THE SCHEDULE:
Wednesday, Sept. 30: Western Washington at Seattle Pacific, 7 p.m.
Brougham Pavilion (2,650)/Seattle, Wash.
Live Webcast and live stats on this link
Saturday, Oct. 3: Montana State Billings at Seattle Pacific, 7 p.m.
Brougham Pavilion (2,650)/Seattle, Wash.
Live Webcast and live stats this link
Complete release, with stats
SEATTLE – Their victory was a big one, and the Seattle Pacific volleyball team got some time to enjoy it.
But not too much time. Because after coming from two games down to defeat Western Oregon last Thursday in Brougham Pavilion, the Falcon had to get right back to work. Reason?
Next up on their schedule is Western Washington.
The Vikings, a powerful program not only in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, but also one of the best in all of Division II, come calling on Brougham Pavilion this week in a rare Wednesday night match. SPU, off to a 3-0 start in GNAC play, and Western, which is 3-1, will serve it up at 7 p.m. It marks the middle of a three-game homestand, which concludes Saturday night at 7 against Montana State Billings.
Western Washington advanced all the way to the D-2 championship match in 2007, then went 21-3 last year. The Vikings won the conference's first three crowns and has four in the GNAC's eight-year history.
At 9-6 overall, Seattle Pacific now has one more win in 2009 than it had for all of 2008.
After a two-week respite from the road, SPU heads out of town next Thursday to Ellensburg for a match against Central Washington. Then it's back home for three more, starting with Dig Pink Night on Saturday, Oct. 10, against Northwest Nazarene at 7 p.m.
SPEAKING OF THE FALCONS
Coach Chris Johnson doesn't have to worry about his players being mentally prepared for this week's schedule. He's confident they'll be ready to play -- especially against rival Western Washington.
“They know it's a big match -- just as big this year as it has been in years past,” Johnson said. “It's for possession of first place right now, and that's a good place to be. .. We need to keep working, and that's the message we're giving them. We can't just sit around and say, 'Hey, we're 3-and-0.”
It very well could have been 2-1 had the Falcons not rallied from way back to beat Western Oregon last Thursday. After dropping those first two games, SPU never trailed in Games 3, 4 or 5, and was tied just three time combined in those three games.
“It's nice to put a comeback win together from down 2-0,” Johnson said. “But it's also kind of a wake-up call that we need to be better right from the start. We went into that match with a lot of confidence. But we still have to go out there and do the job.”
THE RETURN OF RISSER
Junior outside hitter Sarah Risser returned to the court last Thursday just nine days after having her appendix removed. And what a return it was: Risser posted a double-double of 13 kills and 10 digs -- and that was without playing any of Game 1 and just a few points of Game 2 before starting the final three games.
“From the day she had surgery (Sept. 15), she was talking to me about how she felt and how fast she could come back,” Johnson said, adding that Risser was cleared and returned to limited practice last Monday, did a little more on Tuesday, and essentially was going full-bore on Wednesday. “To put up a double-double -- and that was just in three games -- it was just a courageous performance.”
DIG PINK ON OCT. 10
The Falcons and the Side-Out Foundation are teaming up on Oct. 10 for SPU's first Dig Pink Night in support of the ongoing battle against breast cancer. The Falcons will take on Northwest Nazarene in Brougham Pavilion at 7 p.m., and fans will have a chance to help out just by purchasing a ticket. Any fan wearing pink will have the entire cost of their ticket donated to the Side-Out Foundation in support of breast cancer research.
Fans also will have a chance during the 10-minute break between Games 2 and 3 to serve for T-shirts.
More information is available online by visiting the SPU Dig Pink page on this link.
SCOUTING WESTERN WASHINGTON
All-time series: WWU leads, 36-18. Current series streak: WWU won 4. Last time: WWU 3, SPU 1 (25-27, 25-14, 25-15, 27-25 on Oct. 30, 2008 at Seattle). Western Washington on the Web.
