THE SCHEDULE
Thursday, Nov. 19              Western Washington at Seattle Pacific, 7:00 p.m.
                                                Brougham Pavilion (2,650) / Seattle, Wash.
                                                Live Webcast        Live stats
 
Saturday, Nov. 21              Simon Fraser at Seattle Pacific, 7:00 p.m.
                                                Brougham Pavilion (2,650) / Seattle, Wash.
                                                Live Webcast        Live stats
 
 
        Weekly release, with complete updated stats (PDF)
 
SEATTLE – It wasn't quite three months ago when the curtain went up on the 2015 volleyball season went up in Brougham Pavilion.
 
This week, it comes down in the same place.
 
The Seattle Pacific Falcons will wrap up their 2015 schedule when they step onto their home court this week for Great Northwest Athletic Conference contests against Western Washington and Simon Fraser. The arch-rival Vikings call on Thursday at 7:00 p.m., and the Clan make their visit on Saturday, also at 7:00 p.m.
  
SPU served it up for the first time on Aug. 27 with a 3-0 sweep of British Columbia in an exhibition match. Since then, the Falcons have played in two preseason tournaments, followed by 18 conference contests, with Nos. 19 and 20 coming up.
 
Of Seattle Pacific's seven victories this fall, five have come in Brougham. That includes the most recent one, a sweep of Saint Martin's on Nov. 3.
 
FOLLOW IT LIVE
Free Webcasts and free live stats will be available for all GNAC matches, home and away. The appropriate links can be found at the top of this story.
 
SENIOR NIGHT SET FOR SATURDAY
Appropriately, the Falcons will be in their maroon uniforms when they take the floor against Simon Fraser on Saturday night.
 
It'll be the last time SPU's seniors get to don their school colors, and their contributions to the program will be saluted with a Senior Night ceremony prior to the first serve against the Clan.
 
Middle blockers Jessica Boyle and Luisa McInnis, both of whom have been with the team for two years, and four-year members Ellie Britt and Breanne Wiekamp will be joined by their teammates, family members, friends, and classmates as they bring their collegiate careers to a close.
 
For some additional notes on the four seniors, please see the first item in this story following the two scouting reports.





SO WHAT'S THE STORY THIS WEEK?
-- SPU came up short against both teams on the road in September. Simon Fraser won a five-gamer on Sept. 17, rallying from two games down, and Western Washington swept on Sept. 19.
 

-- It's a rare night when someone other than senior libero Breanne Wiekamp leads SPU in digs. But that happened in the Sept. 19 match at Western Washington when freshman libero Amanda Ganete (photo right) topped the Falcons with 15. That was the second-highest total of the season for Ganete, exceeded only by the 16 she had two nights earlier at Simon Fraser.
-- Senior outside hitter Ellie Britt hit a season-high (and error-free) .417 in the September match at Western Washington, with 10 kills on 24 attacks.
-- The fact that the SPU-Simon Fraser on Sept. 17 in Burnaby, B.C., went five games led to big statistical numbers. Among those season-highs for the Falcons: 62 kills (exceeded since by the 64 against Montana State Billings on Oct. 10), 215 attacks (still stands), 59 assists (still stands), and 101 digs (still stands).
-- Simon Fraser split four matches in Brougham Pavilion during the GNAC-Pacific West Crossover tourney in September. One of those was an epic – and entertaining – five-gamer against Hawaii Pacific, won by the Clan, 39-37, 25-16, 21-25, 32-34, 15-11. It went 2 hours and 45 minutes.
-- Falcons coach Chris Johnson is 9-13 against Western Washington and head coach Diane Flick.
-- Johnson's teams have gone 8-3 against Simon Fraser, including 4-3 against Clan head coach Gina Schmidt.
 
SCOUTING THE WESTERN WASHINGTON VIKINGS: 21-5, 15-3 GNAC (2^nd)
All-time series: WWU leads, 41-26. Current series streak: WWU won 3. Last time: WWU 3, SPU 0 (25-17, 25-21, 25-23; Sept. 19 at Bellingham. Vikings on the Web.
Vikings in a nutshell: Western will come into Brougham very eager to get back on track after being swept at home by Alaska Anchorage last Saturday night. The Vikings now trail UAA by one match with only this week's final two remaining. Even so, they're essentially a shoo-in to make the NCAA Tournament. At .253, Western Washington ranks No. 2 in the GNAC and No. 16 nationally in attack percentage. Factored in is a .304 mark against SPU two months ago in Bellingham. Leading the way are 6-foot-3 redshirt freshman middle blocker Kayleigh Harper (.334), 6-1 senior outside hitter Rachel Roeder (.287), and 5-11 senior opposite Jennica McPherson (.286). Roeder was nearly flawless against SPU in September, hitting .581 with 19 kills and just one error on 31 attacks. No surprise that Harper also is the third-best blocker in the conference at an average of 1.38 per game. Her 127 total blocks includes a GNAC-leading 23 solos. McPherson is tough on the serve, with 31 aces.
               
