NEW MEXICO STATE’S HAYS EARNS WAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONORS
New Mexico State sophomore outside hitter Meredith Hays has been named Western Athletic Conference Volleyball Player of the Week for the week of Aug. 20-26. This is the first-ever WAC Player of the Week honor for Hays.
The Hereford, Texas native tallied 63 kills, 29 digs, five assists and five blocks over three matches en route to earning MVP honors at the Northern Illinois Invitational last week. Hays averaged 5.25 kills on .348 hitting, 2.42 digs, 0.42 assists and 0.42 blocks as she led New Mexico State to the tournament title with wins over Wichita State, North Dakota State and Northern Illinois. She opened the week with 20 kills, eight digs and two blocks in a win over Wichita State, which received votes in the AVCA preseason poll. Against North Dakota State, Hays posted a double-double of 25 kills on .400 hitting and 10 digs. She closed out the tournament with 18 kills, 11 digs and three blocks at Northern Illinois for her 14th career double-double. She posted the match-high in kills in all three matches.
Other nominees included: Denver’s Faimie Kingsley was named to the Rams Volleyball Invitational all-tournament team after averaging 2.22 kills and 1.89 blocks per set ... Allison (Walker) Baker of Idaho was named to the all-tournament team at the Idaho Nike Invitational after averaging 4.93 kills, 3.29 digs and 0.79 blocks over three matches ... Louisiana Tech’s Maria Coelho was named to the all-tournament team at the Southern Miss Invitational after averaging 8.20 assists, 1.90 digs and 0.80 blocks over the three matches ... Hanah Blume of San Jose State posted three double-doubles and was named to the UB Invitational all-tournament team after averaging 3.58 kills and 3.92 digs per set ... Seattle U’s Kaytlyn Dill averaged 3.67 kills and 2.27 digs and was named to the all-tournament team at the Wyoming Invitational as the Redhawks went 2-2 ... Shelby Dickson of UT Arlington posted three double-doubles and averaged 4.30 kills and 4.00 digs per set en route to all-tournament team honors at the UTA Invitational ... UTSA’s McKenzie Adams was named to the Blue Raider Bash all-tournament team after posting a pair of double-doubles and averaging 4.17 kills and 3.25 digs per set ... Ashlee Hilbun of Texas State was named to the Texas A&M Invitational all-tournament team after averaging 3.30 kills and 1.40 digs per set ... Utah State’s Josselyn White was named to the all-tournament team at the Utah State Invitational after averaging 2.90 kills and 2.30 digs per set as the Aggies went 3-1.
NUMEROUS WAC PLAYERS NAMED TO ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAMS IN OPENING WEEKEND
The WAC had 17 of its players named to all-tournament teams in the opening weekend of play. Preslie Alexander, Meredith Hays and Desiree Scott of New Mexico State were all named to the all-tournament team at the NIU Invitational, with Hays earning MVP honors. Utah State also had three players earn honors, as Elle Brainard, Ashlan Rogers and Josselyn White were named to the Utah State Invitational all-tournament team. Colleen King and Faimie Kingsley of Denver were named to the Rams Invitational all-tournament squad, while Allison (Walker) Baker and Alyssa Schultz of Idaho earned Nike Invitational all-tournament honors. UTSA also had two honorees at the Blue Raider Bash in McKenzie Adams and Whitney Walls. Louisiana Tech’s Maria Coelho was named to the South Miss Invitational all-tournament team, while Hanah Blume of San Jose State earned all-tournament honors at the UB Invitational. Rounding out the honorees were Seattle U’s Kaytlyn Dill (Wyoming Invitational), UT Arlington’s Shelby Dickson (UTA Invitational) and Texas State’s Ashlee Hilbun (Texas A&M Invitational).
TOP STAT LEADERS
After one weekend of play, New Mexico State’s Meredith Hays leads the WAC in kills (5.25) and points (5.75) per set. Idaho’s Taylor Wilkinson leads the conference in hitting percentage (.409), while teammate Janelle Chow is tops in digs (4.71). San Jose State’s Michaela Leonard leads the league in assists (11.58), Utah State’s Ashlan Rogers is tops in service aces (0.53) and Denver’s Faimie Kingsley is the leader in blocks (1.89).
DENVER PIONEERS (2-1, 0-0 WAC)
Denver went 2-1 at the Rams Invitational last weekend, sweeping Rhode Island (25-14, 25-13, 25-9) and Virginia (25-16, 25-22, 25-15) and falling to No. 25 Colorado State (14-25, 19-25, 21-25) ... Faimie Kingsley and Colleen King were named to the all-tournament team. Kingsley averaged 1.89 blocks and 2.22 kills per set over the three matches, while King averaged 3.33 kills, 1.00 digs and 0.67 blocks ... The Pioneers averaged 13.56 kills per set, compared to their opponents’ 9.78 per set, while also averaging 2.89 blocks per set, compared to their opponents’ 1.67 per set ... The win over Rhode Island gave head coach Jesse Mahoney his first career win ... Denver currently leads the WAC in hitting percentage (.281) and kills (13.56), and ranks second in blocks (2.89) ... The Pioneers travel to Omaha, Neb., to play in the Bluejay Invitational this Friday and Saturday, where they will face Kansas State, Syracuse and host Creighton.
