SALT LAKE CITY – The Westminster women's volleyball team heads to Butte, Mont. this weekend to play four matches at the Big Sky Challenge. The two-day event features matches at both Montana Tech and Carroll (Mont.) with all four matches the Griffins play taking place at Montana Tech.
The weekend begins against No. 2 Concordia (Calif.) on Friday at 11 a.m. MT. Westminster then completes the first day by facing former Frontier Conference foe, Dickinson State (N.D.) at 3 p.m. that night. Saturday begins with the Griffins facing California Merced at 9 a.m. before finishing the trip against No. 18 College of Idaho at 3 p.m.
Live stats and video will be available for all of the matches from Tech during the Big Sky Challenge.
Griffin NotebookWestminster enters the final weekend of no-conference action at 4-5 overall on the season. They went 1-3 at last week's Asics/Wyndham Labor Day Classic, with the lone win coming over No. 8 Biola (Calif.) on Friday.
The Griffins enter the weekend hitting .186 on the season and averaging 12.1 kills per set. They lead the Frontier and rank 22nd in the nation with 400 total kills and also place 20th nationally with 372 assists. The team is recording 1.8 service aces per set with 58 total aces.
Westminster opponents are hitting .187 so far this season while posting an average of 11.1 kills per set. The Griffins are recording 1.7 blocks per set while getting 14.1 digs per set. They have held four opponents to under .200 hitting on the year and twice forced a team into a negative hitting percentage.
Alexis Aalona is tops on the squad with 116 kills and she ranks second in the conference by posting 3.52 kills per set.
Jessica Chellsen is hitting a team-best .275 while posting 2.44 kills per set.
Taylor Gustafson leads all Griffins with 275 assists with
Jaden Green leading the way with 11 aces.
Alyse Horton has a team-high 99 digs with
Amara Culpepper totaling 21 blocks.
About Concordia (Calif.)No. 2 Concordia heads to Montana at 9-0 on the season and have dropped only one set on the year. They are hitting .292 as a team to rank seventh in the NAIA while leading the country with an average of 15.64 kills per set. The Eagles record 2.04 service aces per set and limit the opposition to .132 hitting.
About Dickinson StateDickinson State enters the week at 0-5 on the young season after dropping four matches last weekend. The Blue Hawks are hitting .113 as a team and they record 9.0 kills per set. They record 14.0 digs per set with Natasha Malana ranking 34th in the country by posting 5.11 digs per set.
About UC MercedUC Merced makes the trip at 2-5 on the year after going 2-3 at their own tournament last weekend. The Bobcats are hitting .097 this season while getting 9.5 kills per set. They are averaging 1.4 aces per set and getting 15.6 digs per set. Racheal Schaefer leads the team with 55 kills and is hitting .279.
About College of IdahoNo. 18 College of Idaho heads to the Big Sky Challenge at 1-4 on the season and riding a four-match losing streak. The Yotes opened the year by going 1-3 at the Biola Tournament before falling in five sets to Northwest Nazarene (Idaho) last Friday. They are ranked 43rd in the country with an average of 12.29 kills per set they hit .138 as a team. Sierra Porter is 28th in the NAIA in assists per set at 9.9 per.
Top 10 UpsetWestminster's thrilling five-set win over eighth-ranked Biola last Friday was the team's first win over a top-10 ranked team since 2010 and only the fourth all-time. While it was only the 10th win over a ranked team in school history, it was the second in the previous four opportunities for the Griffins. The victory also snapped a three-match losing streak to the Eagles and kept the Griffins perfect in five set matches this season.
| Westminster All-Time Top-10 Wins |
|---|
| Aug 24, 2007 | #6 Albertson | W, 3-2 |
| Aug 25, 2005 | #1 National American | W, 3-1 |
| Sept 4, 2010 | vs #6 Biola | W, 3-0 |
| Aug 29, 2014 | vs #8 Biola | W, 3-2 |
Aalona Racking up KillsWith 116 kills in this season,
Alexis Aalona moved has from fifth to third in kills in Westminster history. Aalona has recorded 866 kills for her career as she looks to become the second player in school history to 1,000 in their career. The first team all-conference performer established a new career high with 363 kills last season and finished sixth in the Frontier Conference in that category. Aalona would need to average 7.05 kills per match this season to reach 1,000.
| Westminster Career Kills Leaders |
|---|
| 1. | 1,497 | Angie Johnson | 2005-07 |
| 2. | 989 | Alison Culp | 2006-08 |
| 3. | 866 | Alexis Aalona | 2011-14 |
Also Climbing the Digs ChartAalona also ranks in the top 10 in career digs with 742 through last weekend. She tallied a career-best 353 digs last season and that total again in 2014 would make her the fourth player in school history to reach 1,000 career digs. Aalona needs 34 kills and 158 digs to become the first player in school history with 900 of each.
| Westminster Career Digs Leaders |
|---|
| 1. | 1,937 | Kyndall Kordakis | 2010-13 |
| 2. | 1,712 | Bree Riet | 2005-07 |
| 3. | 1,225 | Tahnie Blymiller | 2006-07,09 |
| 4. | 912 | Emily Atkinson | 2010-13 |
| 5. | 870 | Alison Culp | 2006-08 |
| 6. | 832 | Ericka Evans | 2007-10 |
| 7. | 742 | Alexis Aalona | 2011-14 |
Defensive Minded HortonAlyse Horton has become one of the top defensive players on the team. The junior leads the team with 99 digs and she currently ranks seventh in the conference with an average of 3.09 digs per set. She has reached double figures in digs in seven of the nine matches and also recording a pair of double-doubles.
Big Spot for ChellsenJunior
Jessica Chellsen has been a bright spot on the Westminster attack this season. The junior currently leads the team in hitting at .275 while also averaging 2.44 kills per set. She has been in double figures in the kills department in four matches, including a career-high 16 in the win over Evergreen (Wash.) on Aug. 22.
Running the ShowFreshman
Taylor Gustafson has stepped into the role of setter early this season. Gustafson is currently second in the conference with 275 assists and she has set the Griffin attack to an average of 11.27 kills per set. At her current pace, Gustafson would become the fourth freshman setter in school history to record 800 assists during their first season.
Volleyball BlogThis season, Aalona and Horton will be writing a blog that chronicles the team's adventures throughout the 2014 campaign. A new post will be available each week with many including pictures from outside of the gym that are taken by members of the team. The blog can be found on the volleyball page of WestminsterGriffins.com.
Looking AheadWestminster will open Frontier Conference action next week with another road trip to Montana. They begin at Rocky Mountain (Mont.) on Sept. 11 before playing at Carroll (Mont.) on Sept. 13. Both matches will begin at 7 p.m. MT.
