct. 18 at 7:00 p.m. All times are mountain times.
BABY BRONCOS ? The Broncos have four players ranked among the Conference leaders in seven different statistical categories, with two of the five being freshmen and one being a sophomore. Among the leaders are freshmen Lauren Hamm (fourth, 4.48 dpg) and Sadie Maughan (seventh, .276 hitting percentage; eighth, 1.17 bpg); sophomore Arlee Tamietti (eighth, 4.46 ppg; ninth, 3.65 kpg; 10th, 0.27 sapg). In addition, junior Mandy Klein ranks seventh in assists (10.54 apg).
LARSEN HAS BREAKOUT PERFORMANCE ? Haley Larsen had 35 kills to help the University of Idaho volleyball team rally to a 3-2 victory over UC Davis at the 2007 Hallmark Inn Aggie Tournament. Larsen’s performance was the second best in school history as she garnered over half of Idaho’s 69 kills in the match. The 35 kills was the highest in the WAC this season and third-highest in the country. Her strong performance led to her being third in the nation in kills per game, averaging 5.52 kpg.
AMONG THE BEST ? Three Spartans rank among San Jose State career leaders. Jennifer Senftleben is fourth all-time in kills with 1,482 and fourth in kill attempts at 4,326. Colleen Burke is second in hitting with a .315 percentage. Brittany Collet is ninth in assists with 1,397.
SIPHERD NEARS MILESTONES ? Nevada senior middle blocker Karly Sipherd is just 28 kills short of 1,000 for her career which would make her just the ninth player in Pack history to reach the lofty mark. Currently Sipherd’s 972 career kills ranks ninth in school history. She is also four block assists from passing former teammate Salaia Salave`a’s (2002-05) school record of 426 block assists. Currently she is also second in total blocks(426), fourth in points(1,284.5), sixth in attack percentage(.270), and 10th in solo blocks(40) on the Nevada career lists.
TICKETS ON SALE FOR WAC VOLLEYBALL TOURNAMENT ? Tickets for the 2007 Western Athletic Conference Volleyball Tournament are now on sale to the public. The volleyball tournament is Nov. 15-17 at the Pan American Center in Las Cruces, N.M. It is the first time that the volleyball tournament has been held in Las Cruces after being in Reno for five-straight years.
For all-session tickets, there will be an “Early Bird” promotion (20% off regular price) until Sept 30, 2007. Ticket prices during this promotion are $20 for adults and $16 for senior citizens (age 65 and over) and $8 for children (18 and under) for an all-session pass (eight matches; four sessions).
Beginning Oct 1, 2007 the regular price all-session tickets and single-session tickets will be available. All-session tickets are $25 for adults, $20 for seniors and $10 for children. All seats are general admission. Single session tickets are also available for $10 for adults and $8 for senior citizens and $4 for children.
All-session tickets for the volleyball tournament may be purchased by calling 1-866-672-8524 or calling the Pan American Center Ticket Office at 505-646-1420. Single-session tickets are available online at www.ticketmaster.com (there is an additional service charge for Ticketmaster online sales). Single-session tickets are also available by calling 915-544-8444 or 505-532-2060. Pan American Ticket Office hours are Monday-Friday, 10:00 a.m.? 6:00 p.m. and Saturday, 11:00 a.m. ? 2:00 p.m.
SAN JOSE STATE CAPTURES TOURNAMENT TITLE ? With a 2-1 tournament record, the San Jose State volleyball team won the ASU/Bancorp South Classic despite a 26-30, 30-23, 26-30, 24-30 loss to host Arkansas State.
Junior middle blocker Colleen Burke was selected as the tournament’s Most Valuable Player. She had 10 kills against Arkansas State and hit .457 for the weekend with only two hitting errors in 11 games played. Keri Anglin had two blocks against Arkansas State and led the team over the weekend with nine blocks. Jennifer Senftleben recorded 10 kills Saturday night and averaged 3.55 kills per game over the weekend.
VOLLEYBALL FORMAT ? For the third-straight year the WAC will not compete in divisions. This season’s format will be a double-round robin. Each team will face the other eight at home and on the road. All nine teams will compete in the WAC Volleyball Tournament.
2007 WAC TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
November 15 (Quarterfinals)
Match 1 - No. 8 vs. No. 9
Match 2 - No. 4 vs. No. 5
Match 3 - No. 3 vs. No. 6
Match 4 - No. 2 vs. No. 7
Match 5 - Winner Match 1 vs. No. 1
November 16 (Semifinals)
Match 6 - Winner Match 3 vs. Winner Match 4
Match 7 - Winner Match 2 vs. Winner Match 5
November 17 (Championship)
Match 8 - Winner Match 6 vs. Winner Match 7
NEW MEXICO STATE TO HOST WAC VOLLEYBALL TOURNAMENT - The Western Athletic Conference announced, that pending board approval, New Mexico State University will host the 2007 WAC Volleyball Tournament, Nov. 15-17 at the Pan American Center in Las Cruces.
The 2007 Volleyball Tournament marks the third time New Mexico State has hosted a WAC Championship in the past nine months. In March, the Aggies hosted the 2007 WAC Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships and this April, the University Golf Course hosted the 2007 WAC Women’s Golf Championships.
Throughout the week, WAC teams and fans were treated to a variety of cultural events that showcased what the state of New Mexico and the city of Las Cruces are all about, including Native American and Hispanic Culture Days. Fans also had the chance to experience the newly-renovated Pan American Center first hand, including new concourses, concession stands, restrooms and a brand new center-hung scoreboard, which hangs above Lou Henson Court.
REGIONAL SITES SELECTED - The NCAA Division I Women’s Volleyball Committee has announced the following sites for regional competition of the 2007 NCAA Division I Women’s Volleyball Championships.
