Aztecs Set for Quarterfinal Showdown vs. Wyoming at MW Tourney

SAN DIEGO -- The San Diego State volleyball team begins its quest for postseason glory this week when it faces Wyoming in the first round of the Credit Union 1 Mountain West Championship on Wednesday, Nov. 26, in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The sixth-seeded Aztecs will battle the No. 3 seed Cowgirls at The Pavilion on the UNLV campus, starting at 4 p.m. PT.

In addition to live stats, the SDSU-Wyoming clash will air live on the Mountain West Network, with links available on GoAztecs.com. Fans can also catch all the exciting live action on their smartphones or TVs by downloading the MW app.

San Diego State (14-15, 9-9 MW) clinched the final spot in the Mountain West Championship after sweeping Fresno State (25-13, 25-21, 25-21) in its regular-season finale on Nov. 22, while San José State was eliminated from after dropping a 3-0 decision at UNLV the same day.

If the Aztecs defeat the Cowgirls, they will face No. 2 seed Colorado State in the semifinals on Friday, Nov. 28 at 4 p.m. PT. Meanwhile, top-seeded Utah State, the Mountain West regular-season champion, will await the winner of Wednesday’s other first-round matchup pitting fourth-seeded Boise State against No. 5 seed Grand Canyon.

The two semifinal winners will battle for the MW Championship and the league’s automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament on Saturday, Nov. 29, starting at 3 p.m. PT.

Senior opposite hitter Taylor Underwood and freshman libero earned all-Mountain West honors, as the league announced its 2025 postseason awards in advance of the tournament. 

SDSU IN THE MW CHAMPIONSHIP
> The 2025 campaign marks the Aztecs’ second consecutive trip to the MW Championship and third since the tournament was reinstated in its current format following the 2021 fall season. 
> SDSU owns a 7-12 record in 12 previous MW Championship appearances. The league’s postseason tournament was held on an annual basis from 1999-2007 before returning for one season in 2011 after a three-year absence.
> The Aztecs are 7-5 in MW first-round matchups. In 2024, fifth-seeded San Diego State knocked off No. 4 seed Fresno State by a 3-1 count (25-18, 16-25, 25-18, 25-17) in its opening-round clash before falling to Colorado State (25-20, 23-25, 21-25, 23-25) in a narrow four-set decision in the semifinals.
> Wednesday's showdown will mark the first encounter between the Aztecs and Cowgirls in MW Championship action.
> San Diego State has faced Wyoming on one prior occasion in postseason tournament play when both schools were members of the Western Athletic Conference.
> In 1997 prior to the rally scoring era, the Aztecs outlasted the Cowgirls in a five-set thriller (14-16, 15-12, 13-15, 15-9, 15-13) in the quarterfinals of the WAC Tournament before falling in three sets to Brigham Young in the semifinal round. 

SERIES RECORD VS. WYOMING/LAST MEETING
> The Aztecs lead the Cowgirls 40-27 in 67 varsity meetings since 1985.
> However, Wyoming dealt SDSU a three-set defeat (14-25, 12-25, 19-25) in San Diego on Nov. 15 in the lone regular-season match between the two squads this year.
> In that contest, the Aztecs were unable to solve the Cowgirls' defensive exploits, as the visitors owned a sizable advantage in team blocks (16.0 to 5.0) while maintaining a 6-0 spread in service aces.
> In addition, Wyoming out-hit SDSU .263 to .047, finishing with a 34-32 edge in kills to hand the Scarlet and Black just its second sweep of the season.
> Individually, Mila Gehlen and Ella Schabort (.500) paced the Aztecs with seven kills apiece, while Campbell Hague contributed six kills and three block assists.

MATCH CONNECTIONS
> San Diego State right-side hitter Natalie Hughes and Wyoming setter Sara Quigley squared off on the McKinney, Texas high school scene in 2022. Hughes’ North High team split two matches against Quigley’s Boyd High squad, posting a 2-0 sweep in a preseason tournament before falling in four sets in another non-conference match just three days later. Hughes competed as a senior that season, while Quigley was a sophomore. In the rematch, Hughes recorded a team-high 21 kills and collected five blocks, including four solo stops, according to MaxPreps, but it wasn’t enough.