IDAHO VANDALS (2-1, 0-0 WAC)
Idaho fell in five sets to Pacific (25-23, 26-24, 18-25, 17-25, 9-15) before defeating Montana (28-30, 25-16, 25-18, 25-13) and Washington State (25-19, 21-25, 20-25, 28-26, 15-13) to finish second at the Idaho Nike Invitational last weekend ... Allison (Walker) Baker and Alyssa Schultz earned all-tournament team honors. Baker led the Vandals with 4.93 kills, 3.29 digs and 0.79 blocks per set, while Schultz averaged 2.36 kills on .333 hitting and 1.29 blocks per set over the three matches ... Baker posted double-doubles in all three matches ... As a team, Idaho ranks third in the WAC in assists (12.21), service aces (1.29) and digs (16.07), and fourth in kills (13.07) ... Taylor Wilkinson leads the conference in hitting percentage (.409), while Janelle Chow is tops in digs (4.71) ... Baker is second in both kills and points ... The Vandals play at Cal Poly on Thursday, then travel to the UCSB Invitational, where they will face UC Santa Barbara and Northeastern.
LOUISIANA TECH LADY TECHSTERS (0-3, 0-0 WAC)
The Lady Techsters went 0-3 at the Southern Miss Invitational, falling to Central Arkansas (12-25, 15-25, 18-25), South Alabama (18-25, 23-25, 25-21, 16-25) and the host Golden Eagles (22-25, 14-25, 15-25) ... They were the first three matches played under first-year head coach Adriano de Souza ... Maria Coelho was named to the all-tournament team after averaging 8.20 assists and 1.90 digs per set ... Coelho had a career-high 42 assists against South Alabama ... The Lady Techsters rank fifth in the WAC in digs per set (14.40) ... Stephany Salas ranks second in the league in digs per set (4.40), while Caitlin Germany is eighth in blocks per set (1.30) ... Salas had 24 digs against South Alabama, the second-highest single-match total in the WAC this season ... Louisiana Tech plays in the Lamar Invitational this weekend, where it will face Tulane, South Carolina State and Lamar.
NEW MEXICO STATE AGGIES (3-0, 0-0 WAC)
The Aggies went 3-0 to win the NIU Invitational, defeating Wichita State (28-30, 25-16, 25-20, 26-24), North Dakota State (28-26, 12-25, 25-17, 25-22) and Northern Illinois (14-25, 25-19, 25-16, 25-10) ... Meredith Hays was named tournament MVP after averaging 5.25 kills on .348 hitting and 2.42 digs per set. She had double-doubles in two of the three matches ... Preslie Alexander and Desiree Scott were also named to the all-tournament team. Alexander averaged 2.42 kills and 0.67 digs per set, while Scott averaged 1.50 kills and 1.33 blocks per set ... NM State hit .244 as a team and held its opponents to a .140 hitting percentage ... The Aggies lead the WAC in service aces (1.5), rank second in hitting percentage (.244) and fourth in assists (12.17) ...Hays leads the WAC in kills (5.25) and points (5.75) per set ... The Aggies host the New Mexico State Tournament this weekend, where they will face Cincinnati, Drake and Northwestern.
SAN JOSE STATE SPARTANS (1-2, 0-0 WAC)
The Spartans went 1-2 at the UB Invitational last weekend, falling to Oral Roberts (24-26, 25-12, 16-25, 22-25) and Canisius (23-25, 20-25, 25-12, 22-25), and defeating host Buffalo (25-22, 25-22, 15-25, 25-20) ... Hanah Blume was named to the all-tournament team after averaging 3.58 kills and 3.92 digs per set and posting double-doubles in all three matches ... Mary Alice O’Reilly had a career-best nine block assists against Oral Roberts. She added a career-best three solo blocks against both Buffalo and Canisius ... O’Reilly also had a career-high 17 kills and hit .682 vs. Buffalo ... Freshman setter Michaela Leonard made her Spartan debut last weekend, averaging a WAC-best 11.58 assists per set. She had two double-doubles and a season-high 49 assists in the win over Buffalo ... The Spartans lead the league in blocks (3.17), rank second in assists (12.33) and digs (17.83), and third in kills (13.25) ... San Jose State will play in the Lonestar Showdown this weekend, where it will face Northwestern State, UT-Pan American and host Texas Tech.