Vikings in a nutshell: Western Washington has had a few bumps in the road this season, one of which was last week at home when it dropped a five-gamer to Alaska Anchorage. But the Vikings came right back to sweep Alaska Fairbanks. Western ranks second (by .001) to Seattle Pacific for the GNAC's top mark in hitting, .213 to .212. The Vikings have four players who rank among the conference statistical leaders. That includes sophomore middle blocker Emily Jepsen, who leads the GNAC in blocks at 1.02 per game. Libero Allison Gotz (third in digs, 4.98), setter Laurie Year out (third in assists, 9.87) and outside hitter Marlayna Geary (fourth in kills, 3.64) are the others.
SCOUTING MONTANA STATE BILLINGS
All-time series: SPU leads, 17-5. Current series streak: SPU won 1. Last time: SPU 3, Billings 0 (25-19, 25-22, 25-19 on Nov. 1, 2008 at Seattle). Montana State Billings on the Web.
Yellowjackets in a nutshell: Billings is currently on a two-match overall winning streak and a three-match conference roll after Monday's four-game homecourt victory against Alaska Anchorage. The Yellowjackets visit Northwest Nazarene on Thursday before heading to Seattle. The big weapon for Montana State Billings is 6-foot-0 senior outside hitter Devon Crotteau. She had a double-double of 19 kills and 15 digs in Monday's win against Anchorage, giving her 282 kills for the season, the top total in the conference by a margin of 42. Junior outside hitter Jen Boe also is a force, posting her own double-double of 13 kills and 14 digs on Monday.
HOW TO THEY COMPARE?
(GNAC rank in parentheses)
Hitting percent SPU .213 (1) WWU .212 (2) MSB .191 (6)
Opponent hit percent SPU .149 (1) WWU .187 (6) MSB .182 (5)
Kills per game SPU 12.83 (1) WWU 12.30 (5) MSB 10.95 (8)
Assists per game SPU 11.92 (2) WWU 11.22 (6) MSB 10.47 (8)
Aces per game SPU 1.22 (9) WWU 1.83 (3) MSB 1.85 (2)
Blocks per game SPU 1.86 (5) WWU 1.91 (4) MSB 1.92 (3)
Digs per game SPU 15.07 (6) WWU 15.57 (4) MSB 12.49 (9)
MOST RECENT SPU STARTERS
Sept. 24 vs. Western Oregon, W 3-2
Player Kills Pct. Aces Asts. Digs Blocks
Paige Hoffman 9 .292 0 0 1 4
Lindsey Wodrich 17 .196 0 1 17 4
Amber Johnson 7 .227 0 0 1 8
Priscilla Collings 8 .130 0 0 2 1
Angie Pricco 1 .000 0 1 3 2
Cortney Weedman 2 .250 0 30 5 0
Anna Herold (LIB) 0 .000 4 0 26 0
SEATTLE PACIFIC 64 .184 2 63 73 19
DOUBLE-DOUBLES AND OTHER DELIGHTFUL DIGITS
The Falcons have racked up 17 double-double performances at the exact midpoint (14 matches) of their 28-match schedule. That's just five shy of the 20 they recorded all of last year.
Leading the way is junior outside hitter Sarah Risser with seven -- her latest coming last Thursday against Western Oregon after a quick return from appendicitis. She now has nine for her career. Sophomore outside hitter Lindsey Wodrich (Richland, Wash./Richland HS) has four (also putting her at nine for her career), and senior setter Cortney Weedman (Scottsdale, Ariz.), junior setter Joelle Perez (Vancouver, Wash./Heritage HS) and sophomore outside hitter Priscilla Collings (Chula Vista, Calif.) have two apiece.
Risser, Wodrich and Collings are all kill-dig double-double combos; Weedman and Perez are assist-dig combos.
SPU continues to lead the GNAC in hitting at .213. The Falcons also rank No. 1 in the GNAC at 12.83 kills per game (they finished sixth last year at 12.59), and are the conference's toughest team to hit against, limiting opponents to a mere .149. In fact, in all nine Seattle Pacific victories, the opponents have hit less than .200.
Click on this link for a complete look at GNAC statistics.
MILESTONES IN THE MAKING
-- SPU is on the brink of its 100th Great Northwest Athletic Conference victory The Falcons now have 93 since conference play began in 2001.
-- Robin De Jong (Santa Barbara, Calif.), who has missed the early part of the season with an injury, is nine kills away from 200.
