YOTES CLASSIC SCHEDULE
Thursday, Sept. 5                 Seattle Pacific at Cal State San Bernardino, 7:30 p.m.
                                       Coussoulis Arena / San Bernardino, Calif.
 
Friday, Sept. 6                      Seattle Pacific vs. Cal State Los Angeles, Noon
                                               Seattle Pacific vs. Cal Poly Pomona, 5:00 p.m.
                                       Coussoulis Arena / San Bernardino, Calif.
 
Saturday, Sept. 7                 Seattle Pacific vs. Biola, Noon
                                       Coussoulis Arena / San Bernardino, Calif.
 
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SEATTLE – The Seattle Pacific Falcons have all the confidence – and the talent and the experience – that they can compete with the best volleyball teams in the West.
 
They'll get to put all of that to the test starting this week when they head to California for the season-opening Yotes Classic at Cal State San Bernardino.
 
The three-day tournament goes Thursday through Saturday. The Falcons, ranked No. 19 nationally, play once on Thursday, meeting the host Coyotes at 7:30 p.m. in Coussoulis Arena. On Friday, SPU starts off against defending NCAA Division II champion Cal State Los Angeles at noon, followed by Cal Poly Pomona at 5:00 p.m.
 
Action concludes on Saturday with a battle against Biola at noon.
 
Of this week's four opponents, three of them – along with the Falcons – made it to last season's NCAA West Regionals. San Bernardino and L.A. met in the championship match, with the Golden Eagles prevailing in a 3-0 sweep. Pomona reached the second round, falling to Bernardino.
 
This is the first of two preseason tournaments for Seattle Pacific before the start of Great Northwest Athletic Conference play.
 
FOLLOW IT LIVE
All four matches will have live pay-subscription Webcasts on FloSports. Free live stats also will be available. The appropriate links are at the top of this story.
 
GAUNTLET OF A SCHEDULE
Say this for the Falcons: They're not ducking anyone during their two preseason tournaments.
 
This week in California at the Yotes Classic, not only did their first three opponents – Cal State San Bernardino, Cal State Los Angeles., and Cal Poly Pomona – all go to last year's NCAAs, all three are ranked in this year's preseason national poll: No. 1 for L.A., No. 8 for San Bernardino, and No. 21 for Pomona.
 
Next week in Denver at the Colorado Premier Challenge, 11 of the 12 teams played in the 2023 NCAAs. The only exception to that is Lewis, which will be the first opponent for Seattle Pacific – and the Flyers come into preseason play ranked No. 14 nationally. Concordia St. Paul, the second opponent for the Falcons, is No. 5 in that poll.
 
In fact, 10 of the 12 teams in the tourney are among the preseason top 25, and the other two received votes.
 
FALCONS NO. 2 – BUT IT'S CLOSE
Seattle Pacific has been picked for a second-place finish in the GNAC preseason coaches poll that was announced on Aug. 21.
 
But essentially, it's a dead heat with Central Washington for the top spot. The Wildcats received 91 points in the voting from the conference's 10 coaches, with two first-place votes. The Falcons received 90 points and picked up six first-place votes.
 
Behind those two, perennial power Western Washington was third with 75 points. Just one point behind the Vikings is Simon Fraser. The Red Leafs got the other two first-place votes.
 

HAIR IS NO. 1
Fifth-year middle blocker Hannah Hair has been chosen as the GNAC Preseason Player of the Year in voting by conference coaches.
 
This is her first such honor, but she has been named to the Preseason All-GNAC team unanimously for the past four years.
 
Allison Wilks, also a fifth-year middle, joined Hair on the preseason team. This is her second straight appearance.
 
Hair, who led D2 in blocks per set and was No. 2 in total blocks last fall, was named the GNAC Player of the Year and the Defensive Player of the Year in 2023, the first one to garner both honors in the same season. She subsequently was named to two All-West Region first teams, and was a second-team All-American.
 
Wilks led the GNAC in hitting and was a first-team All-Conference choice. Her .404 percentage made her the first Seattle Pacific player ever to finish a season north of .400.