Regionals (4) December 7-8, 2007
Host: University of Florida
Stephen C. O’Connell Center
Gainesville, Florida
Host: Pennsylvania State University
Rec Hall
University Park, Pennsylvania
Host: Stanford University
Maples Pavilion
Stanford, California
Host: University of Wisconsin
University of Wisconsin Field House
Madison, Wisconsin
Boise State Broncos (3-11, 0-6 WAC)
The Boise State volleyball team will travel to the Golden State to take on Fresno State, Thursday, before returning home to host cross-state rival, Idaho, Saturday ... Lauren Hamm is fourth in the nation in digs per game, averaging 4.48 dpg ... Arlee Tamietti is ninth in the WAC in kills per game, averaging 3.65 kpg ... junior setter Mandy Klein, who ranks sixth on the Broncos’ career list in assists, currently ranks seventh in the WAC with 10.54 apg ... Klein notched a career-high 61 assists against Fresno State, taking sole possession of fifth place on the Broncos’ career list in assists.
Fresno State Bulldogs (4-12, 2-4 WAC)
Fresno State as a team is fourth in service aces (1.36), fifth in assists (13.41), and sixth in kills (14.32) ... individually, Alisha McKee is fifth in kills (4.47) and sixth in points (4.92) ... Tiffany Hess is fourth in assists (12.00 per game), and Lisa Gera is third in digs (4.95) per game ... this week, the Bulldogs will face Boise State on Thursday, Oct. 4 at home and then travel to Honolulu to face No. 13 Hawai?i on Sunday, Oct. 7.
Hawai?i Rainbow Wahine (11-3, 5-0 WAC)
The No. 12 University of Hawai`i Rainbow Wahine volleyball team return to the court after a 10-day break to host the Nevada Wolf Pack and the Fresno State Bulldogs at the Stan Sheriff Center this weekend ... Hawai?i is coming off a successful road trip, where they beat Louisiana Tech, No. 25 New Mexico State and San Jose State ... Jamie Houston earned WAC Player of the Week honors for her play on the road, while posting a career-high .605 hitting percentage with 24 kills at San Jose State.
Idaho Vandals (6-9, 3-2 WAC)
Haley Larsen is ranked No. 3 in the nation for kills per game (5.41) ... she has been ranked in the top three for three consecutive weeks ... the Vandals hold a 48-31 overall record at Memorial Gym under current head coach Debbie Buchanan, including a 32-15 mark at home since 2003 ... Haley Larsen has 10+ kills in 13 of her 14 matches this season ... her season-high is 35 kills at UC Davis (Sept. 8) ... her game at Hawai?i (Sept. 14) was her only contest with less than 10 kills (eight).
Louisiana Tech Lady Techsters (5-12, 0-4 WAC)
Louisiana Tech (6-13; 1-5 WAC) never lost heart on Sept. 29 and won in five games against Boise State (3-10; 0-6 WAC) 25-30, 28-30, 30-23, 30-23 and 15-13 ... Shannon Phillips is 45th in the nation in kills per game, averaging 4.54 kpg ... Phillips is also fifth in the WAC in kills per game ... Jillann Walker is fifth in the WAC in assists per game, averaging 10.84 apg.
Nevada Wolf Pack (7-6, 4-2 WAC)
Nevada posted two 3-0 road sweeps for the first time since joining the WAC in 2000 and the first time in conference play since 1999 when the Wolf Pack competed in the Big West Conference ... those two road wins came at North Texas and New Mexico State ... with the two wins last week the Pack are currently 4-2 in WAC play which has them in fourth place behind league leading Hawai?i, New Mexico State and Utah State are tied for second although NMSU defeated USU 3-1 two weeks ago.
New Mexico State Aggies (13-3, 5-1 WAC)
The New Mexico State volleyball team moved two spot up in the rankings to No. 22 after sweeping Boise State and beating Idaho 3-1 last week ... junior Lindsey Yon continues to lead the way for the Aggies with 237 kills (4.39 kpg) ... junior libero Krystal Torres is the defensive leader with 299 digs (5.44 dpg) ... the Aggies are third in the nation in assists per game, averaging 16.16 apg ... New Mexico State is also fourth in the nation in kills per game, averaging 17.39 kpg.
San Jose State Spartans (6-9, 0-4 WAC)
Seven Spartans rank among WAC leaders this week... Colleen Burke leads the WAC in hitting percentage at .387... Keri Anglin is sixth in hitting at .286 and fourth in blocking at 1.25 pg ... Emily Burke is sixth in assists at 11.02 pg. Jennifer Senftleben is seventh in kills at 3.78 pg, and ninth in
points at 4.33 pg ... Kristal Tsukano is sixth in digs at 4.07 pg ... Kelly Crow is eighth in service aces at 0.31 pg ... as a team, the Spartans are third in hitting (.207), kills (14.84 pg), assists (13.61 pg), aces (1.40 pg) and digs (16.63 pg) and seventh in blocks (2.27 pg).
Utah State Aggies (8-7, 5-1 WAC)
Utah State is 8-7 on the season and tied for second-place in the WAC with a 5-1 league record following a three-game win at San Jose State and a four-game win at Fresno State last weekend ... USU is led by senior opposite side hitter Amanda Nielson who is averaging 5.74 points, 4.69 kills, 2.21 digs, 0.96 blocks and 0.54 service aces per game, while junior outside hitter Melissa Osterloh is averaging 4.06 points, 3.40 kills, 2.85 digs and 0.65 blocks per game ... as a team, Utah State is hitting .156 on the season as compared to a .182 hitting percentage for its opponents.