Saturday, October 13
Bozeman
7 p.m.
Montana State University
vs
Sacramento State
Photo by: R. Dean Hendrickson
Bobcat Spikers Host Sacramento State, Montana
10/11/2012 1:49:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
The Montana State volleyball team returns home to begin a four-match stretch in Shroyer Gym. MSU will host Sacramento State, Saturday, Oct. 13 at 7 p.m., and will conclude competition with a rare Monday night tilt, Oct. 15, in the annual Shakedown in Shroyer match against intra-state rival Montana, beginning at 7 p.m. The first 500 fans through the door on Monday evening will receive a free ‘Shakedown’ t-shirt.
CLICK HERE FOR THIS WEEK'S VOLLEYBALL NOTES (pdf)
SHAKEDOWN IN SHROYER:
The Montana State volleyball team returns home to begin a four-match stretch in Shroyer Gym. MSU will host Sacramento State, Saturday, Oct. 13 at 7 p.m., and will conclude competition with a rare Monday night tilt, Oct. 15, in the annual Shakedown in Shroyer match against intra-state rival Montana, beginning at 7 p.m. The first 500 fans through the door on Monday evening will receive a free 'Shakedown' t-shirt.
THIS WEEKEND'S 'CATCH THE 'CATS' OPPORTUNITIES:
Sacramento State:
www.msubobcats.com - (live stats)
www.americaonesports.com/bigsky.asp - (live web-streaming video)
Montana:
www.msubobcats.com - (live stats)
www.americaonesports.com/bigsky.asp - (live web-streaming video)
QUICK RECAP:
The Montana State volleyball team continues to be one of the biggest surprises in the Big Sky Conference this fall. The Bobcats split a pair of league matches on the road. Last weekend, MSU opened with a 25-21, 25-18, 25-18 setback at Northern Arizona, before rebounding with a 25-18, 26-24, 21-25, 25-20 decision over Southern Utah in Cedar City on Saturday night.
PLAYERS TO WATCH:
Eli Svisco, 6-0, Freshman, Outside Hitter, Castle Rock, Colorado
Svisco, a true-freshman from Castle Rock, Colo., averaged 2.71 kills and 3.14 digs last weekend as the Bobcats split a pair of Big Sky Conference road matches. In its 3-1 win at Southern Utah, Svisco posted 12 kills and 16 digs for her fourth double-double of the season. In addition, she notched a team-high four blocks against the Thunderbirds. Against Northern Arizona, she recorded seven kills and six digs.
Nicole Baker, 5-7, Junior, Libero, Pleasanton, California
Baker is currently averaging a team-high 3.72 digs per contest and has registered 13 matches with double-digit saves, including the last eight consecutive contests. The native of Pleasanton, Calif., has also notched four matches with 20+ digs, including a season-high 27 saves against Niagara. Last weekend, Baker averaged 4.29 saves per set and posted a match-high 17 digs at Southern Utah on Saturday night.
WHAT A DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES:
No other team at the NCAA Division I level has moved up the NCAA RPI rankings like Montana State. From the final 2011 RPI ranking to this week's ranking, the Bobcats have moved up a whopping 204 spots. MSU finished last season ranked 304th in the RPI. In this week's listing, Montana State is currently ranked 100. The next best jump of 154 spots belongs to Southern Illinois.
THE SCOUTING REPORT:
Fresh off a home victory Saturday night against Weber State, the Sacramento State volleyball squad (6-11, 2-6) begins a season-long five-match road trip this week with matchups against Montana on Friday and Montana State on Saturday. Sacramento State currently finds itself in eighth place in the league standings, but just two games behind both North Dakota and Southern Utah, who are tied for sixth place with 4-4 conference records. Since joining the Big Sky in 1996, Sacramento State has reached the league's postseason event 14 times during the program's 16-year tenure. Sacramento State is now second in the nation with an average of 3.20 blocks per set, and the team has three players ranking among the country's top 130 in that category. Middle blocker Olivia Moss is 8th (1.57 per set), middle blocker Ashley Newcomb is 53rd (1.28 per set) and rightside hitter Kayla Beal is 127th (1.09 per set). Montana (3-14, 1-7), after being on the verge of a breakthrough on its four-match home stand, went backwards last week on its trip to Southern Utah and Northern Arizona. The Grizzlies lost both matches in straight sets, getting outscored 150-98 and hitting .109 to their opponents' .365. The Grizzlies are 11-1 against the Bobcats under 7th-year head coach Jerry Wagner - a former assistant and associate head coach at MSU - 6-0 at Bozeman, with the last four meetings at MSU turning out 3-0 sweeps. Monday's match will be the teams' 100th meeting, with MSU holding a slight 50-49 edge. The teams have split their 42 meetings at Bozeman, 21-21.
GOLD DIGGER:
Montana State starting libero Nicole Baker established herself as one of the top defensive players in the Big Sky Conference last season, after averaging a whopping 5.0 digs per set in league play. In addition, the Pleasanton, Calif., native recorded 514 digs to set a new Montana State mark for digs in a single-season. The old record of 495 digs had been held by Kandice Kelly since the 2005 campaign. Baker notched a career-best 30 digs against Northern Arizona, last year.
Currently, she is averaging a team-best 3.72 digs, which ranks among the Big Sky's top 10. Baker has registered 13 matches in double-digits saves, including a season-best 27 digs in MSU's win over Niagara in early September.
TURNING THE PAGE:
Prior to this season, senior Macy Page had totaled 113 career kills, including a career-best 17 kills against Loyola-Chicago. She had also played in 170 sets and averaged .66 kills per outing. Now, in just her senior season alone, the Orem, Utah, native has recorded 220 kills and is averaging 3.38 kills per set. Page has been in double-digit kills in 13 matches this fall, including a new career-high of 27 in MSU's win over Eastern Washington. Heading into the season, Page had a career attack mark of .116. Her current hitting percentage sits at an impressive .264, and she has also chipped in 41 total blocks, which is well over her three-year career total, as well.
A LENDING HAND:
Senior Jennifer Lundquist has seen her assists per set average rise along with MSU's early season success. Last fall, the Surrey, British Columbia native averaged 9.11 assists per game. This season, Lundquist is currently fifth in the Big Sky Conference averaging 10.34 assists per contest. In MSU's 3-2 win over Idaho State, she matched career-high dishing out 57 assists. In addition, Lundquist is a triple threat on the court as well. She has posted four double-doubles this fall and is averaging 2.23 digs and .57 kills per game. Her current .392 attack mark leads the team and she has committed just six hitting errors on 79 attempts.
TIPS & DUMPS:
Junior Sarah Horton is ranked third in the Big Sky averaging 3.86 kills per set...Horton is also third in the league averaging 4.29 points per outing...Macy Page is ranked fifth in the league averaging 3.38 kills per set...setter Jennifer Lundquist ranks fifth overall averaging 10.34 assists per stanza...Libero Nicole Baker is listed sixth in digs, averaging 3.72 saves per contest...Baker also ranks sixth averaging .32 service aces per set...MSU's front line has been anchored by Taylar Barney, who ranks ninth in the Big Sky averaging 1.08 blocks...in addition, Barney is listed tenth in hitting percentage with a .265 attack mark.
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