SCOUTING THE SIMON FRASER CLAN: 13-13, 9-9 GNAC (tie 5th)
All-time series: SPU leads, 26-12. Current series streak: SFU won 3. Last time: SFU 3, SPU 2 (19-25, 22-25, 25-21, 25-20, 16-14; Sept. 17 at Burnaby, B.C.). Clan on the Web.
Clan in a nutshell: After a stretch during which it dropped four of five matches, Simon Fraser enters the week having won four of its last five, the only loss being a four-gamer at home to Alaska Anchorage last Thursday. Led by the May sisters – 5-9 junior outside hitter Devon, and 6-3 freshman middle blocker Tessa – Simon Fraser gets things done with a team effort. Tessa May ranks as the seventh-best hitter in the GNAC at .288, and has put a team-leading 251 kills on the floor. She also is the team's best blocker with 117, with a dozen of those solos. Devon May is next in kills for the Clan with 228, and also is solid defensively with 246 digs. Sophomore outside hitter Christine Howlett (198) and junior outside hitter Emma Jennings (187) both could be at or above 200 kills by the time they get to Seattle on Saturday. In that 2-hour, 23-minute five-game match in September at Burnaby, Howlett had 18 kills, Devon May double-doubled with 17 kills and 19 digs, and Tessa May hit .393 in putting down 12 kills with just one attack error. Junior libero Alison McKay has come up with 604 digs and delivered 27 service aces, both team highs.
 
SALUTING THE SENIORS
A pair of them have been here all four years. Another pair came to the shores of the Ship Canal after starting their college careers at two-year schools. A look at the contributions that Jessica Boyle, Ellie Britt, Luisa McInnis, and Breanne Wiekamp have made to the SPU program:

 
Jessica Boyle arrived in Brougham Pavilion following two years at Edmonds Community College. She has played in 25 games this season with 21 blocks. Between Edmonds and Seattle Pacific, Boyle has more than 200 career kills and more than 100 total blocks. Earlier this fall, she put the 300th point of her career into the book. She is a communications major with a 3.17 GPA.


Ellie Britt is putting up some of the best numbers of her career this fall. Her 198 kills to start the week is  single-season high, and she has moved past 600 kills for her career. Her 15 aces are a single-season best. Earlier this fall, she recorded her 100th career block, and her 500th, 600th, and 700th career points. Britt is a three-time GNAC All-Academic honoree with a 3.48 GPA as a clothing & textiles major and art minor.

Luisa McInnis joined the Falcons in 2014 after two seasons at Santa Rosa JC. After recording 32 in 42 sets as a junior, McInnis missed the first few matches this year with an injury. But the middle blocker has been a factor at the net since returning to action in late September. In the 50 games she has played coming into this week, she has 59 kills and 50 total blocks. Her blocks total includes a career-high 10 against Northwest Nazarene on Oct. 17. Earlier this month, McInnis recorded her 500th career point. She is a communications major with a minor in psychology and has a 3.47 GPA. 


Breanne Wiekamp has been a steady presence in the SPU lineup, even before she became the full-time libero this year. She became just the eighth player in program history to come up with more than 1,000 career digs, and enters her final competitive weekend just eight digs away from the No. 7 spot on SPU's list. Wiekamp also is on the brink of being just the second Falcon all-time to play every possible set of her career. She has a 3.41 GPA as a biology major and is a two-time GNAC All-Academic selection.
 
FALCONS REPLAY
– Symone Tran racked up her 11th double-double, and Hannah Lautenbach put down 12 kills, but SPU, despite winning Game 1 and hanging close through the middle two games, dropped a four-game decision to Northwest Nazarene last Thursday in Nampa, 23-25, 25-21, 25-21, 25-13.
– Lexi Biondi had 11 kills, and Breanne Wiekamp came up with 19 digs in just three games, but Central Washington swept Seattle Pacific last Saturday in Ellensburg, 25-16, 25-20, 25-15.
               
