THE SCHEDULE
Tuesday, Sept. 16                 Saint Martin's at Seattle Pacific, 7:00 p.m.
                                                Brougham Pavilion (2,650) / Seattle, Wash.
                                                Live Webcast        Live stats
 
Thursday, Sept. 18                Western Oregon at Seattle Pacific, 7:00 p.m.
                                                Brougham Pavilion (2,650) / Seattle, Wash.
                                                Live Webcast        Live stats
 
Saturday, Sept. 20                Seattle Pacific at Ak. Fairbanks, 8:00 p.m. PDT
                                               The Patty Center / Fairbanks, Alaska
                                               Live Webcast        Live stats
 
Monday, Sept. 22                 Seattle Pacific at Ak. Anchorage, 8:00 p.m. PDT
                                               Alaska Airlines Center / Anchorage, Alaska
                                               Live Webcast        Live stats
 
               
        Weekly release, with complete updated stats (PDF)
 
SEATTLE – The matches were important enough during a pair of preseason tournaments.
 
Now, they get even more important for the Seattle Pacific volleyball team.
 
The Falcons begin the Great Northwest Athletic Conference portion of their season this week, opening at home on Tuesday night against Saint Martin's at 7:00 in Brougham Pavilion. The Saints will be followed by Western Oregon on Thursday at 7.
 
SPU is back in town following a trip to California for last week's Pacific West-GNAC Crossover tournament. The Falcons won three out of four in San Rafael, and, having also won three out of four in their own season-opening tournament in Brougham the previous week, bring a 6-2 record into conference play.
 
UNUSUAL SCHEDULE
A Tuesday home GNAC match isn't the only schedule quirk for the next two weeks.
 
After Thursday's match against Western Oregon, the Falcons will fly off north to play at Alaska Fairbanks on Saturday and Alaska Anchorage next Monday. Then, it's back home to take on arch-rival and preseason conference favorite Western Washington on Thursday, Sept. 25, and Simon Fraser on Saturday the 27^th.
 
Altogether, that will make six conference contests in a span of 12 days. That schedule was result of GNAC schools wanting to play in a second and final preseason tournament. With the regular season ending on Nov. 15, the only way to play a full double round-robin schedule was to plan for two busier-than-normal weeks at the outset of the calendar.
 
FOLLOW IT LIVE
Live stats and free live Webcasts will be available for all GNAC matches. The Webcasts will be through Stretch Internet, the official Internet provider of the conference. Appropriate links to both the Webcasts and stats can be found at the top of this story.
 
TICKET TALK      
Tickets for home matches can be purchased at the door on match days. Prices are $6 for adults and $3 for youths, students, and seniors (65 and older). Complimentary programs are available at the entrance to the gym.
 
FALCONS PICKED 5^TH IN GNAC
Seattle Pacific was voted for a fifth-place finish in the standings by the GNAC coaches in their annual preseason poll. The Falcons, coming off a 15-11 season (11-7 in the conference, tying for fourth place) received 52 points in the voting, one point behind fourth-place Central Washington.
               
Defending champion Western Washington was picked as the favorite to win it again. The Vikings received eight of the 10 first-place votes and 80 points. Alaska Anchorage was tabbed for second with one first-place vote and 70 points, while Northwest Nazarene was right behind in third with the other first-place vote and 69 points.
 
Through the two weeks of preseason tournament play, NNU and Central Washington, picked for third and fourth, respectively have the best overall records at 7-1, with Western right behind at 7-2. SPU is part of a three-way tie at 6-2 with Anchorage and Simon Fraser.
 
BIONDI NABS GNAC AWARD
Sara Biondi, coming off SPU's first triple-double in seven years, has been named the GNAC co-Offensive Player of the Week.
 
In last Thursday's five-game victory against Academy of Art at the Pacific West-GNAC Crossover tournament, the 5-foot-10 senior setter had 12 kills, 41 assists, and 18 digs. The kills and digs totals were both career highs, as was her total of 19 attacks in that match, in which she hit .526. It was the first SPU triple-double in seven years.
 
The next afternoon in a four-game win against Chaminade, Biondi (Sacramento, Calif.) had four service aces – another career high. In the four matches combined, she finished with 143 assists, 38 digs, 28 kills, .420 hitting, 6 service aces, and 12 blocks (2 solo). Her season hitting mark of .365 leads the GNAC heading into the start of conference play this week.
 
The award was Biondi's first. She shared it with Northwest Nazarene's Michelle Terpstra, who also had a triple-double, hers also coming on Thursday with 10 kills, 34 assists, and 14 digs against Point Loma Nazarene. Prior to those same-night performances, no GNAC player had posted a triple-double since October of 2012.




