PLAYER OF THE WEEK ? Hawai?i left side Jamie Houston has been named the Western Athletic Conference Volleyball Player of the Week for the week of Sept. 17-23. This is the fourth career WAC Player of the Week honor for the junior, and her first for the 2007 season.
The Huntsville, Ala., (Huntsville) native, came up big on the road, leading the Rainbow Wahine in kills with 22 at Louisiana Tech and 29 at No. 25 New Mexico State, also posting four blocks in each match. In the match against the Lady Techsters in Ruston she put way the final five points of the match with five kills on just nine swings. Houston is averaging 5.04 kills, 2.42 digs and 0.79 blocks per game on the season. She now totals 1,230 career kills for the Rainbow Wahine, and is just two short of emerging the UH career top 10 list. The Rainbow Wahine fought off six match points to win a thriller over the No. 25 New Mexico State Aggies, improving their record to 10-3 overall 4-0 in the WAC.
Other nominees included: Alisha McKee of Fresno State had a season-high 20 kills and a season-high .333 hitting percentage in the Bulldogs’ 3-2 win over Boise State, marking their first road win of the season ... Sarah Loney of Idaho had 55 kills in three matches as the Vandals went 2-1 ... Kara Jones of Louisiana Tech tallied a total of 13 blocks and 25 kills in three matches last week ... Karly Sipherd of Nevada averaged 4.11 kills, 1.33 digs, .67 blocks and 4.78 points while hitting .304 as the Pack split a pair of WAC road matches ... Kim Oguh led the way for New Mexico State with 33 kills and 15 blocks, recording her first double-double of the season in the match against No. 13 Hawai’i ... Amanda Nielson led Utah State in a split pair of WAC matches, recording her second career double-double with a match-high 19 kills, 10 digs and a career-high tying 10 block assists against No. 25 New Mexico State.
WEEK SIX IN THE WAC ? In week six, all nine teams will play at least one conference match. No. 13 Hawai?i is done for the week after sweeping San Jose State on the road on Monday, Sept. 24. No. 24 New Mexico State will host Boise State and Idaho. The Vandals are on a roll winning two WAC matches last week. The Broncos are still in search for their first conference win. Louisiana Tech, also searching for its first conference win, will also host the Vandals and the Broncos. Fresno State and San Jose State will both host Utah State and Nevada. The Aggies, New Meixco State and Utah State, are both 3-1 in this young WAC season.
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.
TWO WAC TEAMS EARN TOP 25 RANKINGS ? The American Volleyball Coaches Association/CSTV released its poll on Monday, September 25 with the New Mexico State Volleyball team at No. 24. Hawai?i remained No. 13 this week. Two weeks ago, the Rainbow Wahine were No. 15. 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. NMSU is one of only two Western Athletic Conference teams to currently be ranked.
AGGIES REMAIN TIED ? For the second-straight year, Utah State has started WAC play with a 3-1 record. Utah State was also 3-1 to begin league play in 2006 and opened the 2005 conference season with four straight wins before losing. Overall, it is the sixth time in the last nine years that USU has begun conference play with a 3-1 record or better. New Mexico State has also started the WAC season 3-1 with its only loss coming against No. 13 Hawai?i. Last season, New Mexico State also won its first three before dropping its fourth to Nevada.
WAC IN THE NCAA STATS ? In this week’s NCAA stats, No. 24 New Mexico State is eighth in the nation in assists per game (15.72 apg) behind No. 1 Nebraska. The Cornhuskers average 16.81 this season. The Aggies are also ninth in the country in kills per game, averaging 16.88 kpg. Once again, Nebraska is first averaging 18.03 kpg. Individually, Haley Larsen is second in the nation in kills per game, averaging 5.53 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 27th (4.76).
NEVADA’S SIPHERD NEARS MILESTONE ? Senior middle blocker Karly Sipherd in closing in on 1,000 kills for her career as she needs 54 to become the ninth player in school history to reach the lofty plateau. Currently Sipherd has 946 career kills which ranks ninth in school history. Next on the list in eighth is Kelly Martin’s (1991-94) 1,172.
OLD FRIENDS ? The Wolf Pack will face former Nevada associate head coach Oscar Crespo when it takes on San Jose State on Sept. 29. Crespo is in his first season as head coach of the Spartans after spending the previous seven years at Nevada on Pack head coach Devin Scruggs’ staff. He helped the Wolf Pack make four NCAA Tournament appearances during his tenure at Nevada.
SAN JOSE STATE WINS SECOND-CONSECUTIVE TOURNAMENT ? San Jose State hit .307 as a team to defeat Weber State, 25-30, 30-24, 30-25, 30-21, Saturday evening at the UVU/La Quinta Inn & Suites Invitational. San Jose State won the tournament title after three teams, Arizona State, Utah Valley and San Jose State, all finished with a 2-1 tournament record. The Spartans won the tie-breaker by going 8-5 in games, while Arizona State was 7-5, and Utah Valley was 8-7. Keri Anglin was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player, while Jennifer Senftleben and Colleen Burke were named to the all-tournament team.
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.