DOUBLE-DOUBLE DELIGHTS
Freshman setter Symone Tran was back in the double-double column for the Falcons last week, posting 32 assists and 17 digs in a four-gamer at Northwest Nazarene. The Falcons now have 15 double-doubles for the season: 11 for Symone Tran (all assist-dig), three for Hannah Lautenbach (kill-dig), and one for Shaun Crespi (kill-block).
                               
2015 double-doubles:
Shaun Crespi (1 season / 1 career)
10K-10BA vs. Alaska Fairbanks, Oct. 29
 
Hannah Lautenbach (3 season / 4 career):
11K-15D vs. Academy of Art, Sept. 11;
19K-20D at Simon Fraser, Sept. 17;
17K-17D vs. Northwest Nazarene, Oct.17.
 
Symone Tran (11 season / 11 career):
20 AST-11D vs. Azusa Pacific, Sept. 10;
25 AST-11D vs. Hawaii Pacific, Sept. 12;
51 AST-15D at Simon Fraser, Sept. 17;
32 AST-10D vs. Concordia, Sept. 24;
37 AST-13D vs. Western Oregon, Sept. 26;
34 AST-10D at Alaska Fairbanks, Oct. 3;
51 AST-12D vs. Northwest Nazarene, Oct. 17;
39 AST-11D at Western Oregon, Oct. 22
28 AST-11D at Concordia, Oct. 24;
39 AST-13D vs. Alaska Fairbanks, Oct. 29;
32 AST-17D at Northwest Nazarene, Nov. 12.
 
MILESTONE MOMENTS
With two matches left, some individual statistical milestones are still do-able:
 
-- Ellie Britt is two kills away from 200 for the season. That would be her first 200-kill season for SPU after coming close (191) as a sophomore in 2013.
-- Freshman middle blocker Shaun Crespi is 16.5 points away from 200 for the season.
-- Luisa McInnis is 14 kills away from 400 and 13 total blocks away from 200.
-- Symone Tran needs just 25 assists to reach 800.
-- Breanne Wiekamp needs just eight digs to move up to No. 7 on SPU's all-time list, a spot currently belonging to Danielle Dettorre, who had 1,192 from 1996-99. Wiekamp needs 14 more to make it her first 500-dig season.
 
AROUND THE WEST
Alaska Anchorage's three-game sweep of Western Washington in Bellingham last week gives the Seawolves the inside track toward the GNAC title and the accompanying automatic qualifying spot in the NCAA Tournament. UAA closes at home this week against Concordia and Western Oregon, while Western heads to Saint Martin's on Saturday after Thursday night's match at SPU.
 
Anchorage (24-2 overall), Western (21-5) and Central Washington (19-6) were 1-2-3 in last week's NCAA West Region rankings, so they're off to the tourney regardless of what happens this week.
 
Sonoma State (23-3, 19-1 conference) ended the regular season on a 19-match winning streak and won the California Collegiate Athletic Association by two matches ahead of Cal State San Bernardino (24-4, 17-3 conference). The CCAA plays a postseason conference tournament for the automatic NCAA spot, but the Seawolves and Coyotes are both going no matter what.
 
Dixie State has clinched the Pacific West title. The Red Storm (18-9, 15-4 conference) are two ahead of Cal Baptist (20-7, 13-6) and Point Loma Nazarene (19-9, 13-6), with one left to play. Dixie is automatically into NCAAs. Cal Baptist and Point Loma are both on the bubble, their fates hanging in part on what happens in the CCAA tournament.

AROUND THE GNAC
Click on this link for a look at news, notes, results, and stats from around the Great Northwest Athletic Conference.
 
UP NEXT
With the season coming to an end, the emphasis will shift to recruiting and firming up next season's roster. The team will re-convene in the spring for a limited number of practices and informal matches. The 2016 schedule also will be settled by the spring.
 
 
GNAC STANDINGS
                                                             GNAC          Overall
Alaska Anchorage          16-2       22-2
Western Washington        15-3       21-5
Central Washington        15-3       19-6
Northwest Nazarene        14-4       17-9
Concordia                  9-9       17-9
Simon Fraser               9-9       13-13
Western Oregon             5-13        8-19
Seattle Pacific            5-13        7-19
Montana State Billings     5-13        6-21
Alaska Fairbanks           5-13        5-20
Saint Martin's             1-17        2-23