SO WHAT'S THE STORY THIS WEEK?
-- The Falcons are 7-6 all-time in GNAC openers. They are 9-4 in conference home openers and 6-7 in road openers.
-- Last year, Seattle Pacific dropped its GNAC overall and road opener at Alaska Anchorage in four games. But the Falcons were victorious in their first conference match at home, downing Simon Fraser in four games.
-- At 6-2 coming out of preseason play, SPU is off to its best start since going 8-0 in 2010 on the way to winning its first 16. The Falcons were 4-4 heading into GNAC matches last year, 3-6 in 2012, and 5-3 in 2011.
-- The longest current winning streak against conference opponents is 24 straight against Saint Martin's. The last victory for the Saints against SPU was a five-game at Lacey in 2001.
-- Seattle Pacific also has a double-digit winning streak against Alaska Fairbanks, having taken 10 in a row from the Nanooks. The last win from UAF was a four-gamer in Brougham Pavilion in 2008.
-- Both of last year's matches against Western Oregon were five-game battles. The Falcons came from 1-0 and 2-1 down to win in Seattle, then saw the Wolves rally from 1-0 and 2-1 deficits in Monmouth before SPU prevailed in five.
-- Falcon players and coaches certainly will be familiar with Western Oregon. The Wolves were in town for the Seattle Pacific Tournament, and scrimmaged for three games against SPU the night before tourney play began. Both teams also were in San Rafael for last week's Pac West-GNAC Crossover.
-- SPU coach Chris Johnson, now in his 10^th season at the helm, is 18-0 against Saint Martin's, 13-5 against Western Oregon, 16-2 against Alaska Fairbanks, and 9-9 against Alaska Anchorage.
 
COACH CHRIS JOHNSON SAYS …
(On some good things he saw last week)
"What I really liked was our aggression and our mentality. It felt like we were focused, very intentional, and we were connected to what was going on mentally and physically and emotionally."

 

(On some things to improve)
"We can always work more on serving and passing. Our out-of-system can be a little better just in terms of getting good swings and making good choices on balls."
 
(On the GNAC)
 "It's a toss-up. We have five or six teams where there's so much parity between us. We're right in the mix. I absolutely like our chances. I believe we can win the conference again, but we have to go out and prove it on the court."
 
SCOUTING THE SAINT MARTIN'S SAINTS: 2-8, 0-0 GNAC
All-time series: SPU leads, 46-5. Current series streak: SPU won 24. Last time: SPU 3, Saint Martin's 1 (18-25, 25-16, 25-20, 25-20; Nov. 14, 2013 at Lacey. Saints on the Web.
Saints in a nutshell: Saint Martin's won a match in each of its two preseason tournaments, including a five-gamer against Lindenwood at last week's CSU Pueblo / UC Colorado Springs Classic. The Saints have come close in two other matches, falling in five games to Northwest University and to Pittsburg State. Senior outside hitter Kristyn Ross is the leading offensive threat for Saint Martin's. She has 99 kills this season, an average of 2.75 per game. She also is the team's leader in service aces with 13. Also putting the ball down with regularity are sophomore outside hitter Brooke Good (68 kills) and redshirt freshman middle blocker Hope Mortensen (62). Another middle blocker, 6-foot-3 sophomore Maddie Knecht, tops the Saints in hitting at .222, and junior Kyra Davidson, also 6-3, has 29 blocks, with five solos.
 
SCOUTING THE WESTERN OREGON WOLVES: 2-6, 0-0 GNAC
All-time series: SPU leads, 24-15. Current series streak: SPU won 2. Last time: SPU 3, WOU 2 (25-20, 23-25, 25-22, 23-25, 15-10; Nov. 16, 2013 at Monmouth, Ore.). Wolves on the Web.
Wolves in a nutshell: Western Oregon, after losing all three of its matches in the Seattle Pacific Tournament on Sept. 4-6, got into the win column with a three-game sweep of Willamette, then logged its first victory against a D2 opponent last Saturday at the Pac West-GNAC Crossover by beating host Dominican in four games. The Wolves have two tough hitters up front. Cherene O'Hara, a 6-foot senior middle blocker, is tops on the team with 75 kills, an average of 2.59 per game. Hannah Deede, a 6-2 senior opposite, has 64 kills for an average of 2.21 per game. Both were tough on SPU last year, as Deede had 21 kills and 11 blocks in the two matches combined, while O'Hara had 20 kills and 6 blocks. O'Hara has 26 blocks this year so far and Deede 19. But leading both of them is 6-0 outside hitter Samantha Moore with 40 blocks to go along with 38 kills.
               
