IDAHO’S MILO EARNS WAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONORS
Idaho senior outside hitter Alicia Milo has been named Western Athletic Conference Volleyball Player of the Week for the week of Oct. 31-Nov. 6. This is her first-ever WAC Player of the Week honor.
The Portland, Ore., native averaged 5.60 kills, 3.40 digs, 0.60 service aces and 6.20 points per set as the Vandals came from behind to defeat Utah State in their only match last week. She finished the match with a career-high 28 kills and added 17 digs for her sixth double-double of the season. Her 17 digs were two shy of her career high and her three service aces were a season high. It was also her first 20-plus kill match of the season. With Idaho trailing 2-1 in the match and behind 18-9 in set four, Milo had two kills, a service ace and an assist to lead the Vandals to a 27-25 victory in the set. She served tough during the rally, helping Idaho win four consecutive points to pull within two (19-17). In the decisive fifth set, Milo had three kills on as many attempts and added two digs. The win puts Idaho at 8-4 in the WAC and in third place in the standings entering the final week of the season.
Other nominees included: Fresno State’s Brianna Clarke averaged 2.80 kills on .353 hitting and 1.00 blocks per set as the Bulldogs went 1-1 on the week ... Tessa Lea‘ea of Nevada averaged 3.50 kills and 1.00 blocks as the Wolf Pack went 1-1 on the week ... New Mexico State’s Jennah DeVries averaged 11.17 assists, 3.17 digs and 0.50 blocks per set as the Aggies went 2-0 on the week to remain in second place in the WAC standings ... Liz McArthur of Utah State averaged 4.38 kills and 1.88 digs on the week.
HAWAI‘I CLINCHES 16TH WAC REGULAR-SEASON TITLE
The Rainbow Wahine have clinched their 16th WAC regular-season title in as many seasons. With a perfect 12-0 mark in conference play and a three-match lead in the standings with two matches remaining, Hawai‘i cannot be caught. UH has gone undefeated in WAC play 11 times.
FRESNO STATE’S CLARKE CLIMBS CAREER BLOCKS CHART
With her six blocks last week, Fresno State senior Brianna Clarke moved into third place on the Bulldog career charts with 421. She is now just three shy of second place and 16 away from tying the school record of 437, held by Suzie Regul (1989-92), which has stood for 18 seasons.
DANIELSON FINALIST FOR LOWE’S SENIOR CLASS AWARD
Hawai‘i’s Kanani Danielson is one of 10 student-athletes selected as finalists for the 2011 Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence – community, classroom, character and competition.
The finalists were chosen by a media committee from 30 candidates. Nationwide fan voting has begun to determine the winner. Fans are encouraged to vote on the
Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award Web site or the
Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award Facebook fan page through Nov. 21. Fan votes will be combined with media and head coaches’ votes to determine the winner.
Utah State’s Liz McArthur was one of the 30 initial candidates for the award.
HAWAI‘I LEADS NATION IN ATTENDANCE
Hawai‘i leads the nation with an average of 6,400 fans per match, more than 1,700 ahead of the second-place team, Nebraska (4,637). Seventeen of the Rainbow Wahine’s 18 home matches this rank in the top 32 most attended matches this season. Meanwhile, New Mexico State ranks 23rd (1,573) and Fresno State ranks 44th (1,047).
IDAHO’S CASSIE HAMILTON APPROACHING SCHOOL DIGS RECORD
Idaho senior Cassie Hamilton recorded her 1,000th career dig in the Vandals’ loss to Eastern Michigan on Aug. 28. The WAC’s active leader in career digs, she now ranks second in Idaho history in that category with 1,363, 57 digs shy of the all-time record.
WAC STAT LEADERS
In team statistics, Hawai‘i leads the WAC in hitting percentage (.303), assists (13.27) and kills (14.51). Utah State is tops in digs (15.59) and blocks (2.78), while New Mexico State leads the league in opponent hitting percentage (.151) and Fresno State is tops in service aces (1.51).
Individually, New Mexico State’s Meredith Hays leads the WAC in kills (4.32) and points (4.83). Hawai‘i’s Emily Hartong, Mita Uiato and Brittany Hewitt are tops in hitting percentage (.390), assists (11.22) and blocks (1.41), respectively. Nevada’s Grace Anxo leads the WAC in service aces (0.36), while Stephany Salas of Louisiana Tech is tops in digs (4.65).