-- Priscilla Collings, who had a career-high 22 kills at Northwest Nazarene on Sept. 17, is eight away from 200.
-- Kylie Johnson (Tucson, Ariz.) needs just five kills to reach 100.
-- Joelle Perez, after racking up 1,718 assists in her first two seasons, needs 71 to reach 2,000. Now at 1,929 after picking up nine against Western Oregon last week, Perez has climbed into the GNAC's all-time top 20 for assists.
-- Anna Herold (Bothell, Wash./Shorecrest HS) continues to close in on 1,000 digs. She comes into the week at 865.
MILESTONES MADE
-- Sarah Risser, whose best single season for kills was 156 last year as a sophomore, already has 163 this season. At 375, she now has the most career kills of any player currently on the SPU roster.
-- Lindsey Wodrich, who recorded 125 kills as a freshman in 2008, has zoomed past that, as her 17 kills against Western Oregon put her at 139. She also has topped the 300-point mark, getting 19 against WOU to give her 309.0 for her career. And, by playing all five games last Thursday, she is now at an even 100 as a Falcon.
-- Paige Hoffman has pushed past the career .200 hitting mark. After hitting .169 last year as a freshman, she is at .254 as a sophomore, putting her at .202 for her career.
FALCON REPLAY
After falling short three times in five-game volleyball matches during preseason play, the Falcons figured enough was enough. And for the second consecutive week, they were true to true word.
Lindsey Wodrich had a double-double of 17 kills and 17 digs, and Sarah Risser came back from appendicitis to post a double-double of 13 kills and 10 digs last Thursday night, helping Seattle Pacific rally from two games down to beat Western Oregon in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference match.
Scores against the defending GNAC champions in Brougham Pavilion were 17-25 19-25, 25-20, 25-19, 15-10.
The victory got the Falcons off to their first 3-0 start in conference play since 2006. They are now 9-6 overall with three straight wins and seven in their last eight matches. That includes a come-from-behind five-game triumph at Northwest Nazarene in the GNAC opener on Sept. 17.
POLLING PLACE
The Falcons were picked for a fourth-place finish in the GNAC in the preseason coaches poll that was released last week. SPU received 43 points, including one first-place vote.
Western Washington was tabbed to win the conference crown, receiving six first-place votes and 60 points. Defending champion Western Oregon is second with 50 points, and Northwest Nazarene is third with 47 points and two first-place votes.
ON THE HONOR ROLL
-- Junior outside hitter Sarah Risser and sophomore middle blocker Amber Johnson were named to the all-tournament at the Western Washington Invitational on Sept. 12. In the four tournament matches against Notre Dame de Namur, Grand Canyon, No. 7-ranked West Texas A&M and defending Canadian champion British Columbia, Risser led in kills per game (4.27), pounding 64 altogether. had She double-doubled in kills and digs in the first three matches. Johnson set the pace in hitting percentage at .477, with 27 kills and just three errors on 51 attacks.
TICKET TALK
Tickets for SPU's home matches can be purchased at Brougham Pavilion (3414 3rd Ave. W.) on match day. Ticket windows open one hour prior to the listed start time for all home matches.
General admission tickets are priced at $6 for adults and $3 for students and senior citizens.
Groups or teams of 10 or more may qualify for special general admission rates by calling (206) 281-2085 at least 72 hours in advance.
UP NEXT
Following the conclusion of their current three-match homestand on Saturday night at 7 against Montana State Billings, the Falcons cross the mountains to Ellensburg next Thursday to face Central Washington at 7 p.m. in Nicholson Pavilion. Then it's back home for another three-match slate, staring Saturday, Oct. 10 against Northwest Nazarene at 7 p.m. on Dig Pink Night.
AROUND THE GNAC
Click on this link for a look at results, schedules and notes from the GNAC.
GNAC STANDINGS
Conference Overall
Seattle Pacific 3-0 9-6
Western Washington 3-1 10-5
Northwest Nazarene 3-2 10-6
Montana State Billings 3-2 9-7
Alaska Anchorage 2-2 10-6
Western Oregon 2-2 5-10
Alaska Fairbanks 1-2 7-7
Central Washington 1-3 9-6
Saint Martin's 0-4 1-10