SCOUTING THE ALASKA FAIRBANKS NANOOKS: 0-8, 0-0 GNAC
All-time series: SPU leads, 34-9. Current series streak: SPU won 10. Last time: SPU 3, UAF 0 (25-14, 25-18, 25-14; Nov. 21, 2013 at Seattle). Nanooks on the Web.
Nanooks in a nutshell: The start of the season has been a struggle for Fairbanks, which won just two games in its eight preseason matches: one against Tiffin, and one against St. Edward's. Nanooks opponents have had things going their way offensively, hitting a combined .318. To no one's surprise, Sam Harthun continues to be a force at the net. The 6-foot-1 junior outside hitter from Oregon City has slammed 116 kills (4.46 per game). In addition, Harthun tops Fairbanks in digs with 63. A newcomer also is making an impact, as 5-11 Brooke Mattice, who can play outside or opposite, has 80 kills (3.08 per game). Sophomore middle blocker Lilah Hudson, who stands 6-3, has 15 blocks.
 
SCOUTING THE ALASKA ANCHORAGE SEAWOLVES: 6-2, 0-0 GNAC
All-time series: SPU leads, 28-17. Current series streak: UAA won 2. Last time: UAA 3, SPU 0 (25-20, 25-23, 25-14; Nov. 23, 2013 at Seattle). Seawolves on the Web.
Seawolves in a nutshell: Anchorage made a strong showing at last week's Pac West-GNAC Crossover, winning its first three matches before dropping a tough five-game to Dixie State in the finale. The Seawolves also won a five-gamer, rallying from 1-0 and 2-1 deficits to beat Cal Baptist. So far, UAA has four players with 40 or more kills, led by the 93 of 5-foot-9 junior outside hitter Katelyn Zanders, and the 87 of 5-11 right-sider Julia Mackey. Both are hitting well, with Zanders at .225 and Mackey at .200. The Seawolves are a tough defensive team, with five players in double-digit blocks through the first two weeks of the season. Erin Braun, a 6-0 sophomore, has 31 (4 solo); 5-11 junior Caitlin McInerney has 29 (4 solo), and 6-0 sophomore Kayla McClathery has 26 (5 solo).
 
PAC WEST-GNAC TOURNAMENT REPLAY
-- Sara Biondi posted a triple-double, racking up 41 assists, coming up with 18 digs, and putting down 12 kills – including the match-clincher – as the Falcons fought off Academy of Art in their tournament opener, 25-17, 16-25, 25-23, 18-25, 15-6.
-- Madi Cavell put down 14 kills, and Ellie Britt added 10 – the last of which snapped a 22-22 tie in the final game – as Seattle Pacific hung on to beat Chaminade, 20-25, 25-18, 25-19, 25-22.
-- Cavell had 14 kills, the last of which came on SPU's third try at match point as the Falcons polished off a three-game sweep of host Dominican, 25-21, 25-17, 25-23.
-- Britt had 17 kills and logged her first double-double of the season, but SPU fell short of Fresno Pacific in a match between the tourney's two 3-0 teams, 25-17, 20-25, 25-20, 27-25.
.
DOUBLE-DOUBLE DELIGHTS
While Sara Biondi had the triple-double against Academy of Art, the Falcons had only on double-double last week's four tournament matches, that by Ellie Britt on Saturday against Fresno Pacific. SPU now has five double-doubles for the season.
 
2014 double-doubles:
Madi Cavell (2 season / 16 career): 11K-13D vs. Chico State, Sept. 4; 19K-14D vs. Cal State L.A., Sept. 5).
Sara Biondi (2 season / 3 career): 34A-11D vs. Cal Poly Pomona, Sept. 5; 41A-11D vs. Dixie State, Sept. 6).
Kendall Carver (0 season / 6 career).
Ellie Britt (1 season / 6 career):17K-10D vs. Fresno Pacific, Sept. 13
Lexi Biondi (0 season / 1 career).
 
2014 triple-doubles:
Sara Biondi (1 season / 1 career): 12K-41A-18D vs. Academy of Art, Sept. 11.
 
FREQUENT FLYING FALCONS
SPU players and coaches certainly will rack up the air miles during September. Starting with last week's trip to California, and ending next week when they return from Alaska, the Falcons will have logged 4,572 miles on five different flights.
 
Playing last week at Dominican University in San Rafael, the team flew from Sea-Tac to San Francisco (680 miles), then flew out of Oakland back to Seattle (678). On Friday, they'll head to Fairbanks (1,519), then will make the short hop to Anchorage (259) before finally returning home (1,436).