In WAC matches, Hawai‘i leads the league in hitting percentage (.301), opponent hitting percentage (.136), assists (12.93), kills (14.24), blocks (2.66) and service aces (1.54). Idaho is tops in digs (15.39).
Individually, in WAC matches Hays leads the league in kills (4.36), points (4.94) and service aces (0.40). Hawai‘i’s Chanteal Satele is tops in hitting percentage (.366), while teammate Kalei Adolpho is the leader in blocks (1.41). Jennah DeVries of New Mexico State is the leader in assists (10.95)and Idaho’s Cassie Hamilton is the leader in digs (4.46).
WAC TOURNAMENT TICKETS ON SALE NOW
All-session tickets are on sale for the WAC Volleyball Tournament at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas Nov. 21-23. Tickets are general admission seating. The 2011 tournament will consist of five matches in three sessions.
Ticket prices are as follows: All-Session: $45
Single-Session Adult: $20
Single-Session Students/Youth: $10
All-session tickets are on sale through each institution’s ticket office. Single-session (one day) tickets will not be available for purchase until Nov. 21 and can only be purchased through the Orleans Arena. To purchase tickets, go to
wacsportsvolleyballtournament.com.
2011 WAC TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Monday, Nov. 21 (Quarterfinals)
No. 3 Seed vs. No. 6 Seed, 5 p.m.
No. 4 Seed vs. No. 5 Seed, 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday, Nov. 22 (Semifinals)
Winner Match 1 vs. No. 2 seed, 5 p.m.
Winner Match 2 vs. No. 1 Seed, 7:30 p.m.
Wednesday, Nov. 23 (Championship)
Winner Match 3 vs. Winner Match 4, 6 p.m. (ESPNU)
FRESNO STATE BULLDOGS (12-13, 6-6 WAC)
Fresno State fell at New Mexico State (23-25, 17-25, 15-25) last Thursday and swept Louisiana Tech (25-23, 25-20, 25-17) on Saturday ... Against the Aggies, Korrin Wild led the team with 11 kills ... Against LA Tech, Wild and Brianna Clarke tallied 14 kills apiece ... With her six blocks last week, Clarke moved into third place on the Bulldog career charts with 421. She is just three shy of second place and 16 away from tying the school record of 437, held by Suzie Regul (1989-92), which has stood for 18 seasons ... Wild ranks second in the WAC in service aces (0.345) and seventh in digs (3.14) ... Barbara Alcantara ranks third in the WAC in service aces (0.33) and seventh in assists (8.73) ... Cecilia Agraz is sixth in the WAC in service aces (0.31), while Maci Murdock is fifth in hitting percentage (.332) and Clarke is sixth (.332) ... As a team, Fresno State leads the WAC and ranks 41st nationally in service aces (1.51), ranks third in assists (11.96) and fourth in kills (12.56) ... In WAC-only stats, Wild ranks second in the WAC in service aces (0.39), fifth in points (4.22) and sixth in kills (3.65) ... The Bulldogs close out the regular season by hosting Idaho on Thursday and Utah State on Saturday.
HAWAI‘I RAINBOW WAHINE (24-1, 12-0 WAC)
Hawai‘i was idle last week, but clinched the WAC regular-season title, its 16th in as many years in the league ... The Rainbow Wahine rank second in the nation in hitting percentage (.303) and winning percentage (.960), ninth in kills (14.51), 14th in blocks (2.77) and 16th in assists (13.27) ... Mita Uiato ranks 23rd nationally in assists (11.22), while Brittany Hewitt is 18th in blocks (1.41) ... Emily Hartong ranks 18th in the nation in hitting percentage (.390), followed by Chanteal Satele in 48th (.352) ... Kanani Danielson ranks 37th nationally in points (4.64) and 43rd in kills (4.04) ... As a team, Hawai‘i leads the WAC in hitting percentage, assists and kills, and ranks second in opponent hitting percentage (.158), blocks (2.77) and service aces (1.45) ... Hartong leads the WAC in hitting percentage, while Satele is third, Hewitt is fourth (.337) and Danielson is eighth (.309) ... In WAC matches only, UH leads the league in hitting percentage (.301), opponent hitting percentage (.136), assists (12.93), kills (14.24), blocks (2.66) and aces (1.54) ... Hawai‘i hosts Louisiana Tech on Thursday and New Mexico State on Saturday to close out the regular season.
