SEATTLE - Coming off of a Thursday bye, Seattle University volleyball returns to conference action, crossing over to Spokane for a meeting against inter-state rival Gonzaga at Charlotte Y. Martin Centre on Saturday afternoon.
Both the Zags (8-7, 1-3 WCC) and the Redhawks (6-9, 0-4 WCC) look to jump back into the win column after falling in their last respective matches. Gonzaga is 1-1 at home since West Coast Conference play began, capturing a win over San Francisco in five sets. The Bulldogs fell to Santa Clara in five in their conference home opener. SU pursues its first ever win in the WCC and first road victory of the season.
Sophomore Madyn Cervellera leads the Redhawk offense with 204 kills on the year, a mark that ranks tied-fourth in the conference. Her 3.40 kills per set ranks fifth in the league. Junior Teagan Melton has also crossed the 100+ kills mark this year, posting 115. Redshirt junior Yasemin Elmas holds a team leading .309 hitting percentage, grabbing 86 kills on 194 attempts in 57 sets of play this year.
A trio of setters orchestrate the Redhawk offense, with sophomore Grace Jones leading the group with 218 assists in 47 sets of action this year. Fellow sophomore Anae Asuncion has appeared the most of the three, in 54 sets, and trails Jones in assists by three. Redshirt junior Elif Teksoy has made an appearance in 21 sets this year, recording 80 assists.
Guiding SU from the service line is freshman Petra Fritz, who leads the team with 23 aces on the year. Her .45 aces per set ranks tied-second in the conference. Fellow freshman Katelynn Albano joins Fritz in the WCC’s top-15 in total aces, capturing 19 to rank tied-12th while Fritz sits fourth.
Putting the Redhawks on the defensive is Elmas, whose 54.0 blocks lead the team. She ranks tied-7th in the conference in total blocks, matching junior Taniyah Pruitt. Senior Marley Hardgrave also cracks the top-20, posting 38.0 blocks this season.
Albano patrols the floor for SU, combining for 166 digs to lead the team. The mark ranks ninth in the conference, while Cervellera also joins the top-15 with 134 digs in 60 sets.
The Redhawks rank fourth in the league with 128.0 blocks while sitting tied-fourth in solo blocks with 36. Their 184 block assists are fifth in the WCC. SU’s combined 95 aces is sixth in the conference, while its 1.58 aces per set is fifth.
Gonzaga is one of SU’s longest standing opponents, the pair meeting for the first time in 1982. Since the Redhawks’ DI era began in 2008, the duo have met seven times. Seattle U is 3-4 since the 2008 season, while holding a 1-2 record in Spokane. The team is going for its first win in Spokane since 2010 and its first victory over the Zags since 2019. Gonzaga holds the series edge dating back to 1982, 7-3.
Following Saturday’s contest, the Redhawks return home to host both Pepperdine and San Diego at the Redhawk Center, starting with a rematch against the Waves on Thursday night.
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