SDSU IN MW RANKINGS
> As of Nov. 25, libero Zara Stewart occupies the fourth spot in the Mountain West in digs (3.73/set), while opposite hitter Taylor Underwood ranks fourth as well in kills (3.54/set).
> Despite missing the last 10 matches, middle blocker Amber Keen still finds herself among the conference leaders this week, ranking fifth with a .337 hitting percentage,  while Kendall Mairs is slotted 10th in assists (5.22/set).
> Madison Corf’s career-high .750 hitting percentage (16-1-20) against UC San Diego on Sept. 18 marks the top efficiency in the league so far this season, while Annelise Rising’s collegiate-best .682 clip (16-1-22) at Boise State ranks eighth ahead of Keen, who is slotted 10th after setting a career high with a .650 hitting percentage (14-1-20) vs. Oregon at the Long Beach State Tourney on Sept. 11.
> Not to be outdone, Corf’s .750 efficiency is tied for the fifth-highest individual hitting percentage in the country this season.
> Stewart collected a career-high 26 digs vs. New Mexico on Oct. 9, which is tied for the fourth-highest total in the conference thus far and is tied for the third-best in a four-set match.
> Setter Kendall Mairs served up five aces against LSU at the Flo Hyman Classic on Sept. 5, which is tied for the fifth-highest figure in the MW this season.
> Campbell Hague and Ella Schabort recorded four aces apiece vs. Omaha at the same tournament the following day, which tied for the 12th-best total in the conference. Schabort later duplicated the feat at home against New Mexico on Oct. 9.
> Underwood equaled her season best with 22 kills at New Mexico on Nov. 8, which is tied for the 11th-highest figure in the league and is tied for the third-best in a four-set match.
> Entering the tournament, San Diego State is slotted fifth in the Mountain West with a .202 opponent hitting percentage for all matches. 
> In addition, the Aztecs rank sixth in the conference in service aces (1.35/set) while occupying the seventh position in both kills (12.72/set) and assists (11.77/set).
> Elsewhere, SDSU is slotted eighth in digs (13.66/set) and ninth in blocks (2.09/set).
> The Aztecs’ 14 service aces against Omaha  is tied for the top team performance in the conference so far this season.
> In addition, SDSU’s 14 aces equaled its highest total since Nov. 23, 2001, in a three-set triumph over Denver at the Wildcat Classic in Tucson, Arizona.
>  The Aztecs’ .369 team hitting percentage vs. UCSD is tied for the 10th-best clip in the MW thus far. 
> SDSU's 55 kills and 52 assists vs. Fresno State on Nov. 22 represent the highest total in the conference for a three-set match this year.

ODDS AND ENDS
> The Aztecs have held 27 of 29 opponents under a .300 hitting percentage this year. SDSU allowed its first adversary to hit over .300 when UNLV posted a .314 efficiency on Oct. 18. 
> The Aztecs are 9-4 thus far when limiting the opposition below a .200 efficiency. Last season, SDSU went 16-0 when holding opponents to a hitting percentage below .200. 
> SDSU is 6-1 this season when out-blocking the opposition and 11-2 when maintaining a greater hitting percentage. Last year, the Aztecs went 16-5 when leading in blocks and 19-3 when out-hitting their opponents.
> SDSU is 7-6 in matches following a victory in 2025 and 7-8 in contests following a loss.
> Senior Taylor Underwood had her streak of double-digit kills snapped at 15 straight matches after posting eight terminations at Utah State on Oct. 23. Still, the Aztec opposite hitter has 10 or more kills in 22 of 25 appearances this year after rebounding with a match-high 18 put-aways at Boise State on Oct. 25. The Norco, California, native also ranks fourth on the squad with 53 blocks, highlighted by a career-best three solo rejections vs. LSU on Sept. 5.
> Freshman libero Zara Stewart has surpassed the double-digit barrier for digs in 27 of 29 matches this year, including a career-high 26 scoops vs. New Mexico on Oct. 9. She also led all players with 22 digs against Grand Canyon on Oct. 16.

SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
> Wyoming (17-12, 13-5 MW) locked up the No. 3 seed at the Mountain West Championship after posting a pair of five-set nail-biters over New Mexico and Grand Canyon at home last week. With their victories, the Cowgirls extended their winning streak to four matches, finishing the season with a 10-5 record at home while maintaining a 7-7 mark in road/neutral contests. Wyoming placed two players on the all-Mountain West team in middle blocker Sarah Holcomb and outside hitter Paige Lauterwasser. Entering the week, Holcomb leads the conference for all matches with 1.49 blocks per set and occupies the second spot with a .349 hitting percentage, while Lauterwasser tops the squad in kills (2.72/set) and ranks second in digs (3.16/set). Additionally, Holcomb is slotted second on the team with 2.51 kills per set, followed by outside hitter Addy Cook, who is averaging 2.24 put-aways per frame. Elsewhere, libero Skylar Erickson finds herself among the MW leaders, occupying the seventh position in digs (3.61/set), while setter Sara Quigley (6.09 assists/set) and senior Jordan Sandy (1.14 blocks/set) rank eighth and ninth their respective categories. As a team, the Cowgirls lead the conference in digs (15.40/set) and are slotted third in blocks (2.72/set) and hitting percentage (.219). In addition, Wyoming ranks sixth in kills (13.00/set), assists (12.02) and opponent hitting percentage (.207). The Cowgirls are under the direction of second-year head coach Kaylee Prigge, who was promoted to her position after serving four seasons as an assistant on the Wyoming staff, including the final two as associate head coach. Prior to her tenure in Laramie, Prigge was an assistant for two years at Illinois Chicago in 2017 and 2018 after spending two stints at her alma mater, the University of Tampa (2013 and 2015-17). She is the daughter of former Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Dirk Koetter.