Oct. 14, 2008
Complete Release and Season Statistics in PDF Format
AZTECS HOST WYOMING & COLORADO STATE IN MWC ACTION
After three consecutive matches on the road, San Diego State returns home this week to host a pair of Mountain West Conference contests. On Thursday, Oct. 16, the Aztecs will host Wyoming at 7:00 p.m. (PDT) in Peterson Gym. Video of that match will be streamed live on the Internet at www.GoAztecs.com. Two days later (Saturday, Oct. 18), the Aztecs will face nationally-ranked Colorado State in a match scheduled to begin at 2:00 p.m. (PDT). Fans can follow the action during both of this week's matches on the Internet by going to Aztec web site and clicking on the GameTracker link under Aztecs Today.
SERIES RECORDS
SDSU has lost just eight times in its previous 34 meetings with Wyoming to lead the series, 26-8. Seven of the eight Aztec losses in the series have come in Laramie. The teams first played each other during the 1984 season and have met annually (with the exception of 1998) on a home-and-home basis since 1990. Despite SDSU's overall record against the Cowgirls, Wyoming has won the last three meetings and five of the last seven matches between the teams. SDSU is 15-1 vs. Wyoming at home, 9-7 in matches played in Laramie and 2-0 on neutral courts.
San Diego State is 14-24 in its series vs. Colorado State. The teams first met at the Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) national championship tournament in Santa Barbara in 1980. Three years later they faced off in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Aztecs ended an eight-match losing streak at the hands of the Rams when they defeated CSU, 3-0, in Peterson Gym in November 2002. SDSU has dropped its last 13 matches (and 21 of the last 22) against the Rams. SDSU is 5-11 vs. Colorado State in Fort Collins, 7-10 in San Diego and 2-3 on neutral courts.
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
Wyoming enters the week with a record of 3-12 overall and 2-4 in the Mountain West Conference. The Cowgirls are led by right side hitter Dani Bedore (3.11 kps, 1.64 dps) and outside hitter Lauren Whitney (2.77 kps, 0.86 dps). Bedore's average of 3.57 kills per set in MWC matches ranks second in the league while Whitney's mark of 3.00 kps is fifth. Setter Tasha Weishahn is fifth in the MWC in service aces at 0.33 per set.
Colorado State is ranked 13th in the nation this week and will visit UNLV on Thursday prior to playing SDSU on Saturday. The Rams' record stands at 16-1 (6-0). Top players include middle blocker Mekana Barnes (.363, 3.09 kps, 1.37 bps) and outside hitter Jaime Strauss (3.44 kps, 1.62 dps). Tessa Nelson is averaging 1.19 blocks per set. The Rams lead the MWC in hitting percentage, kills, assists and blocks.
HEAD COACH Mark Warner
San Diego State head coach Mark Warner is in his 14th season at the helm of the Aztec women's program. His career record over that span stands at 207-206 (.501). Over the past 13 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. Warner has announced his retirement effective at the end of the 2008 season after serving Aztec volleyball (men's and women's) for the past 27 years.
MOST RECENTLY
SDSU split a pair of conference matches on the road last week, defeating Brigham Young and losing to Utah. Four Aztecs finished in double figures in kills in the 3-1 (25-20, 27-25, 19-25, 27-25) win at BYU. That foursome included Kyley Sexton (19), Stephanie Darnall (13), Lauren Salisbury (12) and Lauren Van Orden (11). Bailee Hellwig contributed six blocks while Michelle Ferrer had 13 digs At Utah, Van Orden had 11 kills and Sexton 10, but it wasn't enough to overcome the Utes, who won (21-25, 25-14, 25-18, 25-15) despite dropping the opening set. Hellwig added five blocks and Ferrer again notched 13 digs, but after hitting .429 in the opening contest, San Diego State hit just .084 for the match
SEXTON HAS STANDOUT WEEKEND
Freshman Kyley Sexton, a high school honorable mention All-American last year, had her best weekend as an Aztec during SDSU's matches in the state of Utah. Against Brigham Young, she set career bests with 19 kills and a .531 attack percentage. Over the two matches last weekend (at BYU and at Utah), she averaged 3.63 kills per set while hitting .351. She also had a block assist in each of those contests. Sexton set a career high with five total blocks against UNLV on Oct. 3.
DARNALL ON THE ATTACK
Stephanie Darnall recorded her first double-double of the year with 13 kills and 10 digs at BYU last Thursday. The 13 kills were her second-highest total of the season while the 10 digs matched her season best. She remains second on the team in kill average at 2.45 kps. She is also second in service aces with eight. Her kills total at Brigham Young on Oct. 3 marked the eighth time she has hit double figures in that category this season. Against Texas-El Paso on Sept. 13, she had a season-high 10 digs despite playing in only two games during the set.
