THE SCHEDULE
Thursday, Sept. 21              Northwest Nazarene at Seattle Pacific, 7:00 p.m.
                                                Brougham Pavilion (2,650) / Seattle, Wash.
                                                Live Webcast        Live stats
 
Saturday, Sept. 23               Central Washington at Seattle Pacific, 2:00 p.m.
                                                Brougham Pavilion (2,650) / Seattle, Wash.
                                                Live Webcast        Live stats
 

SEATTLE – There's no place like home.
 
And the Seattle Pacific Falcons finally get to experience that feeling on their own volleyball court.
 
After playing the first 10 matches – and the first there weeks of the season – out of town, SPU gets to serve it up in Brougham Pavilion as they head into the second week of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference schedule.
 
They'll do so against two of the best teams in the conference, as Northwest Nazarene visits on Thursday at 7:00 p.m. and No. 15-ranked Central Washington comes in on Saturday at 2:00 p.m.
 
The Falcons (8-2, 2-0 GNAC) opened conference play last week with 3-0 sweeps at Western Oregon and at Saint Martin's.
 
FOLLOW IT LIVE
All GNAC matches home and away will have free live Webcasts on YouTube, and free live stats. Veteran broadcaster Greg Sexton will call the action for this week's home contests.
 
BEEN AWHILE, HASN'T IT?
After a topsy-turvy first weekend of GNAC play, Seattle Pacific was the only team to win both matches, with closer-than-it-looked 3-0 sweeps at Western Oregon and at Saint Martin's.
 
Saint Martin's had won its opening-night match against Montana State Billings before falling to the Falcons. Preseason favorite Central Washington, along with Northwest Nazarene also won on Thursday, but fell short on Saturday.
 
That means SPU is the only 2-0 team and for the moment (with a very long way still to go) is all alone in first place. Alaska Anchorage is 1-0, having defeated Alaska Fairbanks, 3-0, as part of the Denali State Ice Block Classic in Fairbanks on Sept. 6.
 
The last time the Falcons were by themselves in the top spot was Nov. 12, 2011. Their 3-0 victory at Montana State Billings on the final night of the regular season clinched the crown with a 15-3 record. Western Washington and Alaska Anchorage finished one match behind at 14-4.
 




SO WHAT'S THE STORY THIS WEEK?
-- Seattle Pacific starts the week on a seven-match winning streak. The last time it won that many in a row was in 2010 as part of a 16-0 start to the season. The team had a six-match winning streak last year.
-- Their eight out-of-town victories (three true road matches and five on neutral courts) is already one more than last season when SPU went 7-10 away from Brougham Pavilion.
-- The Falcons went 6-3 at home last year, including a split with this week's opponents. SPU defeated Central Washington, 3-2, but lost to Northwest Nazarene, 3-1.
-- Seattle Pacific won last year's home opener, 3-1 against Alaska Fairbanks.
-- SPU and NNU wound up splitting their 2022 season series, each winning on the other's home court. The Falcons took both from Central.
 

-- By tying her career high with six service aces on Saturday at Saint Martin's, junior setter Emily Tulino took the team lead in that department with 14. Senior middle blocker Allison Wilks has 13.
-- Speaking of 13, that's how many solo blocks senior Hannah Hair now has, most in the GNAC. Hair had two at Western Oregon last Thursday and one at Saint Martin's on Saturday. She has recorded at least one solo in eight of the 10 matches.
-- Saturday's match against Central will feature the top two blockers in the conference. Emma Daoud-Hebert of the Wildcats has 55 total in 36 sets played, an average of 1.53 per set. Hair has 50 in 33 sets, a 1.52. per-set average.
-- Think that's close? The SPU and the  Wildcats are tied for No. 1 in team blocking in the GNAC at 2.67 per set.
-- The Falcons are 6-0 this season when winning Set 1. That now makes it 13 straight times – 7-0 last year and 6-0 so far this year – that they have won the match after winning Set 1.
-- Ironically enough, the last time SPU took the opening set but didn't win the match was against Northwest Nazarene in Nampa on the final day of the 2021 season. The Nighthawks came back to pull out a 3-2 victory.
-- Head coach Jason Rhine is 1-1 against Northwest Nazarene and 2-0 against Central Washington.
 
