Nov. 17, 2005
Complete Release and Season Statistics in PDF Format
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AZTECS CONCLUDES REGULAR AT HOME VS. BYU AND UTAH
*San Diego State winds up its 2005 regular season schedule as it hosts a pair of Mountain West Conference matches in Peterson Gym this weekend.
*On Friday (Nov. 18) league-leading Brigham Young visits Peterson Gym for a 7:00 p.m. contest.
*The following evening, the Aztecs will host Utah in the 2005 home finale at 7:00 p.m. in Peterson Gym.
SENIOR NIGHT
*Prior to Saturday's match against Utah, San Diego State will honor the four senior members of the volleyball squad making their final home appearances.
*That foursome includes middle blockers Ashley Bowker and Lindsey Noll along with outside hitters Melissa Stapley and Angela Verdenacci.
SERIES RECORD
*The Aztecs are 15-31 in the series with Brigham Young. Brigham Young has dominated the series since 1990, winning 28 of the 33 matches between the teams. BYU has won 17 of the most recent 19 meetings with the Aztecs including a 3-0 victory in Provo on Oct. 21. Over the years, SDSU is 6-12 vs. BYU in San Diego, 4-13 against the Cougars in Provo and 6-4 on neutral floors.
*San Diego State has compiled a record of 16-16 against Utah since the teams first met in 1982. The Utes have won 15 of the last 18 meetings between the teams, defeating SDSU when the teams played in Salt Lake City earlier this season.. The Aztecs last three wins in the series have all come in San Diego (2000, 2001 and 2002) when the Utes were ranked among the nation's top 25. SDSU is 9-4 against the Utes in Petersen Gym, 7-10 on Utah's home floor, and 0-2 at neutral sites.
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
*Brigham Young, ranked 22nd in the nation in this week's USA Today/AVCA poll, enters the week with an overall record of 21-2 and 12 in the Mountain West Conference. The Cougars began the season with 20 straight victories before dropping two of their last three matches. BYU is led by Lindsy Hartsock (.460 hitting Percentage, 2.87 kpg, 1.20 bpg) and Chelsea Goodman (4.27 kpg, 2.37 dpg). Rachel Dyer averages 2.55 kills and 1.09 blocks per game. The Cougars are the league leaders in kills, assists and hitting percentage in conference play.
*Utah 18-7 overall; 10-4 MWC) will play ay UNLV Friday evening before facing the Aztecs the next night. The Utes are the league's top defensive team, holding opponents to an average hitting percentage of .143 in all matches and .129 in conference play. As a team, Utah averages 3.48 blocks per game. The Utes are led offensively by Airial Salvo (3.24 kpg, 2.51 dpg) and Shelly Sommerfeldt (3.39 kpg, 2.91 dpg). The team's top blockers include Emilie Toone (1.49 bpg) and Lori Baird (1.31 bpg).
HEAD COACH Mark Warner
*San Diego State head coach Mark Warner is in his 11th season at the helm of the Aztec women's program. His career record over that span stands at 176-159 (.525).
*Over the past 10 years, Warner has led his teams to a pair of NCAA Tournament berths and a Western Athletic Conference championship. His tutelage has produced 15 all-conference players and he was named the Mountain West Conference co-coach of the year in 2002.
MOST RECENTLY
*SDSU split a pair of Mountain West Conference matches last week to even its league record at 7-7.
*On Wednesday (Nov. (9) in Peterson Gym, SDSU dropped a 3-1 (30-25, 26-30, 30-28, 30-21) decision to UNLV. Melanie Greene (14), Audra Dent (13) and Lindsey Noll (12) finished in double figures in kills for the Aztecs while Aime Cordeiro contributed 16 digs. However, as a team SDSU hit just .168 for the match.
*The Aztecs rebounded on Friday (Nov. 11), as they defeated TCU in three games (30-19, 30-26, 30-27) in Fort Worth. In that match, SDSU again had three players reach double figure in kills: Noll (14), Greene (10) and Brandie Molnar (10). The team hit .312 over the three games compared to .202 for TCU.
MOVIN' UP THE CHARTS
*Two Aztec sophomores have broken into the San Diego State record book this season.
*Setter Kristen Castillo now has a total of 1,549 assists in her two seasons as an Aztec to move into the number-10 spot on the SDSU career list. She needs 41 more to take over the number-eight spot occupied by Michelle Pistone (1,489 from 1993-96).
*Libero Aime Cordeiro's 415 digs this fall ranks fourth on the Aztec single-season chart. She can move up to third with 29 more digs to pass Kim Harsch (443 in 1986).
GREENE DOUBLES UP
*Junior OH Melanie Greene recorded her 13th double-double of the season during last Friday's trip to TCU.
*She had 10 kills and 10 digs vs. the Horned Frogs.
*She has notched five double-doubles in SDSU's most recent seven matches.
*Greene's 13 double-doubles this fall is tied for the highest total by a Mountain West Conference player in 2005.
*She is accounting for an average of 3.84 points per game to lead the squad.
*Her overall dig average of 2.88 ranks 10th in the league while her MWC match average of 2.83 dpg is also 10th.
*Greene's also ranks among the league top 10 in services aces. She is fifth overall (0.40 sapg) and fifth in league games only (0.41 sapg).
MOLNAR CHIPS IN
*Sophomore Brandie Molnar, a transfer from Ohio State, got her second start of the season last Friday at TCU and responded with 10 kills.
