MALIBU SANDS: The Seattle University volleyball team left Thursday morning for a ten-day road trip to California, beginning with the Pepperdine Asics Classic in Malibu, Calif. SeattleU will face Pepperdine, UC Riverside, and Army during the weekend, playing one match each day. Pepperdine will offer live stats for all matches during the weekend as well as live streaming video (on a subscription basis) of the Waves' matches through www.pepperdinesports.com.
ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM: Sophomore Cristin Richards was named to the All-Tournament Team at the Active Ankle Challenge after compiling 31 kills, 18 digs, and eight total blocks in the three matches at Oregon State. This is the second career all-tournament honor for Richards.
SCOUTING PEPPERDINE: The Waves have moved up to #19 on the AVCA Top 25 Coaches Poll after winning five of their first six matches, with the only loss coming at USC. Lilla Frederick leads the team with 63 kills, with Rachel Grochmal right behind her with 59 kills along with nine service aces and 50 digs. Kim Hill has 48 kills and a .412 hitting percentage. Victoria Adelhelm leads the team with 16 total blocks, setter Kiah Fiers has accumulated 204 assists, and Stevi Robinson had picked up 101 defensive digs so far this season.
SCOUTING UC RIVERSIDE: The Highlanders come into the weekend with a 1-5 record, picking up their first victory in a five-set thriller over Sacramento State last weekend. Dominique Cowling is the team's leading hitter with 91 kills and a .225 hitting percentage, averaging 4.14 kills per set. She also has six service aces, 12 total blocks and a team-high 56 digs. Brittney Murrey leads the team with 151 assists, and Bianca Endersby has been a force at the net with 34 total blocks, averaging 1.55 blocks per set.
SCOUTING ARMY: The Black Knights come into the tournament with a 6-2 record after defeating Marist in five sets Wednesday night. Ariana Mankus leads the team with 112 kills, a .318 hitting percentage, and 12 service aces. Rachel Willis has collected 61 kills and a team-high 28 total blocks so far this season. Maureen Bannon has been the steady setter for Army with 266 assists, plus she has 10 service aces and 58 defensive digs. Leading the Black Knight defensively is Liberty McEntee with 111 digs, averaging 4.27 digs per set.
BLOCK PARTY: Seattle University tied a team single-match record last Saturday against Wisconsin, collecting 17 team blocks during the four-set match. That ties the school record set on Sept. 22, 2007, in a five-set victory at the University of Alaska in Fairbanks, Alaska.
INDEPENDENT STANDINGS: There are six Division I programs competing as independent schools this season: Bryant University, Cal State Bakersfield, North Carolina Central, Providence College, Savannah State. and Seattle University. Each week the SIDs at Cal State Bakersfield and Providence are working together to update stat leaders and to name a Player and Defensive Player of the Week. Through the matches of Sunday, Sept. 6, Cristin Richards is third among the independent schools in total kills with 68 and second in kills per set with 2.96. Jamie Mellies is third in assists with 168, while Emily Deleissegues is third in digs with 89, In the total blocks category, Jordan Keller is fourth with 22, Kelly Biette is fifth with 20, and Mellies stands in sixth place with 18. At the end of last week, Cal State Bakersfield had the best record among the independent schools with a 3-3 mark.