 

TOP 5 IN SIGHT FOR LEENDERS
Senior libero Brianna Leenders (Gresham, Ore.), who led the Pac West-GNAC Crossover tournament in digs per game last week (8.44 per game, 135 total) is now just 81 digs away from taking over the No. 5 spot on the SPU career list for that statistical category.
 
Leenders comes into the week with 1,259 digs. Currently occupying the fifth run on the ladder is Stephanie Huffman with 1,339 from 1997-2000.
 
Once she gets to No. 5, expect Leenders to climb a couple more places very quickly. Tiffany Butac is currently No. 4 (1,379 from 2003-06), and Leilani Kamahoahoa is No. 3 (1,397 from 1998-2001).
 
DEE-FENSE, DEE-FENSE
Even on a day when not as many balls as they would like are finding the floor, the Falcons have shown they can make up for it with some strong defensive play, as they did in their two Friday matches last week.
 
In a four-set win against Chaminade, SPU hit just .127, but limited the Silverswords to .091. In fact, after Chaminade lit it up with .419 hitting in Game 1, its subsequent games were .118, .031, and minus-.171.
 
Later, in a three-game sweep of host Dominican, the Falcons hit at .190, and kept the Penguins to .090, with two of those games below .100.
 
REWRITING THEIR BOOKS
Sara Biondi and sophomore middle blocker Maddi Hommes both did a number on their career-high numbers last week.
 
Biondi had four new career highs: 12 kills, 19 attacks, and 18 digs (all against Academy of Art), and four service aces (against Chaminade).
 
Hommes (Lynden, Wash. / Lynden HS) went one better with five career highs. Hers included seven kills (Academy of Art), 15 attacks (Chaminade) and two digs (Dominican). She also recorded her first-ever SPU assist and solo block. In addition, she tied her career high with four block assists / total blocks against Dominican.
 
NEWBIES GET INTO THE ACTION
After very limited playing time during the first week of competition, junior Luisa McInnis and freshman Colleen Hannigan both played a bigger role when they got onto the court last Friday against Dominican.
 

McInnis (Santa Rosa, Calif.), started and played all three games, finishing with three kills, two assists, and three block assists. The two-assist total was a career high, thereby marking the first time she has erased one of her single-match bests established during the past two seasons at Santa Rosa Junior College.
 
Hannigan got into just one game, but had three kills and hit .600 in an error-free outing. She also served up her first collegiate ace.
 
GNAC HAS WEST'S UPPER HAND
Schools from the GNAC finished with a winning non-conference record against their West Region counterparts from the California Collegiate Athletic Association and the Pacific West Conference in preseason tournaments.
 
During the first week of September in tournaments at Seattle Pacific and Central Washington, the GNAC went 10-8 against the CCAA and 1-0 against the Pac West.
 
Last week, in addition to a pair of single GNAC-Pac West contests, the two conferences linked up for 32 matches at two different venues in the Pac West-GNAC Crossover. In those, the GNAC went 20-12 for a final mark of 22-13.
 
MILESTONES IN THE MAKING
100^th block            Jessica Boyle (has 93)
300^th dig                Sara Biondi (has 268)
                               Ellie Britt (has 281)
300^th point            Jessica Boyle (has 298.0)
400^th kill                Jessica Miller (has 395)
400^th point            Ellie Britt (has 388.0)
500^th point            Jessica Miller (has 451.5)
600^th dig               Breanne Wiekamp (has 561)
900^th point            Madi Cavell (has 843.5)
1,340^th dig*           Brianna Leenders (has 1,259)
                              *Needs 1,340 to move into No. 5 on SPU career list.
               
MILESTONES MADE LAST WEEK
300^th kill                 Ellie Britt (has 331)
500^th dig                Madi Cavell (has 502)
700^th kill                 Madi Cavell (has 703)
1,200^th dig             Brianna Leenders (has 1,259)
1,500^th assist        Sara Biondi (has 1,630)    
 
UP NEXT
After returning home from Alaska, the Falcons will get ready to play host to Western Washington and Simon Fraser. The Vikings will visit Brougham Pavilion on Thursday, Sept. 25, and the Clan will be in town on Saturday the 27^th. Both matches will start at 7:30, half an hour later than normal because of freshman orientation activities taking place that week.
 
 
GNAC STANDINGS
                                           GNAC    Overall
Central Washington              0-0           7-1
Northwest Nazarene             0-0           7-1
Western Washington            0-0           7-2
Alaska Anchorage                0-0           6-2
Seattle Pacific                      0-0           6-2
Simon Fraser                       0-0           6-2
Montana State Billings         0-0           5-3
Western Oregon                  0-0           2-6
Saint Martin's                       0-0           2-8
Alaska Fairbanks                 0-0           0-8