 

SO WHAT'S THE STORY THIS WEEK?
-- This will be the 39th season of Seattle Pacific volleyball.
-- All-time, the Falcons have a 635-489 record (.565).
-- With last year's 3-0 victory against Lewis in the Seaside Invitational, SPU is now 22-16 in season openers.
-- All four of this week's opponents are familiar to the Falcons. They faced Cal State L.A. in the first round of last year's NCAA Tournament and have gone against the Golden Eagles 15 times overall. They played Biola at the 2023 Seaside tourney, though have just three all-time matches against the Eagles. Cal State San Bernardino was on the other side of the court at the Cal State Los Angeles Invitational in 2022. That was the 10h meeting. Cal Poly Pomona has been an opponent 13 times previously, but not since 2019.
-- SPU went 6-2 in preseason play last year.
-- The Falcons won nine matches and lost two in 3-0 sweeps in 2023.
-- They also were involved in four matches that went to the five-set limit, and won all four.
-- SPU went 14-4 away from Brougham Pavilion. That included 9-2 in true road matches and 5-2 on neutral courts. San Bernardino will count as a road match on Thursday; the other three will be neutral.
-- The Falcons did a better job of getting off to a good start last season. Of their 27 matches, they won the opening set 16 times, and went on to win 15 of those contests. When dropping Set 1, Seattle Pacific bounced back to win seven of those 11 matches.
-- SPU won all 19 matches when it kept an opponent below .200 hitting.
-- At the other end of that spectrum, the Falcons hit below. 200 in 10 matches, but still won six of them.
 
SCOUTING REPORT
CAL STATE SAN BERNARDINO COYOTES: 26-5, 15-3 CCAA (tie 1st)
All-time series: CSSB leads, 9-1.  Current series streak: CSSB won 2.  Last time:  CSSB 3, SPU 2 (25-23, 14-25, 22-25, 25-23, 15-8; Sept. 1, 2022 at Los Angeles).  Last SPU series win: SPU 3, CSSB 2 (9-25, 21-25, 25-17, 25-23, 15-11; Sept. 7, 2013 at San Bernardino). Coyotes on the Web.
Coyotes in a nutshell: San Bernardino lost its top offensive threat when opposite Trinity Sheridan, who had a whopping 429 kills and hit .338 as a freshman last year, transferred to UC Riverside. But two other key attackers are back. Senior 5-foot-9 outside hitter Savannah Hoffman had 250 kills on .211 hitting. Senior 6-foot outside Ashley Robinson slammed 240 kills on .196 hitting and had 10 solos among her 35 total blocks. She also came up with 200 digs, third-highest total on the team. Sophomore 5-9 outside Kacie Pedersen added 60 kills and tied for the team lead with 40 service aces..
 
CAL STATE LOS ANGELES GOLDEN EAGLES:  24-10, 15-3 CCAA (tie 1st)
All-time series: CSULA leads, 10-5.  Current series streak: CSULA won 3.  Last time: CSULA 3, SPU 1 (25-13, 19-25, 25-19, 25-20; Nov. 30, 2023, NCAA West Regionals 1^st round at San Bernardino).  Last SPU series win: SPU 3, CSULA 0 (25-17, 25-17, 25-19; Sept. 5, 2014 at Seattle).  Golden Eagles on the Web.
Golden Eagles in a nutshell: Of the "Big Three" who helped lead the way to the program's first NCAA title, two have moved on. Outside hitter Ashley Dittman (294 kills on .209 hitting) graduated, and 6-foot-3 outside hitter Iane Henke (407 kills on .250 hitting, plus 66 aces, 405 digs and 64 blocks), now a junior, transferred to Florida State. But 6-2 opposite Emily Elliott, the Most Outstanding Player of the NCAA Tournament, is back for her senior season. She set a CCAA record with 606 kills, hitting .273. She also delivered 72 service aces, came up with 209 digs, and got her hands onto 81 blocks, all of which factored into her 722.5 points. Also back is grad student middle Haley Roundtree, who stands just 5-11, but led the team with 131 total blocks.
 
CAL POLY POMONA BRONCOS: 22-8, 13-5 CCAA (tie 3rd)
All-time series: CPP leads, 7-6.  Current series streak: SPU won 1.  Last time: SPU 3, CPP 2 (26-24, 16-25, 25-22, 16-25, 15-9; Sept. 12, 2019 at Pomona)..  Last CPP series win: CPP 3, SPU 1 (19-25, 25-13, 27-25, 25-20; Sept. 5, 2014 at Seattle). Broncos on the Web.
Broncos in a nutshell: Pomona returns nearly everyone from the team that reached the second round of the West Regionals. Senior 5-foot-11 outside hitter Samantha Campion led the team with 372 kills, hitting .253, and also delivered a team-high 42 aces. Campion also came up with 332 digs and 56 total blocks. Senior 6-foot outside Madison Novak added 329 kills on .210 hitting. Sophomore 6-footer Alexia Athans came was a big factor in the middle with 88 total blocks, including a team-leading 13 solos. Directing the offense is senior 5-11 setter Caitie Mueller, who racked up 1,097 assists (10.35 average) and also supplied 76 kills.
 