VAN ORDEN HITS AWAY
Setter Lauren Van Orden recorded double figures in kills for the fifth and sixth times this season with 11 against both BYU and Utah last weekend. She has had 11 kills in each of the last three matches and has reached that figure five times this fall. By adding 23 and 13 assists respectively vs. BYU and Utah, Van Orden recorded her sixth and seventh double-doubles of the season. On four occasions in 2008, she has finished either one kill or one dig shy of recording a triple-double effort. SDSU's last triple-double was turned in by Aspen McPartland against Santa Clara on Sept, 5, 2003. Over San Diego State's last nine matches, she is averaging 2.45 kills per set.
HELLWIG AT THE NET
Redshirt sophomore Bailee Hellwig totaled 11 blocks in the two matches vs. Brigham Young and Utah last week for an average of 1.38 per set. She was held without a block in the contest against TCU on Sept. 27 in which she played in only one set. It was the first and only match this season in which she did not record at least one block. She set her new SDSU career bests with eight block assists and 10 total blocks in the match vs. Weber State on Sept. 12. She enters the week as the team leader in blocking at 1.09 per set.
LATHROP ON THE DOUBLE
With 26 assists and 15 digs at UNLV on Oct. 3, senior setter Leah Lathrop recorded her first double-double of the season and the eighth of her SDSU career. The 15 digs in that contest tied her career-best mark set against Wyoming on Nov. 4, 2006. Lathrop had a string of 12 straight matches in double figures in assists ended against New Mexico on Sept. 25 when she finished with eight. Going back to last season, that streak had reached 16 consecutive contests. She has finished in double figures in assists in 15 of SDSU's 16 matches this fall. Lathrop's three kills vs. TCU on Sept. 27 was a season high.
SALISBURY PACES OFFENSE
Lauren Salisbury's continues to be the team's offensive leader in 2008. She leads the squad in kill average (3.12 kps), hitting percentage (.338) and points per set (3.87) She also ranks among the top 10 in the conference in blocking at 1.05 per set. Her nine blocks at UNLV on Oct. 3 were a season high and just one shy of her SDSU career best of 10 set vs. BYU in 2007. She has recorded at least one block in each of SDSU's last 15 matches. Salisbury's .800 attack percentage vs. UC Irvine in the season opener (Aug. 29) was a career best for the second-year Aztec. She has reached double figures in kills in 10 of the team's 16 matches this season and has turned in hitting percentages of .300 or higher on 10 occasions. She has cracked the .400 mark in hitting percentage in five matches.
AMONG THE MWC OVERALL STAT LEADERS
Lauren Salisbury ranks among the top 10 in the Mountain West Conference overall statistics in three categories. Her .338 attack percentage ranks fifth in the league while her 3.12 kills per set average is fourth-best. She is also fourth in scoring with a mark of 3.87 points per set.. Michelle Ferrer is fifth in digs at 3.50/set. Leah Lathrop, who shares setting duties with Lauren Van Orden, is 10th in assists at 5.33 per set. Van Orden ranks ninth in service aces at 0.25 per set while Bailee Hellwig is eighth in blocking at 1.09 per set.
MWC MATCH LEADERS
After four weeks of conference play, five Aztecs find themselves among the top 10 in league-match statistics. Salisbury ranks fourth in blocking at 1.38 bps, fifth in points at 3.81 per set and ninth in kills at 2.71 kps. Van Orden is seventh in service aces with an average of 0.29 per set. Hellwig is seventh in blocking at 1.16/set. Lathrop is 10th in assists at 5.19 per set and Ferrer's average of 3.48 digs per set ranks seventh.
MOVIN' UP THE CHARTS
With 45 assists in two matches last week, senior Leah Lathrop has increased her career total to 2,420 to move into sixth place on the SDSU career list. She needs 236 assists to climb into a fifth-place tie with Kristen Castillo (2,656), who finished her four-year Aztec career in 2007. Fourth place is occupied by Liane Sato (1985-86) with 2,773 career assists.
AZTEC NOTES
Lauren Salisbury is the only player to have started all 16 of SDSU's matches. Stephanie Darnall, Bailee Hellwig and Lauren Van Orden have started 15 times each ... The Aztecs' win at BYU last week was their first in Provo since the 2002 campaign ... SDSU is ranked second in the MWC in blocking (2.81 bps) in league matches ... Freshman Courtney Miller had her second-best dig total of the season with seven at Utah and also recorded her second service ace of the year in that match ... The Aztecs have reached double figures in team blocks seven times this season, most recently with 10 at Utah last Saturday ... Last weekend's matches at BYU and Utah marked just the fourth and fifth times that SDSU has won the first set in its 16 matches this season. The Aztecs are 3-2 in contests in which they have captured the opening set.