Nov. 26, 2013
Complete Release and Season Statistics
AZTECS SET TO WRAP UP 2013 SEASON
San Diego State will conclude its 2013 volleyball season with a pair of road matches against Mountain West opposition this week matches. Up first is a contest at No. 9 Colorado State on Wednesday, Dec. 27, in Moby Arena in Fort Collins, Colo., at 7:30 p.m. (MT). Two days later (Friday, Nov. 23), SDSU will face Wyoming at 7:00 p.m. at the UniWyo Sports Complex in Laramie. Both of those contests may be viewed live on the Mountain Digital Network with links available at www.GoAztecs.com.
SERIES RECORDS
The Aztecs' all-time record against Colorado State stands at 15-34 since the teams met in the second round of pool play at the 1980 Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) Championships Regionals in Santa Barbara. The Rams have won 23 of the last 24 matches against the Aztecs including a three-set victory in San Diego earlier this season. SDSU's last victory in the series came last season (2012) in a four-set contest in San Diego. The Aztecs are 9-15 vs. the Rams at home, 5-17 away and 1-2 at neutral sites. San Diego State holds a 33-12 lead in its series with Wyoming since the teams first met in 1984. More recently, the Aztecs are 11-10 vs. the Cowgirls since the 2003 season including sweep of both matches vs. UW last season. Wyoming defeated SDSU in four sets in San Diego in mid-October. The Aztecs are 20-2 vs. the Cowgirls in San Diego, 11-10 in Laramie and 2-0 on neutral courts.
HEAD COACH Deitre Collins-Parker
San Diego State head coach Deitre Collins-Parker is in her fifth season with the Aztecs after being named the fourth head coach in program history prior to the 2009 campaign. Her four-year record at SDSU is 86-62 (.581). She was named the 2012 Mountain West Coach of the Year after leading the Aztecs to a 23-8 overall record and their first conference title since 1995. She previously served as head coach at UNLV for eight seasons (1996-2003) and at Cornell for five years (2004-2008). A three-time All-American at the University of Hawai'i, she led the Rainbow Wahine to consecutive national titles (1983-84) and was named the national player of the year twice. She was a member of the U.S. Olympic Team and competed at the Goodwill Games and Pan Am Games prior to playing professionally in Europe for four years.
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
Colorado State enters the week with a record of 27-0 overall and 18-0 in the Mountain West. The Rams are ranked ninth in the nation in this week's AVCA poll and are one of two NCAA Division I teams in the nation (Missouri being the other) that is undefeated this season. CSU is led by Marlee Reynolds (3.10 kps, 0.72 bps) and Adrianna Culbert (2.70 kps, 2.74 dps). As a team the Rams lead the Mountain West in kills, blocks and hitting percentage.
Wyoming's record stands at 19-13 (9-9 MW) with the Cowgirls slated to host UNLV Wednesday evening. UW is led by Reese Plante (2.73 kps, 0.71 bps) and Bridget Shanahan (2.66 kps, 0.83 bps). Erin Kirby (2.42 kps) leads the Mountain West in blocking at 1.75 blocks per set while libero Becky Stewart is the conference leader in digs at 5.16 per set.
SHELTON FINISHING STRONG
Senior outside hitter Raegan Shelton has been in double figures in kills in eight of the past nine matches and is averaging 3.87 kills per set over that span. In last week's two matches (vs. Boise State and Utah State) she averaged 4.17 kills per set and 5.07 points per set to go along with a .400 hitting percentage.
HARRIS ON THE ATTACK
Middle blocker Emily Harris tops the team in hitting percentage with a mark of .352. Her .337 career hitting percentage ranks fourth on the SDSU career list and 10th in the Mountain West record book heading into this week's match. She is leads the team in blocking with a mark of 1.12 blocks per set after averaging 1.29 bps in last week's two matches. She is one block assist shy of entering the SDSU career top 10 in that category despite being in only her third season as an Aztec.
SANDBERG SOLID IN THE MIDDLE
Kaja Sandberg averaged 2.50 kills per set in last week's two matches. She also average 1.25 blocks over the six sets in which she appeared last week. Sandberg is second on the team in blocking this season with a mark of 1.06 bps.
FOUCH MOVING UP THE CHARTS
Setter Johnna Fouch's three-plus year mark of 4,513 assists places her third on the SDSU career list. Fouch ranks sixth on the Mountain West career assist list and needs 56 assists to move into the No. 5 spot. Her 44 career double-doubles is the most among active players in the Mountain West and is fourth on the all-time conference list.
AMONG THE LEAGUE LEADERS
Seven Aztecs ranks among the top 10 in the Mountain West overall stats this week in various categories:
Summer Nash ranks fourth in both points (3.99 per set) and kills (3.57 per set).
Emily Harris is sixth in hitting percentage at .352 and seventh in blocking at 1.12 per set.
Setter Johnna Fouch stands seventh in assist average at 9.51 per set.
Libero Courtney Vaccarello ranks seventh in digs with an average of 3.53 per set.
Michelle Waber is ninth in kill average at 3.07 per set.
Raegan Shelton ranks sixth in kills (3.44 per set) and seventh in points at 3.66 per set.
Kaja Sandberg is 10th in blocking at 1.06 blocks per set.
AZTEC NOTES
The Aztecs have been involved in seven five-set matches this season and have a mark of 1-6 in those contests including losing the last six in a row. Last year they went 7-3 in five-set contests ... San Diego State is first in the Mountain West overall stats in assists at 13.44 overall and second in kills at 14.28 per set ... As a team, SDSU ranks 17th in the nation in assists and 21st in kills. There are 325 schools competing in NCAA Division I volleyball ... The Aztecs' longest win streak this season has been three matches (twice) while the longest losing streak has also been three contests (on two occasions) ... SDSU is 24-3 on its home court over the past two seasons.