SEASIDE INVITATIONAL SCHEDULE
Friday, Sept. 1                      Seattle Pacific vs. Lewis, 10:00 a.m.
                                       The Sports Center / San Marcos, Calif.
                                       Live Webcast        Live stats
 
                                       Seattle Pacific at Point Loma Nazarene, 5:00 p.m.
                                       Golden Gymnasium / San Diego, Calif.
                                       Live Webcast        Live stats
 
Saturday, Sept. 2                 Seattle Pacific vs. Biola, 9:00 a.m.
                                              Seattle Pacific vs. Cal State San Marcos, 2:00 p.m.
                                       Golden Gymnasium / San Diego, Calif.
                                       Live Webcast        Live stats
 
EXHIBITION SCHEDULE
Tuesday, Sept. 5                  Seattle Pacific at Vanguard, 6:00 p.m.
                                       Cavalry Chapel High School / Santa Ana, Calif.
                                       No live Webcast        No live stats
 
 
SEATTLE – From the coaching staff to the front row to the back row, the Seattle Pacific Falcons bring a load of talent and experience into the 2023 season.
 
And they're looking to make it a season to remember.
 
With head coach Jason Rhine beginning his second year at the helm, SPU opens the fall campaign this weekend with a trip to California for the Seaside Invitational.
 
The four-match schedule for the Falcons begins on Friday against 2022 NCAA Tournament qualifier Lewis University. That match will be played at Cal State San Marcos, beginning at 10:00 a.m.
 
SPU's other three tournament matches will be played in Point Loma Nazarene's Golden Gymnasium. The first of those will be on Friday against the host Sea Lions, with the first serve at 5:00 p.m.

On Saturday, the Falcons tangle with Biola at 9:00 a.m., then conclude the tournament at 2:00 p.m. against Cal State San Marcos.
 
As part of a season-opening nine-match stay in Southern California, Seattle Pacific visits Vanguard for an exhibition match next Tuesday, Sept. 5, in Santa Ana. Play begins at 6:00 p.m.
 
FOLLOW IT LIVE
All four tournament matches will have free live stats available. The appropriate link is at the top of this story. Live Webcasts from both San Marcos and from Point Loma will be available on a pay-per-view basis. Those inks also can be found at the top of this story. No live Webcast or live stats will be available from the Vanguard match.
 
A TOP-3 FINISH PREDICTED FOR FALCONS
Seattle Pacific was  picked for a third-place finish in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference in the preseason coaches poll that was announced on Aug. 16.
 
The Falcons received 72 points in the voting, putting them one point ahead of No. 4 Simon Fraser. Central Washington was a unanimous selection at No. 1, receiving all 10 first-place votes and 100 points. Western Washington was second with 85 points. Defending champion Alaska Anchorage was picked No. 5 with 61 points.
 
It is SPU's highest preseason ranking since coming in No. 4 in 2012. In addition, the Falcons are in the top three for the first time since 2011, when they were picked No. 1.
 
Seattle Pacific was on the "receiving votes" list in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) preseason poll. The Falcons picked up three points. Defending national champion West Texas A&M is No. 1. From the GNAC, Alaska Anchorage is No. 14, Western Washington is No. 15, and Central Washington received votes (61 points, ranking No. 32).
 
HAIR, WILKS AMONG GNAC'S ELITE 14
Falcons senior middle blockers Hannah Hair and Allison Wilks have been voted to the Preseason All-GNAC team by the conference's 10 coaches.

Hair is on the squad for the third straight year – and all three times, it has been unanimous. She also has been named to the postseason All-GNAC team tbe past two seasons, both times unanimously.
 
Wilks made the preseason squad for the first time. Last fall, she earned a place on the All-GNAC honorable mention list, also for the first time.
 
Central Washington setter Tia Andaya was voted as the Preseason Player of the Year.
 