SCOUTING THE NORTHWEST NAZARENE NIGHTHAWKS: 5-5, 1-1 GNAC (tie 3rd)
All-time series: SPU leads, 25-20.  Current series streak: NNU won 1.  Last time: NNU 3, SPU 1 (25-21, 15-25, 25-20, 25-23; Oct. 22, 2022 at Seattle).  Last SPU series win: SPU 3, NNU 1 (20-25, 25-14, 25-19, 25-23; Sept. 22, 2022 at Nampa).  Nighthawks on the Web.
Nighthawks in a nutshell: NNU had a tale of two tournaments during preseason play, winning all four in the Otter Invitational at Cal State Monterey Bay, but then losing all four in the Cal Poly Pomona / Azusa Pacific Tournament. The Nighthawks then split their first two GNAC matches, sweeping Simon Fraser before losing 3-2 to Western Washington after winning the first two sets. Maren Dent, a junior 5-foot-10 outside hitter, has 124 kills, an average of 3.10 per set that ranks No. 6 in the GNAC. Dent had 18 of her kills in the five-setter against Western, and had 21 in a 3-2 victory at Monterey Bay. Redshirt freshman 6-foot middle blocker Hailey Cheney has added 87 kills and a team-high 27 total blocks. Right behind her in the blocking department is 6-foot redshirt senior middle Sarah Lyons with 25. She also is the team's most accurate hitter at .252, having hammered 44 kills.
 
SCOUTING THE CENTRAL WASHINGTON WILDCATS: 7-3, 1-1 GNAC (tie 3rd)
All-time series: Tied, 42-42.  Current series streak: SPU won 7.  Last time: SPU 3, CWU 2 (15-25, 25-23, 25-16, 22-25, 16-14; Oct. 20, 2022 at Seattle).  Last CWU series win: CWU 3, SPU 0 (25-20, 25-22, 25-12; Sept 26, 2019 at Ellensburg).  Wildcats on the Web.
Wildcats in a nutshell: Central played a loaded preseason schedule, and got some results to show for it, going 4-2 against national top-25 teams. Staring GNAC play last week, the Wildcats scored a 3-1 victory against Western Washington, but then lost a 3-0 decision to Simon Fraser, 25-22, 25-23, 26-24. CWU has three returning All-Americans on iroster: fifth-year 5-foot-9 setter / outside hitter Tia Andaya, fellow fifth-year Ashley Kaufman, a 5-8 outside hitter, and junior 6-foot middle blocker Emma Daoud-Hebert. Andaya had her first triple-double of the season (11 kills-36 assists-11 digs) last week against Western Washington after recording four last year. She and Daoud-Hebert are tied for No. 5 in GNAC hitting at .333. Led by Daoud-Heber at 1.53, CWU has three of the conference's top10 blockers. Sophomore 6-2 outside hitter Scottie Ellsworth has 100 kills and a 2.78 average that is tied for No. 9 in the GNAC. Kaufman has 87 kills, a 2.42 per-set average.
 
A HIT PARADE – AND THEN SOME
Through the first three weeks of the season – two of non-conference tournaments, and one of GNAC play – Seattle Pacific and Central Washington have established themselves as two of the best-hitting teams in the GNAC.
 
 

Heading into the week, the Falcons remain atop the conference hitting list at .254, even with an off-night of .163 in last Thursday's 3-0 victory at Western Oregon. (They were back up to .228 on Saturday in a 3-0 win at Saint Martin's). Central is No. 2 at .333.
 
On the individual list, the teams have four of the conference's top 10 hitters – two apiece. For the third week in a row, SPU's Allison Wilks and Hannah Hair occupy the top two spots. Wilks is No. 1 at .445, and Hair is No. 2 at .402. They also were the top two after the first week of preseason (Wilks .533, Hair .465), and again after the second and final week of preseason (Wilks .455, Hair .409).
 
Central's Emma Daoud-Hebert and Tia Andaya are tied for No. 5 in GNAC hitting, both at .333.
 
As tough as the two teams are when the ball is on their side of the net, they're just at tough when it's coming back at them. Seattle Pacific is No. 2 in opponent's hitting percentage at .163; the Wildcats are No. 3 at .175.
 
COACH JASON RHINE SAYS ...
(On starting 2-0 in GNAC play)
"It's hard to win on the road, but we got this trip done with early. We just have to keep it going and come back to practice to get ready for our first home matches. We're excited. There's a lot of good teams still to play, and we have to play most of them twice, so we're excited for whoever comes town."
 