BABY BRONCOS ? The Broncos have five 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 (third, 4.55 dpg) and Sadie Maughan (seventh, 1.23 bpg; eighth, .277 hitting percentage), and sophomore Arlee Tamietti (eighth, 3.70 kpg; seventh, 4.56 ppg). In addition, junior Mandy Klein ranks sixth in assists (10.68 apg) while senior Tiffany Starring ranks 10th with 0.28 aces per game.
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 (3-9, 0-4 WAC)
The Broncos are still in search of their first conference win this season ... Boise State will travel to No. 24 New Mexico State and Louisiana Tech this week ... the Broncos and the Lady Techsters are two of three teams without WAC wins along with San Jose State ... junior setter Mandy Klein, who ranks sixth on the Broncos’ career list in assists, currently ranks sixth in the WAC with 10.68 apg ... Klein notched a career-high 61 assists against Fresno State, taking sole possession of fifth place on the Broncos’ career list in assists ... the junior has posted 427 assists this season, moving her career total to 2,166.
Fresno State Bulldogs (4-10, 2-2 WAC)
Fresno State won its first road game of the 2007 season in dramatic fashion with a 3-2 victory over Boise State ... it was the second match this season that the Bulldogs were down 0-2 and came back to win in five ... Alisha McKee had a season-high 20 kills in the match and was nominated for WAC player of the week honors ... the Bulldogs then traveled to western Idaho to take on the Vandals in Moscow ... Idaho prevailed with a 3-1 victory ... Lauren Berger led Fresno State with a .588 hitting percentage with 12 kills.
Hawai?i Rainbow Wahine (11-3, 5-0 WAC)
Hawai?i went 3-0 on its first road trip of the season, including a dramatic, 3-2 win over New Mexico State in Las Cruces ... the Rainbow Wahine defeated San Jose State on Sept. 24, 3-0 ... junior Jamie Houston had an amazing match, hitting .605 with 24 kills, six digs and three blocks ... Aneli Otineru had 16 kills with a .351 hitting percentage while Juliana Sanders had seven kills and four blocks ... Elizabeth Ka`aihue led all players with 16 digs, while Stephanie Brandt had 42 assists ... Brandt is first in the WAC in assists, averaging 13.56 apg ... Houston is now seventh in the nation in kills per game, averaging 5.22 kpg.
Idaho Vandals (5-8, 2-1 WAC)
Haley Larsen is now ranked No. 2 in the nation in kills per game (5.53) after being third in the nation for two weeks ... the Vandals are fourth in the WAC standings behind Hawai?i, New Mexico State and Utah State ... setter Kelsey James is second in the WAC in assists, averaging 11.75 apg ... last season, the Vandals were 2-0 against the Lady Techsters and 0-2 against the Aggies ... this week, Idaho will travel to Louisiana Tech and No. 24 New Mexico State.
Louisiana Tech Lady Techsters (5-12, 0-4 WAC)
Louisiana Tech is at home this week in search of their first WAC win of the season ... the Lady Techsters are one of three WAC teams in search for their first conference win ... Shannon Phillips is seventh in the WAC in kills per game (3.86 kpg.).
Nevada Wolf Pack (5-6, 2-2 WAC)
Senior Karly Sipherd recently cracked the Wolf Pack’s top 10 in solo blocks and is now ranked in all three career blocking categories at Nevada ... Sipherd currently ranks second in block assists (414) and total blocks (454), while she is 10th in solo blocks (40) ... three solo blocks would tie her with Carla Busalacchi’s (1990-93) 43 for ninth in solo blocks ... she needs 12 block assists to catch Salaia Salave`a (2002-05) for first in block assists and 86 to catch her in total blocks ... this week, the Wolf Pack look to get above .500 ... the Pack face former associate head coach Oscar Crespo’s Spartans and Utah State in Reno.
New Mexico State Aggies (11-3, 3-1 WAC)
New Mexico State is ranked No. 24 in this week’s AVCA/CSTV Coaches’ poll ... the Aggies suffered their first conference loss of the season to No. 13 Hawai?i in five games ... there were 4,361 fans at the match between the Aggies and Rainbow Wahine, which was the 19th highest in the nation this season ... Krystal Torres is 37th in the nation in digs per game (5.4 dpg) ... as a team, New Mexico State is ninth in the nation in kills per game (16.88 kpg) and eighth in assists per game (15.72 apg).
San Jose State Spartans (6-7, 0-2 WAC)
Freshman setter Courtney Zellmer recorded a career-best 26 assists against No. 13 Hawai?i, but the San Jose State volleyball team lost to the Rainbow Wahine, 30-17, 30-25, 30-21, Monday night in a WAC match at Spartan Gym ...Zellmer came off the bench for the Spartans in the match. She added six digs, one kill, one service ace and a block assist ... this week, the Spartans will host Utah State and Nevada ... the Spartans are one of three WAC teams still searching for their first WAC win.
Utah State Aggies (5-6, 2-0 WAC)
Utah State is 38-62 (.380) on the road over the last eight years, which includes a 23-39 (.371) record against league opponents ... thus far this year, USU is 2-3 in road matches ... over the last eight years, Utah State is 61-26 (.701) in the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum, which includes a 48-22 (.686) record against conference opponents ... during the last three years, USU is 14-4 (.778) at home against WAC opponents, which includes a 2-0 record this year.