BIOLA EAGLES:  18-9, 14-5 Pac West (tie 3rd)
All-time series: SPU leads, 2-1.  Current series streak: Biola won 1.  Last time: Biola 3, SPU 1 (25-20, 25-16, 16-25, 25-19; Sept. 2, 2023 at San Diego).  Last SPU series win:  SPU 3, Biola 2 (22-25, 26-28, 26-24, 25-16, 15-11; Sept. 2, 2022 at Los Angeles).  Eagles on the Web.
Eagles in a nutshell: Biola was hit hard by the departure of five of its top six attackers, with four graduating and one not returning. Back in the fold is redshirt junior 6-foot outside hitter Kendall Vandertuig, who had 136 kills. She also served 10 aces and had 19 blocks. Sophomore 6-foot opposite Payton Tully had 59 kills on .241 hitting and got her hands on nine blocks, and did that in just 22 sets played.
 
SCOUTING THE 2024 FALCONS
For all the things that they accomplished on the volleyball court in 2023, the Seattle Pacific Falcons are looking for even more in 2024. And they'll get to find out right away how they stack up against some of the best Division II teams in the country.
 
Nearly everyone is back for another run at it, including five players who are taking advantage of a fifth year of eligibility granted by the NCAA because of the 2020 pandemic shutdown.
 
 

At the head of the group are middle blockers Hannah Hair and Allison Wilks. Hair, a second-team All-American, led D2 in blocking last fall at 1.63 per set and was second in total blocks with 160. She was voted GNAC Player of the Year and GNAC Defensive Player of the Year, the first one ever to win both of those awards in the same season.
 
Wilks hit .404 (162 kills-32 errors-322 attacks), the first Falcon ever to finish the season north of .400. Like Hair, she was an All-GNAC first-team choice.
 
 

Also back up front is fifth-year opposite Erin Smith. She enjoyed a breakout campaign in 2023, with season-bests of 220 kills, .201 hitting, 89 blocks, and 268.0 points. Fifth-year outside hitter Sydney Perry, the tallest returning Falcon at 6-foot-3, added 133 kills and a single-season best 85 digs.
 
 

Setting up all of that offense are senior Emily Tulino and sophomore Sophia Chambers. Tulino is a two-time All-GNAC honorable mention pick. She played all 101 sets in 2023, racking up single-season bests of 568 assists and 224 digs, plus 30 service aces. Chambers made an immediate impact as a freshman in Seattle Pacific's 6-2 system with 394 assists, along with 240 digs and 19 aces.
 
 

A pair of solid liberos – senior Abigail Cunningham and sophomore Christina Lopez – are returning. Lopez worked her way into the regular lineup and came up with a team-leading 275 digs. Cunningham tallied 180 digs. Zoe Shuckhart, now in her fifth year, became a regular in the rotation, as well, with 71 digs and 13 aces.
 
Junior outside hitter Anna Pelluer, sophomore opposite Coco Barnett, and sophomore setter Avery Veenendall saw spot duty and will be looking for a bigger piece of the action.
 
SPU will be missing the services of fifth-year outside hitter Sarah Brachvogel. She had by far her best season in 2023 with a team-leading 340 kills on .216 hitting, plus 36 service aces and 50 blocks for 404.5 points, along with 204 digs. Brachvogel sustained a knee injury during the spring season.
 
The Falcons are bringing six freshmen into the fold. Outside hitter Eva LaRochelle was a two-time Colorado state champion with Palmer Ridge High School. Middle blocker Brooke Williams was on the Oregon state runner-up team last season at Oregon City. Elle McCandless was the career leading blocker at Skyridge High School in Lehi, Utah.
 
Libero / defensive specialist Makayla Hickman had 1,310 career digs at Ridgeline High in Liberty Lake, Washington. Outside hitter Joslyn Greff was a four-time team MVP at Cedar Park Christian in nearby Bothell. Opposite / outside Amaya Evans was a four-time All-League and three-time All-District player at Saint Amant High in Darrow, Louisiana.
 




NATIONAL NOTICE
For the first time since 2011, Seattle Pacific is part of the American Volleyball Coaches Association preseason poll.
 
The Falcons are ranked No. 19 on the list that was released on Aug. 22. That's the same place they occupied in the final poll last year.
 
SPU was No. 13 in the 2011 preseason poll, coming off a sterling 2010 campaign that saw it go 26-3 and reach the West Region championships match (Sweet 16).The Falcons stayed in the rankings all the way through the end of the regular season (at No. 25), but were not part of the final rankings.
 
Last year, they received votes in the preseason poll and on the first three regular-season lists, steadily moving up until finally breaking into the top 25 – at No. 24 – on Sept. 25. Seattle Pacific climbed as high as No. 18 on Oct. 30 and remained there for two weeks before settling at No. 19 for the rest of the year.
 
A GRAND – AND GOING UP
The final point of SPU's 2023 season was in the fourth set of its NCAA West Regional first-round match against Cal State Los Angeles last Nov. 30. It came on a kill by Hannah Hair.
 
That gave Hair 1,000.5 points for her career, making her the 18th Falcon all-time to join that elite group.
 
Assuming Hair scores 200-plus points again this season between kills (one point each) and blocks (one point for a solo, half a point for a block assist), she will easily move into the program's all-time top 10. The No. 10 spot currently belongs to Hannah Lautenbach with 1,155.5 from 2014-17.
 
Tosca Lindberg is the all-time points leader with 1,773.0 from 1989-92.

 

FOUR-PEAT HERE, FIVE-PEAT THERE
Senior setter Emily Tulino has a chance to join a rather exclusive club this season.
 
Tulino has led the Falcons in assists for the past three years. If she does it again, she would become just the fourth setter in program history to lead the way for four consecutive seasons. The others are Deri Paulson (1986-89, the first four years of the program), Jenna Von Moos (2003-06), and Symone Tran (2015-18).
 
Hannah Hair already has joined that same four-years-in-a-row club for blocking. The only other Falcon to do that was Nikki Lowell from 2010-13.
 
However, because Hair is one of the players granted an additional year of eligibility to make up for the  2020 season that was canceled because of the pandemic, she can be the first SPU player to lead in any statistical category for five years in a row. Following the 2020 fall shutdown, the team did play an independent schedule in the spring of 2021, and Hair, then a true freshman, had 90 blocks in 18 matches. Those do count toward her career totals.
 
Full competition resumed in the fall of 2021, and she has been the team's top blocker ever since: 115 that season, 106 in 2022, and 160 in 2023.
 
DOUBLE-DOUBLE DELIGHTS
The Falcons have six returning players who have recorded at least one double-double in their careers.

• Sarah Brachvogel 6 (all in 2023, all kill-dig)
• Sophie Chambers 12 (all in 2023, all assist-dig)
• Abigail Cunningham 1 (2023, assist-dig)
• Hannah Hair 3 (0 in 2023, all kill-block)
• Sydney Perry 1 (2023, kill-dig)
• Emily Tulino 24 (9 in 2023, all assist-dig)

 
MILESTONES IN THE MAKING
Several Falcons are on the brink of reaching significant statistical milestones. 
200th block             Erin Smith (has 190)
200th dig                 Zoe Shuckhart (has 279)
300th block             Allison Wilks (has 291)
300th dig                Christina Lopez (has 275)
500th assist           Sophia Chambers (has 394)
500th block            Hannah Hair (has 471)
500th kill                 Allison Wilks (has 438)
                                Erin Smith (has 420)
                                Sydney Perry (has 419)
600th dig                Emily Tulino (has 579)
2,000th assist        Emily Tulino (has 1,591)

AROUND THE WEST
While Central Washington and Seattle Pacific are neck-and-neck in the GNAC preseason coaches poll, so are Point Loma Nazarene and Chaminade in the Pacific West Conference. In fact, those two are even closer – dead even, to be precise. Each received seven of the 14 first-place votes and 189 points. (Central and SPU were separated by one point.) Then it's a slight drop to Azusa Pacific at No. 3 (154 points) and Biola at No. 4 (150).
 
Defending national champion Cal State Los Angeles is the favorite in the California Collegiate Athletic Association, as expected. The Golden Eagles received 10 of the 12 first-place votes and 142 points. The other two firsts went to Cal Poly Pomona, which was No. 2 with 125 points, just ahead of Cal State San Bernardino's 122. San Francisco State was the other team to top 100 points, finishing with 110.

UP NEXT
The Falcons head to Denver next Friday and Saturday, Sept. 13-14, for the Colorado Premier Challenge, one of the top preseason tournaments in the country. It will feature 12 teams, divided into four pools of three. Friday will be pool play, with SPU taking on No. 14 Lewis at 1:00 p.m. Pacific time and No. 5 Concordia St. Paul at 5:00. Both of those matches will be at Regis.
 
On Saturday, the four pool winners will play in the Gold Bracket at Metro State, the four second-place teams in the Silver Bracket at Regis, and the four third-place teams in the Bronze Bracket, also at Regis. Regardless of which bracket the Falcons play in, the semifinals are at 8:00 a.m. Pacific time, with winners advancing to the bracket championship match (6:00 p.m. Pacific for all three brackets) and losers moving into the third-place match (4:30 p.m. Pacific for all three). Saturday's pairings will be announced after the conclusion of pool play on Friday.


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