SO WHAT'S THE STORY THIS WEEK?
-- The opening matches this week will mark the start of the 38th season of SPU volleyball.
-- Including last year's 13-13 record, the Falcons are now 613-484 all-time (.559).
-- When SPU faces Biola on Saturday, it will be the 1,100th match in program history.
-- Seattle Pacific is 21-16 in season openers. That includes last year's 3-0 sweep of preseason No. 15-ranked Winona State at the Concordia St. Paul-St. Cloud State
-- Speaking of sweeps, Seattle Pacific was involved in 11 of those last season, going 4-7.
-- At the other end of the spectrum were the five-setters. The Falcons had seven of those, winning three, including a dramatic come-from-behind victory against Biola at the Cal State L.A. Invitational.-- The Falcons have faced all four of this weekend's opponents in previous seasons – but never very often. They've played Lewis, Point Loma Nazarene, and Biola two times each, and Cal State San Marcos once.
-- Next Tuesday's match at Vanguard is an exhibition. The Lions are in the first year of their transition to NCAA Division II, but are still playing primarily an NAIA schedule this season.
-- SPU went 7-10 away from Seattle last fall: 5-7 in true road matches and 2-3 on neutral courts. This weekend, Point Loma will count as a road match; the other three will be neutral. The Vanguard match, regardless of outcome, will not factor into the record.
-- A particular focus for the Falcons this fall will be getting off to a better start. Of last year's 26 matches, they won the opening set in just seven of them – and went on to win the match all seven times.
-- That, of course, means they came back from an opening-set loss in their other six victories.
-- Among other factors in Seattle Pacific's favor was keeping opponents below .200 hitting (11-1), serving more aces (9-3) and totaling more blocks (8-2).
-- The match between Point Loma and Seattle Pacific will pit the two teams that just missed out on last year's NCAA West Region tournament. With the top eight teams in the final West rankings earning a berth, PLNU finished No. 9, and SPU was No. 10.
 
SCOUTING THE LEWIS FLYERS: 22-9, 8-4 Great Lakes Valley (tie 4th)
All-time series: Tied, 1-1.  Current series streak: Lewis won 1.  Last time: Lewis 3, SPU 0 (25-17, 25-22, 25-17; Sept. 5, 2015 at Los Angeles).  Last SPU series win: SPU 3, Lewis 0 (15-10, 15-5, 15-4; Sept. 30, 1996 at Seattle).  Flyers on the Web.
Flyers in a nutshell: Lewis, listed as "receiving votes" in the AVCA preseason poll, returns nearly every key player who helped the team go 22-9 last year, win the Great Lakes Valley Conference tournament and reach the NCAA Midwest Regionals. Leading the way are three players who each put 300-plus kills onto the scoresheet: senior 6-foot-2 middle blocker Bella Ray (361), senior 5-11 outside hitter Megan Schlechte (328), and senior 5-11 opposite Juliana Van Loo (324). Ray, who hit .288, also was the team's leading blocker with 155 (27 solo), and Van Loo, who hit .284, got her hands on 63 total blocks. Putting them in position for all of those kills is 5-10 setter Lauren Stenman, now a senior. She totaled 1,035 assists, along with 247 digs, 64 blocks, 84 kills, and 21 service aces. Senior 5-11 outside / opposite Natalie Stafnnski added 229 kills, 342 digs, and 50 blocks.
 
SCOUTING THE POINT LOMA NAZARENE SEA LIONS: 20-8, 15-5 Pac West (tie 2nd)
All-time series: PLNU leads, 2-0.  Current series streak: PLNU won 2.  Last time:  PLNU 3, SPU 1 (25-21, 22-25, 25-17, 25-15; Sept. 7, 2019 at San Diego).  Last SPU series win: None.  Sea Lions on the Web.
Sea Lions in a nutshell: Even with its outstanding record last fall, Point Loma Nazarene fell just short of making the NCAAs. The Sea Lions return practically everyone from that team for another shot at it. Sophomore 5-foot-10 outside hitter Abigail Nua hammered 469 kills, leading the Pac West on the way to conference Freshman of the Year and AVCA third-team All-American honors – and she hit .234 in doing it. Nua also had 258 digs (tops among the returners) and 58 blocks (16 solos), racking up a noteworthy 535.0 points. Torina Hommes, a senior 6-foot outside hitter, had 250 kills on .315 hitting and recorded a team-high 96 blocks, with 17 solos. Returning to set up the offense is junior Lauren Phillips, who totaled 966 assists (No. 2 in the Pac West at 9.29), along with 35 blocks and 27 service aces.
 