*She accounted for 16.5 points over the three games to tie her season best.
*In her last five matches, she is averaging 2.5 kills, 1.80 digs and 0.50 service aces per game.
DENT CONTINUES SOLID PLAY
*Over SDSU's last nine matches, right side hitter Audra Dent is averaging 3.30 kills per game and just under a block per game (0.98 bpg).
*In all matches, she is second on the squad in kills with an average of 2.96 per contest.
*Her eight blocks vs. USD on Oct. 11 was a personal season best and her seven block assists tied her career high in a match.
*In the contest at UNLV on Oct. 7, she led the Aztecs with a career-high 22 kills. That total surpassed her previous personal best of 14 set last season vs. James Madison.
NOLL ON THE BLOCK
*In last Friday's match at TCU, Lindsey Noll set a new career high when she hit .765 (14k-1e-17ta). It was the highest hitting percentage for an Aztec in a match during the 2005 season.
*Noll continues to be one of the top blockers in the conference. Her blocking average of 1.44 bpg in league games ranks third in the MWC stats while her overall average of 1.31 is fifth-best in the league this week.
*Noll set a career high in blocks with 12 against USD on Oct. 11, then tied that mark against TCU on Oct. 16.
*The senior middle blocker, a 6-5 transfer from Missouri, is hitting .340 in all matches and .371 in league contests to lead San Diego State. Those attack percentages rank third and second respectively in the MWC this week.
*In Mountain West Conference matches, she leads the Aztecs with an average of 3.99 points per game.
*Noll's 20 kills in the match against Air Force on Sept. 30 tied her career high which she set vs. Texas A&M in 2003 while playing at Missouri.
CORDEIRO KEEPS DIGGIN'
*Sophomore libero Aime Cordeiro continues to lead the MWC in digs (overall) with an average of 4.67 per game. In MWC play, her average of 4.53 dpg also ranks first.
*Her 35 digs in the match at UNLV established a new Mountain West Conference record (which has since been tied). The old mark was 34 by Wyoming's Carissa Lee (in five games) set this season on Sept. 3 vs. Northern Colorado. That dig total is also an MWC record for a league match, besting the previous record of 33 by Lindsey Evans (BYU) at UNLV in 2004.
*Cordeiro's effort was the second-most digs in a match ever by an Aztec, tying the total turned in by Angela Rock vs. Texas during the 1984 season. It was the most digs in a match by an Aztec since 1997 and only the eighth time that an SDSU player surpassed the 30-dig mark.
*She also had 31 digs in the match at Utah on Oct. 24.
*She is only the second Aztecs to have a pair of 30-dig matches during her career. The other is Jackie Mendez who recorded 30 or more digs on four occasions. Only three other Aztecs had at least 30 digs in a match during their careers.
*Cordeiro's four service aces against TCU last weekend tied her career best, a mark she set on two other occasions this season.
DUAL SETTERS
*San Diego State is using a two-setter rotation this season, alternating sophomore Kristen Castillo and freshman Leah Lathrop.
*Each setter has appeared in all 94 games, and the two have averaged a total of 12.07 assists, 0.42 service aces and 2.84 dpg.
LATHROP SOLID AT SETTER
*Freshman setter Leah Lathrop's three service aces vs. Wyoming on Nov. 4 tied her season high and was the second consecutive match in which she reached that figure.
*Lathrop recorded the first double-double of her collegiate career with 24 assists and 10 digs in the win at Air Force on Sept. 30.
*She has come up just short of a double-double in SDSU last two matches with double figures in assists and nine digs in each contest.
DEFENDING AND ATTACKING
*Kristen Castillo has recorded thee double-doubles (assists/digs) this season.
*She has had 10 digs in three matches, tying her career best which she first set last season vs. Wyoming.
*Castillo is hitting .368 from her setter position with only four attack errors over 94 games. Last season she finished with a .263 attack percentage.
WALLER LOST FOR SEASON
*Freshman outside hitter Alicia Waller recently had surgery to remove cartilage from her knee, ending her 2005 season prematurely.
*She still ranks first in the conference in league-game stats at 0.73 sapg. In all contests, she is also first at 0.52 sapg.
*She recorded seven service aces in the win over Wyoming on Sept. 24, the most in a match by an Aztec since Robyn Gregg had nine against Air Force on October 18, 2002.
*Those seven aces in the Wyoming match ties for the most in any match by an MWC player this season and are the most in a league contest in 2005. Waller also had six aces in a match earlier this year (vs. Cal State Fullerton on Sept. 7).
AZTEC NOTES
*With two matches left in the regular season and at least one more in the conference tournament, SDSU has ensured that it will finish at .500. One more win would mean that the Aztecs will have won four times as many games as they did a year ago when they finished 4-25.
*Four Aztecs have started all 27 matches for SDSU this season: Kristen Castillo, Lindsey Noll, Audra Dent and Lindsey Mahan. Leah Lathrop and Melanie Greene are the only others to have appeared in every match this fall while Lathrop, Castillo and Dent are the only Aztecs to have played in every game.
*Lindsey Mahan's seven total blocks against UNLV last week tied her career best. It was the third time this season she recorded seven blocks in a match.
*Audra Dent had no blocks in SDSU's match at TCU, ending a streak of 26 matches this season in which she had at least one.