IDAHO VANDALS (14-11, 8-4 WAC)
Idaho came from behind to defeat Utah State (24-26, 25-19, 24-26, 27-25, 15-8) in its only match last week ... Alicia Milo had a career-high 28 kills and added 17 digs for her sixth double-double of the season. She also had a season-high three aces ... Idaho has won three straight matches and nine of its last 11 ... Cassie Hamilton upped her career dig total to 1,363, 57 shy of Idaho’s school record of 1,420 ... As a team, the Vandals rank 37th nationally in blocks (2.54) ... Alyssa Schultz ranks 36th in the nation in blocks (1.25), while Jenny Feicht is 36th in assists (10.97) and Allison Walker is 32nd in kills (4.14) ... The Vandals rank second in the WAC in digs (15.40), third in hitting percentage (.215), kills (12.86) and blocks (2.54), and fourth in opponent hitting percentage (.180) and assists (11.90) ... Walker ranks second in the WAC in kills (4.14) and third in points (4.52), while Milo is fifth in both kills (3.69) and points (4.13) ... Feicht is second in the league in assists (10.97) and fourth in aces (0.31) ... Schultz ranks second in the WAC in blocks (1.25), while Hamilton is second in digs (4.43) ... Idaho plays at Fresno State on Thursday and at Nevada on Saturday to close out the regular season.
LOUISIANA TECH LADY TECHSTERS (9-20, 0-12 WAC)
Louisiana Tech fell to Nevada (13-25, 27-29, 20-25) last Thursday and Fresno State (23-25, 20-25, 17-25) on Saturday ... Against the Wolf Pack, Bridget Benditz led the Lady Techsters with 12 kills, while Stephany Salas had a match-high 18 digs ... As a team, Louisiana Tech hit .194 against Nevada, its highest hitting percentage in a WAC match this season ... The team also posted WAC season highs of 38 kills and 34 assists against the Wolf Pack ... Caitlin Germany led the team with 10 kills on .381 hitting against Fresno State. It was just her second double-digit kill match of the season ... As a team, LA Tech ranks third in the WAC in digs (14.96) and fourth in service aces (1.25) ... Salas leads the WAC with 4.65 digs per set, while Clara Vido is sixth (3.16) ... Bianca Bin ranks eighth in the WAC with 7.85 assists per set ... In WAC play, Salas ranks third in the league in digs (3.81), while Bin is eighth in assists (7.09) ... Marcella Braz is 10th in kills (2.77) in WAC matches ... The Techsters play at No. 6 Hawai‘i on Thursday and at San Jose State on Saturday to close out the conference slate.
NEVADA WOLF PACK (5-19, 2-10 WAC)
Nevada swept Louisiana Tech (25-13, 29-27, 25-20) last Thursday and fell in straight sets at New Mexico State (13-25, 16-25, 23-25) on Saturday ... Against LA Tech, Tessa Lea‘ea led the team with 13 kills, while Janelle Batista and Bonnie Paul added 10 kills each ... Tatiana Santiago fell just short of a double-double, finishing with 44 assists and nine digs ... Against the Aggies, Lea‘ea and Batista had eight kills apiece to pace the Pack ... Santiago ranks fifth in school history in career assists (2,568) ... As a team, Nevada ranks third in the conference in service aces (1.28) ... Grace Anxo leads the WAC in service aces (0.36), while Santiago is fourth in assists (9.59), Lea‘ea is seventh in hitting percentage (.310) and Kelly Chang is fifth in digs (3.40) ... Batista ranks ninth in the WAC in hitting percentage (.306) and points (3.36) and 10th in kills (2.75) ... In WAC matches only, Nevada ranks fourth in service aces (1.20) ... In WAC matches, Santiago ranks fifth in assists (9.75), while Chang is fifth in digs (3.42) ... Anxo is sixth in service aces (0.30), while Lea‘ea is sixth in blocks (1.08) ... The Wolf Pack host Utah State on Thursday and Idaho on Saturday to close out the season.