SCOUTING THE BIOLA EAGLES: 17-10, 14-6 Pac West (tie 4th)
All-time series: SPU leads, 2-0.  Current series streak: SPU won 2.  Last time: SPU 3, Biola 2 (22-25, 26-28, 26-24, 25-16, 15-11; Sept 2, 2022 at Los Angeles).  Last Biola series win: None.  Eagles on the Web.
Eagles in a nutshell: Biola graduated its two top offensive threats in Anna Aubele (346 kills) and Madison Beebe (237). Back on the court is 5-foot-10 redshirt senior outside hitter Dominique Kirton, who found the floor 155 times. Abigail Copeland, a senior 6-2 middle blocker, had 137 kills on .243 hitting, and was huge on the block with 99 total, including 34 solos. Her 0.99 per-set average ranked No. 5 in the Pacific West. While now-departed Aubele led the Eagles with 41 service aces, they have three returning who delivered 25 apiece: sophomore defensive specialist Bri Bellfi, twin sister Beth, and redshirt senior setter Abby Brewster. Along with her aces, Brewster racked up a conference-leading 976 assists, and also recorded 236 digs.
 
SCOUTING THE CAL STATE SAN MARCOS COUGARS: 8-17, 7-11 CCAA (8th)
All-time series: SPU leads, 1-0.  Current series streak: SPU won 1.  Last time: SPU 3, CSSM 1 (16-25, 25-16, 25-14, 25-19; Sept. 9, 2017 at Monmouth, Ore.).  Last CSSM series win: None.  Cougars on the Web.
Cougars in a nutshell: San Marcos returns its top two offensive threats from last year in 6-foot outside hitter Sofia Hedqvist, a junior, and 5-11 outside Trinity Barr, a redshirt senior. Hedqvist put 218 kills onto the floor, and Barr was right behind her with 208. Also returning is junior 5-6 libero Mia Christensen, who led the team with 219 digs and 21 service aces. Kelli Miechowicz, a redshirt junior 6-3 middle blocker, logged 40 blocks last year, With leading setter Madison Turner having moved on after averaging 7.05 assists last fall, 6-1 sophomore Kylie Bartel, who averaged 4.41, is in position, is the leading returner.
 
SCOUTING THE 2023 FALCONS
With head coach Jason Rhine beginning his second season in charge of the program, Seattle Pacific returns one of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference's most experienced squads
.
 

Leading the way is two-time All-GNAC unanimous first-team selection Hannah Hair. A senior 6-foot-1 middle blocker (junior in eligibility due to the pandemic shutdown in 2020), Hair averaged 1.06 blocks per set in 2022 and hit a career-best .345.

 

Joining her in the middle is Allison Wilks, also a senior with junior eligibility. The 6-1 Wilks had a breakout season last fall, starting 24 of the 26 matches, playing all 100 sets, and earning All-GNAC honorable mention recognition. She recorded single-season career bests of 97 total blocks, 127 kills, and a team-leading 38 service aces.

 

Also back along the front row for Seattle Pacific are outside hitter / opposites Sarah Brachvogel and Sydney Perry, middle blocker Erin Smith, and opposite Maddie Pruden. All four are seniors with junior eligibility.
 
 

Brachvogel had by far her best-ever season last fall with 175 kills, 42 blocks, 31 aces, and 228.5 total points. Perry hammered 106 kills and got her hands on 24 blocks. Smith posted career-best numbers with 105 kills, 45 blocks, and 129 total points. Pruden, in playing all 100 sets and starting 25 of the 26 matches, put 205 kills onto the floor (second-highest on the team), factored into 62 blocks and notched 237.0 points, all of which were career-bests.
 
 

Emily Tulino returns at setter. Now a junior, she led the Falcons with 476 assists in 2022, splitting time with now-graduated Lindsey Lambert. Tulino also came up with 222 digs, the No. 2 total on the team, and delivered 20 service aces.
 
 

Abigail Cunningham, another junior, is back at libero. She played in all but one match and led Seattle Pacific with 357 digs (3.76 per set). In addition to her defensive skills, Cunningham racked up 101 assists and served 21 aces.
 
Libero / defensive specialist Zoe Shuckhart, outside hitter Sarah Day, and middle blocker Brianna Ingram round out SPU's returners.
 
The Falcons have a group of five newcomers. One of those is sophomore outside hitter Anna Pelluer. A native of Redmond just across Lake Washington from Seattle, the 6-footer saw limited action at Idaho last season before making the move back closer to home.
 