SEATTLE U REDHAWKS (2-2, 0-0 WAC)
Seattle University went 2-2 at the Wyoming Invitational last weekend, defeating Presbyterian (25-15, 25-21, 21-25, 25-22) and Eastern Washington (25-16, 25-20, 23-25, 25-23), and falling to San Francisco (19-25, 16-25, 18-25) and the host Cowgirls (19-25, 14-25, 27-25, 23-25) ... Kaytlyn Dill was named to the all-tournament team after averaging 3.67 kills, 2.27 digs and 0.40 service aces per set ... Dill’s 21-kill performance at Wyoming marked the third time in her career with 20 or more kills ... Dill moved into eighth place on the school’s career service aces list () ... Seattle U won its first two matches of the season for only the third time (2002, 2006) ... Jacquie Brice notched her first career double-double vs. Presbyterian with 36 assists and 13 digs … With head coach Shannon Ellis beginning maternity leave, Teron Uy is acting head coach ... The Redhawks participate in the Cougar Challenge this weekend, where they will face Weber State, Alabama State and host Washington State.
UT ARLINGTON MAVERICKS (2-1, 0-0 WAC)
UT Arlington went 2-1 at the UTA Invitational last weekend, defeating Savannah State (25-19, 25-13, 25-11) and UT-Pan American (25-10, 12-25, 25-18, 26-24), and falling to Stephen F. Austin (19-25, 11-25, 27-29) ... Shelby Dickson was named to the all-tournament team after recording double-doubles in all three matches and averaging 4.30 kills and 4.00 digs per set. She led the team in kills in all three matches, led the team in hitting percentage once and in digs once ... The Mavericks lead the WAC in digs (18.50) and rank second in opponent hitting percentage (.121) ... Dickson ranks third in the league in both kills per set (4.30) and digs per set (4.00), and fourth in points per set (4.50) ... Amanda Welsh ranks fifth in the WAC in assists per set (10.10), while Ashley Bennett is 10th in blocks (1.20) ... The Mavericks host North Texas on Tuesday, then travel to Chicago this weekend for the UIC Invitational, where they will face Eastern Michigan, IPFW and the host Flames.
UTSA ROADRUNNERS (2-1, 0-0 WAC)
UTSA went 2-1 at the Blue Raider Bash last weekend, defeating UAB (22-25, 25-19, 25-13, 20-25, 15-12) and host Middle Tennessee (23-25, 25-20, 25-20, 25-22), before falling to Furman (20-25, 20-25, 19-25) ... McKenzie Adams and Whitney Walls were named to the all-tournament team. Adams averaged 4.17 kills, 3.25 digs and 0.67 blocks per set, while Walls averaged 2.67 kills on .303 hitting ... Adams posted a career-high double-double of 26 kills and 20 digs vs. UAB ... UTSA ranks second in the WAC in kills (13.42), third in hitting percentage (.206) and fourth in digs (15.42) ... Brittney Malloy ranks third in the conference in hitting percentage (.354), while Brandy Huskey is third in assists (11.00) ... Kylie Schott is fourth in the WAC in blocks (1.45) ... The Roadrunners host the UTSA Classic this week, where they will face Rice, Belmont and UTEP.
TEXAS STATE BOBCATS (0-3, 0-0 WAC)
The Bobcats went 0-3 at the Texas A&M Invitational last weekend, falling to Texas A&M (16-25, 15-25, 16-25), North Dakota (17-25, 25-13, 15-25, 18-25) and No. 5 USC (18-25, 19-25, 22-25) ... Ashlee Hilbun was named to the all-tournament team after averaging 3.30 kills, 1.40 digs and 0.60 blocks per set ... Hilbun set a career high for kills with 14 against North Dakota ... Freshman Morgan McDaniel tallied a team-high 11 kills on .714 hitting against No. 5 USC ... Setter Caylin Mahoney posted her first career double-double against the Trojans, dishing out 23 assists while adding a team-high 10 digs ... Hilbun ranks ninth in the WAC in hitting percentage (.312), kills (3.30) and points (3.75) per set ... Caleigh McCorquodale ranks 10th in the league in assists (6.50) ... Texas State hosts Sam Houston State on Tuesday, then travels to Beaumont, Texas, this weekend for the Lamar Invitational, where it will face South Carolina State, Tulane and the host Cardinals.
UTAH STATE AGGIES (3-1, 0-0 WAC)
Utah State went 3-1 at its own Utah State Invitational last weekend, falling to Utah (21-25, 25-10, 25-17, 23-25, 14-16) and defeating Portland (25-21, 25-14, 25-19), Southern Utah (24-26, 25-23, 25-18, 25-14) and Weber State (25-17, 25-11, 25-11) ... Josselyn White, Ashlan Rogers and Elle Brainard were all named to the all-tournament team ... White averaged 2.87 kills on .278 hitting, 2.27 digs and 0.67 blocks ... Rogers averaged 3.33 digs and 0.53 service aces per set ... Brainard averaged 1.53 kills on .353 hitting and 1.40 blocks per set ... White logged a career-high with 18 digs in the win over Southern Utah ... White now has 268 career total blocks, needing just 11 more to break into the USU career top 10 list ... USU won its season-opener for the fifth time in last eight years, improving to 18-19 all-time in season-openers ... Under Grayson DuBose, the Aggies are 14-12 vs. teams from the Beehive State, including 8-6 at home ... The Aggies travel to San Diego for the Aztec Invitational this weekend, where they will face Montana, Sacred Heart and host San Diego State.