NEW MEXICO STATE AGGIES (20-7, 9-3 WAC)
New Mexico State swept Fresno State (25-23, 25-17, 25-15) last Thursday and Nevada (25-13, 25-16, 25-23) on Saturday to remain in second place in the WAC standings ... Against the Bulldogs, Kelsey Brennan led the Aggies with 12 kills, while Jennah DeVries posted her 12th double-double of the season with 36 assists and 10 digs ... Against the Wolf Pack, Stephanie Ziegler posted a match-high nine kills ... DeVries has 3,847 career assists, good for fourth place all-time at NM State ... The Aggies rank 38th nationally in winning percentage (.741), 47th in kills (13.74) and 50th in assists (12.76) ... Meredith Hays leads the WAC and ranks 22nd nationally in kills (4.32) and tops the conference and ranks 23rd in the nation in points (4.83) ... DeVries ranks third in the conference and 49th nationally in assists (10.79) ... Brennan is second in the league and 37th nationally in hitting percentage (.358), while Michelle Kuester is third in the WAC and 39th in the nation in blocks (1.24) ... Kelsi Phillips ranks fourth in the WAC in digs (4.01) ... The Aggies play at San Jose State on Thursday and at No. 6 Hawai‘i on Saturday to close out their WAC regular-season schedule.
SAN JOSE STATE SPARTANS (10-15, 5-7 WAC)
San Jose State was idle last week but has secured a spot in the WAC Tournament ... Caitlin Andrade ranks fourth all-time at SJSU in career assists with 2,622 ... Andrade ranks fifth in the WAC with 9.53 assists per set, while Kylie Miraldi is 10th in hitting percentage (.306) ... Kiely Pieper ranks eighth in the conference in service aces (0.29), while Katie Turner is ninth in digs (2.87) ... As a team, San Jose State ranks fourth in the conference in hitting percentage (.191), and fifth in opponent hitting percentage (.207), assists (11.54), kills (12.30) and digs (14.50) ... In WAC play, Miraldi ranks fifth in the league in hitting percentage (.344), while Andrade is sixth in assists (9.52) ... Krista Miller ranks ninth in the conference in WAC play in hitting percentage (.329), while Pieper is third in service aces (.037) ... As a team, SJSU ranks fourth in the conference in WAC play in hitting percentage (.206), and fifth in assists (11.43), kills (12.31) and digs (13.71) ... Sam Jose State has its most wins since the 2008 season ... The Spartans host New Mexico State on Thursday and Louisiana Tech on Saturday to close out the WAC regular season.
UTAH STATE AGGIES (11-15, 6-6 WAC)
Utah State fell at Utah Valley (20-25, 21-25, 20-25) last Thursday and fell to Idaho (26-24, 19-25, 26-24, 25-27, 8-15) on Saturday ... Shay Sorensen recorded her first-ever double-double with 10 kills and a career-high 12 digs against the Wolverines ... Against the Vandals, Liz McArthur had a career-high 26 kills, Ashlan Rogers notched a career-high 27 digs and Paige Neves tied her career high with 50 assists ... McArthur ranks second all-time at Utah State in career attempts (4,148), third in kills (1,393) and 10th in service aces (92) ... As a team, the Aggies lead the WAC and 13th nationally in blocks (2.78) ... USU also leads the league in digs (15.59) and ranks third in opponent hitting percentage (.171) ... The Aggies boast four of the top 10 blockers in the WAC – Alyssa Everett (4th, 1.24), Kaitlyn VanHoff (5th, 1.17), Nicole Gneiting-Theurer (6th, 1.12) and Josselyn White (7th, 1.08) ... McArthur ranks fourth in the WAC in kills (3.79) and points (4.19), while White is seventh in points (3.61) and eighth in kills (2.83) ... Laurel Bodily is fourth in the WAC in digs (3.95) and Neves is sixth in assists (8.97) ... The Aggies play at Nevada on Thursday and at Fresno State on Saturday to close out the regular season.