The other four are freshmen from various locations around the country. Coco Barnett, a 5-11 opposite, and Avery Veenendall, a 5-8 setter, both hail from Wisconsin. Sophia Chambers is a 5-9 setter from Texas, and Christina Lopez is a 5-4 libero from Arizona. Each of the four was an all-conference player. Lopez helped her Valley Vista High School team win the regional championship. Chambers was the district co-MVP and an All-Area Utility MVP.
 
DOUBLE-DOUBLE DELIGHTS
The Falcons recorded 20 double-doubles in 2022 – and setter Emily Tulino had 11 of those, including three in a row to wrap up the season. She is now up to 14 for her career (all assist / dig).
 
The only other returner with double-doubles is senior middle blocker Hannah Hair. She recorded one last year and has three for her career, all kill / block.
 
Along with Tulino, the other Falcons with double-doubles last fall were now-graduated Ashley Antoniak (four) and Lindsey Lambert (four). Antoniak concluded her career with five, and Lambert had 21.
 
ACROSS THE USA
Over the years, the vast majority of Seattle Pacific's players have come from along the West Coast – Washington, Oregon, and California. Several also have come from Arizona and Colorado, with a combined handful from Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, and New Mexico.
 
But in this fall's class of four freshmen, two other states are now being represented on the roster for the first time..
 
 

Coco Barnett and Avery Veenendall are both from Wisconsin – Barnett from Fitchburg, in the south central part of the state, and Veenendall from La Crosse, along the western border in the southern part. Sophia Chambers hails from Justin, Texas in the upper northeastern part of the state, and considered an outer suburb of Fort Worth.
 
Prior to those three, the farthest east any Falcon had come from was Tulsa, Oklahoma – and that is libero Abigail Cunningham, now beginning her junior season. She is the first SPU player from the Sooner State.
 
MEANWHILE, CLOSER TO HOME …
 

Seattle Pacific's other newcomer this fall is sophomore outside hitter Anna Pelluer. A native of nearby Redmond and a graduate of Lake Washington High School, Pelluer saw limited playing time last year at Idaho, then decided to come back closer to where she grew up and join the Falcons.
 
If the Pelluer name sounds familiar, there's a reason for that: Her father, Steve, played quarterback at the University of Washington from 1980-83, then had a 14-year professional career, including five seasons with the Dallas Cowboys and three with the Kansas City Chiefs.
 
MILESTONES IN THE MAKING
Several Falcons are on the brink of reaching significant statistical milestones.
 
100th block            Sydney Perry (has 93)
100th dig                Sarah Brachvogel (has 89)
                             Brianna Ingram (has 97)
200th assist           Abigail Cunningham (has 160)
300th kill               Sydney Perry (has 286)
                             Allison Wilks (has 276)
500th kill               Maddie Pruden (has 498)
600th dig               Abigail Cunningham (has 561)
600th kill               Hannah Hair (has 568)
 
A pair of milestones were reached in last year's season finale against Western Washington when Erin Smith recorded her 200th kill and Allison Wilks picked up her 200th block. In the match against Simon Fraser two nights earlier, Smith logged her 100th block, and Emily Tulino set up her 1,000th assist.
 
AROUND THE WEST
Cal State Los Angeles, which went all the way to the NCAA semifinals last season, is the favorite in the California Collegiate Athletic Association. The Golden Eagles received nine of the 12 first-place votes and 141 points in the polling. Cal Poly Pomona is next in line with two first-places and 130 points, while perennial power Cal State San Bernardino picked up one first and 121 points.
 
Chaminade is regarded as the team to beat in the Pacific West Conference. The Silverswords went all the way to the West Region final (Sweet 16) last year, even though they came as the No. 8 seed among the eight teams. Chaminade garnered 10 of the 11 first-place votes and 120 points. Point Loma Nazarene is second with 102 points. The other first-place vote went to Azusa Pacific, but the Cougars were picked fifth overall with 78.
 
UP NEXT
After this week's tournament in San Diego and Tuesday's exhibition in Costa Mesa against Vanguard, the Falcons will remain in Southern California for the Cougar Classic, set for next Friday and Saturday, Sept. 8 and 9, at Cal State San Marcos. SPU will have two matches each day, facing Concordia Irvine at 11:00 a.m. and host San Maros at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. Then, it will be St. Edward's of Texas at 10:00 a.m. and preseason No. 22-ranked Colorado School of Mines at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday.