Utah and BYU, now tied for second in the conference standings just two games behind unbeaten
Colorado State, will each host the Rams this weekend. Utah battles CSU Friday, and BYU takes on the
Rams Saturday.
Among The NCAA Leaders
For the sixth straight week, MWC players have been ranked in the top five of the NCAA statistics.
This week, Colorado State junior Angela Knopf is second in the nation in hitting percentage at .455.
Knopf is also No. 6 in the nation in blocks per game at 1.63, while San Diego State senior Erin
Grady and BYU junior Nina Puikkonen rank second and third, respectively, in blocking. Grady is
averaging 1.81 blocks per game and Puikkonen, the nation¹s leader the past three weeks, is at 1.75.
As a team, Colorado State is fourth in the nation in team hitting (.232), and BYU is 15th (.271).
The Cougars are also No. 2 in the nation in team blocking (3.53 bpg), and CSU is No. 6 (3.23 bpg).
Hallquist Named MWC Volleyball Player of the Week
Senior outside hitter Amy Hallquist from San Diego State was named the Mountain West Conference
Volleyball Player of the Week, marking the first time she has earned the award. A native of Phoenix,
Ariz., Hallquist helped the Aztecs to a 3-1 record last week, highlighted by a five-game upset over
No. 18 Utah in San Diego on Saturday. She totaled a career-high 25 kills and 19 digs vs. the Utes,
and assisted with blocks for the winning points to end games four and five. Hallquist, who notched
her fourth double-double of the year vs. Utah, tied a MWC season high for kills (25) in a five-game
match. Hallquist started the week with six kills and four digs in a three-game sweep of William &
Mary on Monday, and tallied another 14 kills to go with nine digs in a five-game victory over UC
Riverside Tuesday. She posted 11 kills and hit .320 (11-3-25) in a loss to No. 16 BYU Friday. For
the week, Hallquist hit .229 (56-23-144) and totaled 36 digs, five aces and eight blocks.
This Week¹s Schedule
USA Today/AVCA ranking listed in parenthesis, All times are local, Home team in bold, *notes MWC
matches
October 24 (Tuesday)
Denver at WYOMING, 7 p.m.
October 27 (Friday)
* COLORADO STATE (3) at UTAH (20), 7 p.m.
* SAN DIEGO STATE at AIR FORCE, 7 p.m.
* UNLV at NEW MEXICO, 7 p.m.
* WYOMING at BYU (16), 7 p.m.
October 28 (Saturday)
* COLORADO STATE (3) at BYU (16), 7 p.m.
* SAN DIEGO STATE at NEW MEXICO, 7 p.m.
* UNLV at AIR FORCE, 7 p.m.
* WYOMING at UTAH (20), 7 p.m.
Last Week¹s Results
October 16 (Monday)
SAN DIEGO STATE def. William & Mary 15-9, 15-4, 16-14
WYOMING def. Weber State 17-15, 12-15, 15-13, 15-6
October 17 (Tuesday)
Denver def. AIR FORCE 15-7, 16-14, 15-10
SAN DIEGO STATE def. UC Riverside 15-6, 15-9, 7-15, 13-15, 15-12
October 20 (Friday)
* BYU (16) def. SAN DIEGO STATE 15-3, 18-16, 15-8
* COLORADO STATE (3) def. WYOMING 15-4, 15-12, 15-11
* NEW MEXICO def. AIR FORCE 15-12, 15-5, 15-13
* UTAH (18) def. UNLV 8-15, 15-5, 15-12, 15-11
October 21 (Saturday)
* SAN DIEGO ST. def. UTAH (18) 15-7, 16-18, 11-15, 16-14, 19-17
Last Week¹s Top Performers
Erin Grady led San Diego State with 12 kills and 13 total blocks as the Aztecs outlasted then-No.
18 Utah in a five-game upset in San Diego.
SDSU¹s Amy Hallquist recorded a career-high 25 kills and tied a MWC season five-game match high
for kills vs. the Utes.
Utah¹s Lenka Urbanova posted back-to-back double-doubles over the weekend. She racked up 21 kills
and 21 digs vs. SDSU, and totaled 15 kills and 17 digs vs. UNLV.
Air Force¹s Delavane Diaz picked up her league-leading ninth double-double of the season with 12
kills and 12 digs vs. New Mexico. Diaz has notched double-doubles in four of her last five matches.
Micaela Conley (19k-14d) and Erika Sansoni (10k-10d) each recorded double-doubles for New Mexico
in a victory over Air Force.
BYU¹s Nina Puikkonen totaled 23 kills and hit .629 in a win over San Diego State, and posted a
combined .508 hitting percentage in a pair of conference wins. Puikkonen, a two-time Player of the
Week this season, has topped double-digit kills in 13 of her last 14 matches. She now has 1,101
kills in her career and needs 90 kills to pass Michele Fellows for seventh-place on the all-time
list at BYU.
UNLV freshman Patricia Assuncao recorded a career- and Rebel season high 21 kills in a loss to
Utah.
Wyoming¹s Melody Friehauf recorded a match-high seven total blocks in a loss to No. 3 Colorado
State.
Colorado State¹s Soraya Santos hit .615 (10k-2e-13a) in a three-game win over Wyoming.
The Rankings
Colorado State remained No. 3 and BYU stayed at No. 16 this week in the USA Today/AVCA Division I
Top 25 Coaches poll. Utah slipped to No. 20. The Rams have been ranked in the poll 126 weeks since
the poll began in 1982 and the Cougars have been ranked 221 weeks. BYU reached its highest ranking
in school history at No. 1 on four occasions. Pacific, Nebraska and Stanford lead the nation with
244 consecutive weeks in the poll.
National Attendance (compiled by Diane Nordstrom of Wisconsin media relations)
Colorado State moved up to eighth overall in attendance with an average of 1,861 fans per match. The
Rams are sixth in total attendance with 22,327 fans over 12 matches. BYU is 16th with 1,239 fans per
match, and Utah ranks 29th in attendance by averaging 720 fans per match. Hawai`i leads the nation
with an average of 6,901 fans and a whopping 89,711 total fans over 13 matches. With the exception
of matches played at Hawai`i, Colorado State and BYU played before the second-largest crowd in the
nation this season Sept. 29 when 5,307 fans packed Moby Arena in Fort Collins, Colo.
Coaching Milestones
Utah¹s Beth Launiere needs five wins to reach 200 career victories. Launiere is currently 195-141
in 10 seasons.
San Diego State head coach Mark Warner is approaching 100 career victories. In six seasons, Warner
has a record of 94-79.
Mountain West Conference First
Colorado State¹s upset of No. 1 UCLA in Gainesville, Fla., in week one marks the first victory by
any Mountain West Conference team over a No. 1-ranked opponent. Utah and BYU matched that feat this
season as the Utes and the Cougars each topped then-No. 1 Stanford in week three.
Mountain West Conference Players of the Week:
Sept. 4 < Courtney Cox, Jr., OH, Colorado State
Sept. 11 < Nina Puikkonen, Jr., MB, BYU
Sept. 18 < Delavane Diaz, Fr., OH, Air Force
Sept. 25 < Angela Knopf, Jr., OH, Colorado State
Oct. 2 < Allison Peckham, Jr., S, Colorado State
Oct. 9 < Lucie Turkova, Sr., S, Utah
Oct. 16 < Nina Puikkonen, Jr., MB, BYU
Oct. 23 < Amy Hallquist, Sr., OH, SDSU
Record Season
So far this season, 30 records have fallen, including 12 in conference play. See page 5 for a
complete list.
Team Notes
Air Force Falcons (6-14, 0-8 MWC)
Head Coach: Penny Lucas-White
Overall Record: 136-174 (10th year)
School Record: 41-94 (5th year)
The Falcons will look to snap a nine-match losing streak when they host San Diego State and UNLV
this weekend. Air Force split with the Aztecs and Rebels last season. The Falcons trail 1-5 in
series play vs. the Aztecs and 2-6 vs. the Rebels.
Freshman Delavane Diaz leads the league in digs per game (3.23) and ranks second in the conference
in kills per game (4.18). As a team, Air Force is third in the MWC in digs at 14.15 per game.
Diaz became just the second freshman to earn MWC Player of the Week honors Sept. 17 after helping
the Falcons win the Air Force Classic.
BYU Cougars (15-6, 7-2 MWC)
Head Coach: Elaine Michaelis
Overall Record: 856-215-5 (32nd year)
School Record: 856-215-5 (32nd year)
BYU hit over .300 in each of the two conference matches last week. Against UNLV, the Cougars
finished with a .336 hitting percentage and had a .358 hitting percentage against San Diego State.
Before last week, the Cougars had not scored more than 15 points in a game this season. Last week
BYU played in two games that went more than 15 points. The Cougars won game two against Pepperdine
16-14 on Wednesday, and defeated San Diego State 18-16 in their second game on Friday.
The Cougars finished the week with four players that averaged more than 3.00 kills per game (Nina
Puikkonen, 4.90, Melissa Layton, 4.60, Jackie Bundy, 3.70, Sunny Tonga, 3.40) while freshman setter
Karina Puikkonen led the offense with 167 assists (16.70 apg) in only 10 games last week.
BYU had to bus to Las Vegas from Los Angeles Thursday due to an air traffic control problem in Los
Angeles. They were able to take their scheduled flight from Las Vegas to San Diego as the Cougars
completed a three-day, three-match road trip.
BYU will host both Wyoming and No. 3 Colorado State this week. BYU defeated Wyoming 3-0 in the
last meeting, and lost to Colorado State 0-3.
The Cougars have lost only three home matches in the all-time series against the Rams. The most
recent home loss was in the 1999 Mountain West Conference Tournament Championship when the Rams
defeated the Cougars in three games. Colorado State has taken four of the last five matches against
BYU.
The Cougars have played a No. 1 team (Stanford), a No. 2 team (Long Beach State) and a No. 3 team
(Colorado State) this season. The Cougars defeated both Stanford and Long Beach State before losing
to the Rams. Including Colorado State this week, BYU will have faced eight top 20 foes this year.
Colorado State Rams (22-1, 8-0 MWC)
Head Coach: Tom Hilbert
Overall Record: 277-90 (12th year)
School Record: 103-18 (4th year)
Colorado State has won its last 18 matches, which ties the school record for consecutive wins.
Wyoming became the first team since Utah on Sept. 30, to score in double figures in a single game
against Colorado State.
Junior Courtney Cox tallied her 500th career dig against Wyoming on Friday, bringing her career
total to 505.
Junior Angela Knopf is just nine digs shy of 700 in her career and 16 kills shy of 1,000.
Three starters, Angela Knopf, Soraya Santos and Summer Jennings are hitting over .315 for the
season. Knopf is No. 2 in the country with her .455 hitting percentage. Santos is hitting .390 and
Jennings is at .337. In league matches, Knopf is hitting .504 and Santos is at .462.
The Rams have been out-blocked in their last two matches. It is the first time that Colorado
State has been out-blocked in consecutive matches all season.
Colorado State will look to extend its school record win streak of 37 straight games this week.
The Rams have swept their last 12 opponents. The last game the Rams dropped was in a five-game match
on Sept. 16 vs. Loyola-Chicago.
The Rams are in the midst of a 40-match home win streak (31 of which have been three-game sweeps)
dating back to Arizona¹s victory over Colorado State Sept. 6, 1998. This is now the longest current
streak in NCAA Division I.
New Mexico Lobos (8-10, 4-4 MWC)
Head Coach: Laurel Brassey Iversen
Overall Record: 288-203 (17th year)
School Record: 288-203 (17th year)
The Lobos lead the MWC in digs (conference matches only) averaging 14.36 per game. In the overall
statistics, UNM averages 14.41 digs per game.
New Mexico is 8-2 this season when holding the opposition under a .200 hitting percentage.
Junior Jessie Goffard had 11 kills against Utah to lead the Lobos.
Goffard¹s season total in kills is a team-high 216. Goffard also leads the Lobos in attempts (668),
and digs (178).
Sophomore setter Kelly Griffin had 55 assists in two matches last week, bringing her team-high
total to 610 on the year (10.52 average). Her career assist total is at 929. Griffin also leads the
Lobos in service aces with 27.
Freshman Amy Amundson continues to lead the Lobos in several catgories, including hitting
percentage (.239), block solos (12), block assists (44), and total blocks (56).
San Diego State Aztecs (13-11, 5-4 MWC)
Head Coach: Mark Warner
Overall Record: 96-80 (6th year)
School Record: 96-80 (6th year)
Sophomore Nicole Akporiaye hit .762 in SDSU's loss to BYU on Friday. She had 16 kills with no
errors in 23 attacks. She has now hit double figures in each of SDSU's last three matches.
With 975 assists, sophomore Melissa Wright is just six away from moving into the No. 9 spot on the
SDSU career list. She needs 104 assists to break into the single-season top 10. Her 76 assists vs.
Utah established a career best.
Senior Erin Grady racked up 13 blocks (3 solo, 10 assists) against Utah, marking her second-best
match total of the season. Her average jumped to a conference high 1.81 blocks per game, which is
also No. 2 in the nation. She averaged 2.06 bpg over the team's four matches last week.
Freshman Apsen McPartland has reached double figures in kills in each of SDSU's last three
matches, averaging 3.31 kpg over that span.
Senior Monet Solberg has been in double figures in kills in eight of the Aztecs last 10 matches.
During that time, she has averaged 3.31 kills per game.
With six MWC matches left, San Diego State has surpassed its conference win total (4) of last
season, and needs another win to equal its league win total (6) of the past two seasons.
After not playing a five-game match in its first 18 contests, San Diego State has now gone five
games in three of its last six outings, posting a 3-0 record in those five-game matches.
San Diego State has won seven of its last nine matches to improve to 13-11 on the season. SDSU won
only 11 matches overall last season and a total of 16 over the past two years
UNLV Rebels (2-16, 2-7 MWC)
Head Coach: Deitre Collins
Overall Record: 51-78 (5th year)
School Record: 51-78 (5th year)
The Rebels are on the road for their next three matches.
UNLV trails 2-3 in the series with New Mexico after splitting with the Lobos a year ago. The Rebels
lead Air Force 6-2 in series play after a split with the Falcons in 1999.
Junior Amber Graham totaled double-digit kills in her last two matches (11 kills vs. Utah, 17
kills vs. BYU), and hit a combined .382.
Freshman Leiana Oswald has notched double-digit kills in nine matches this season, including three
straight. Oswald, who set the conference season high for attempts in a three-game match with 61 vs.
San Diego State Oct. 7, is No. 7 in the MWC with 3.41 kills per game.
The Rebels set a conference record with 167 attempts in a three-game loss to San Diego State Oct.
7.
Utah Utes (16-4, 7-2 MWC)
Head Coach: Beth Launiere
Overall Record: 196-142 (11th year)
School Record: 196-142 (11th year)
Utah¹s three-match win streak came to an end after falling in five games at San Diego State. The
loss to SDSU was Utah's first 5-game loss of the season
Freshman Kim Turner racked up a career-high 21 kills vs. SDSU and freshman Jackie Morrill posted a
career-high 16 digs in the same match. Turner has been in double figures for kills in three of her
last four matches.
Utah will look to snap a two-match losing streak to Colorado State this week. The Utes trail 15-32
in the series. Utah has won four straight over Wyoming entering this week¹s match with the Cowgirls.
The Utah vs. Wyoming series is tied at 22-22.
Wyoming Cowgirls (8-16, 1-7 MWC)
Head Coach: Susan Judge
Overall Record: 103-112 (7th year)
School Record: 66-80 (5th year)
Wyoming hosts Denver Tuesday before traveling for matches at BYU and Utah this week. The Cowgirls
dropped a three-game match to the Pioneers last season in Denver.
The Cowgirls have lost their last 20 matches vs. BYU and the Cougars lead the all-time series
45-3. Wyoming¹s last win vs. BYU was in 1989. Utah and Wyoming are tied at 22-22 in series play, but
the Utes have taken three straight from the Cowgirls.
Senior Jamie Burke has averaged nearly three kills per game since returning from an ankle injury.
She picked up a team-high 12 kills vs. No. 3 Colorado State last week.
Senior middle blocker Melody Friehauf paced the Cowgirls with seven total blocks as Wyoming
outblocked No. 3 Colorado State 12-4 despite losing in three games.
Wyoming had five of six starters in double figures for kills vs. Weber State Monday. Rachel Lau
picked up a match-high 20 kills to lead the Cowgirls.