 

(On getting contributions from up and down the lineup at Saint Martin's)
"Everyone did a good job of looking for their chances. Honestly, the serving and defense, that was more than any one player contribution. We did enough on offense to set up the defense, and we were able to pull ahead."
 
(On grinding out a tight one at Western Oregon)
"Sometimes, you have to win when you feel you're still making some mistakes and not playing your best, but that's still the mark of a good team. I thought the team did a good job of figuring it out and not letting any one mistake override the scenario where we can play calm, high-level volleyball. … I'm excited for them to be able to work through that."
 
NATIONALLY SPEAKING
Among the 278 volleyball program in NCAA Division II, the Falcons are:
-- No. 4 in blocking at 2.67 per set (Cal State Dominguez Hills No. 1 at 2.83).
-- No.14 in total blocks at 93.5 (Indiana of Pennsylvania 129.0).
-- No. 24 in hitting percentage at .254 (Grand Valley State .345).
-- No. 31 in assists per set at 12.29 (Colorado Mesa 14.21).
-- No. 34 in kills per set at 13.26 (Concordia-St. Paul 15.08).
 
Individually:
-- Hannah Hair No. 3 in blocks per set at 1.52 (1.75).
-- Hair No. 8 in total blocks with 50.0 (70.0).
-- Allison Wilks No. 8 in hitting at .455 (.503).
-- Hair No. 18 in hitting at .402 (.503).

Click on this link for a complete look at the Falcons' ranking in D2. Click on this link to see how GNAC teams and players stack up nationally.
 
MARCH TO A MILESTONE
In the making
100th block     Sydney Perry (has 94)
100th dig       Brianna Ingram (has 99)
200th dig       Sarah Brachvogel (has 170)
300th kill      Erin Smith (has 271)
600th kill      Maddie Pruden (has 563)
700th dig       Abigail Cunningham (has 683)
 
Made last week
None
 
AROUND THE WEST
Home court advantage? That didn't always work through a wild first week of GNAC play. Central Washington won 3-1 against Western Washington in Ellensburg on Thursday, but fell 3-0 to Simon Fraser on Saturday. Northwest Nazarene swept the Red Leafs at home on Thursday, then had a 2-0 lead against Western Washington on Saturday, only to see the Vikings storm back to win in five for their first victory of the season. Saint Martin's swept Montana State Billings in Lacey on Thursday, then was swept by Seattle Pacific on Saturday. In a nutshell, SPU (2-0) and Alaska Anchorage (1-0) are at the top; Alaska Fairbanks (0-1) and Montana State Billings (0-2) are at the bottom, and the other six schools are tied for third at 1-1.
 
Cal Poly Pomona has the best overall record in the California Collegiate Athletic Association at 9-2 and was one of five teams to win both of its conference-opening matches last week. Sonoma State and Cal State Dominguez Hills also won both and are 7-2 overall. Sitting at 8-2 is Cal State San Bernardino, but the Coyotes split their first two CCAA contests, getting swept 3-0 by Sonoma before bouncing back with a 3-0 sweep of Humboldt.
 
Chaminade remains the only unbeaten team in the West Region, now 12-0 after opening Pacific West Conference play with a 3-0 sweep of Honolulu crosstown rival Hawaii Pacific. That was the only conference match of the week for the Silverswords. Biola (7-3) is 3-0 in Pac West play, while Point Loma Nazarene (5-4) and Azusa Pacific (5-5) are both 2-0. Chaminade is home against Point Loma, Azusa, and Concordia Irvine this week.
 
UP NEXT
While it was nice to be home, the Falcons return to the road next week for what is geographically their longest trip of the season, as they head to Alaska. They'll play at Fairbanks on Thursday, Sept. 28, and at Anchorage on Saturday the 30th. Both will begin at 8:00 p.m. Pacific time.


GNAC STANDINGS
                                                    GNAC                  Overall
Seattle Pacific          2-0           8-2
Alaska Anchorage         1-0           9-7
Central Washington       1-1           7-3
Western Oregon           1-1           7-3
Saint Martin's           1-1           6-4
Simon Fraser             1-1           6-4
Northwest Nazarene       1-1           5-5
Western Washington       1-1           1-9
Alaska Fairbanks         0-1           7-8
Montana State Billings   0-2           2-8