THIS WEEK IN ALASKA ANCHORAGE VOLLEYBALL...


Thu. Nov. 21 — 7 pm AST — Alaska Airlines Center — Anchorage, AK
Saint Martin's (1-26, 1-17 GNAC) at Alaska Anchorage (20-6, 15-3 GNAC)
&
Sat., Nov. 23 — 7 pm AST — Alaska Airlines Center — Anchorage, AK
Seattle Pacific (12-14, 9-9 GNAC [11/21 @UAF]) at Alaska Anchorage
 
LIVE VIDEO & STATS: gnac.tv
 
SOCIAL MEDIA: Check the @UAAVolleyball Twitter feed for in-match updates.

TICKETS: AlaskaAirlinesCenter.com
 
UAA PROBABLE STARTERS (2019 stats)
S—Ellen Floyd, 5-10, So. (10.16 aps, 0.58 kps, .080 att%, 2.73 dps, 0.73 bps)
RS—Eve Stephens, 6-1, So. (3.90 kps, .253 att%, 2.29 dps, 0.85 bps)
MB—Kayla McGlathery, 6-0, Jr. (2.27 kps, .300 att%, 1.11 bps)
MB—Vera Pluharova, 6-2, Jr. (1.27 kps, .280 att%, 1.25 bps)
OH—Vanessa Hayes, 5-11, Sr. (2.96 kps, .216 att%, 1.30 dps, 0.48 ace/set)
DS—Anjoilyn Vreeland, 5-6, Jr. (2.84 dps, 0.31 ace/set)
L—Talia Leauanae, 5-8, So. (3.67 dps, 0.68 aps, 0.22 ace/set)
 
GNAC, PLAYOFF RACES ON THE LINE: With two matches left in the regular season, the Seawolves have clinched no worse than second place outright in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference and can still win the title depending on this week's results ... two Western Washington victories would clinch the third straight league title for the Vikings, but if they stumble at Northwest Nazarene and/or Central Washington, UAA could earn at least a share of its first title since 2016; a tie in the final standings would give UAA the GNAC's automatic NCAA Tournament bid, thanks to its season sweep of WWU.
 
SENIOR NIGHT SATURDAY: The Seawolves will honor two players in prematch ceremonies Saturday, as Sr. OH Vanessa Hayes and Jr. L/DS Anjoilyn Vreeland will play their final home contests at the Alaska Airlines Center ... an All-GNAC Academic Team honoree along with Hayes, Vreeland will forego her final year of eligibility to concentrate on academics, head coach Chris Green has announced.
 
UAA CLAIMS MAJOR BORDER BATTLES: The Seawolves went 2-0 on the GNAC's toughest road trip last week, coming back for a 23-25, 22-25, 25-23, 27-25, 16-14 win at No. 4 Western Washington, followed by a 25-20, 25-23, 22-25, 25-16 win at Simon Fraser ... in Bellingham, Sr. OH Vanessa Hayes tallied 17 kills, Jr. MB Kayla McGlathery had 13 kills (.423) and 5 total blocks (all in the 5th set), and So. S Ellen Floyd managed 43 assists, 14 digs and 4 block assists to help UAA sweep the season series from WWU for the first time since 2011 ... playing without GNAC kills and points leader Eve Stephens, the Seawolves got a career-high 8 kills (.333) and 5 block assists from Jr. MB Jalisa Ingram, while Fr. OH Hannah Pembroke and Jr. MB Vera Pluharova ripped 8 kills apiece, including a Pembroke spike on match point ... north of the border in Burnaby, Stephens returned to the lineup with 22 kills on .408 hitting, 12 digs and 5 total blocks, helping UAA avenge its lone GNAC home loss against the Clan ... Hayes had 13 kills, Ingram added 7 kills on career-best .583 hitting, and Floyd totaled 48 assists, 15 digs, 5 kills and 5 block assists on her way to GNAC Offensive and AVCA Sports Imports Div. II National Player of the Week honors.
 
THE SERIES
vs. SMU: UAA leads 35-4 overall, 17-1 in Anchorage
Streak: UAA 23
Last: UAA 3-1 (9-21-19 at SMU)
Notes: The last four matches have gone four sets ... UAA's 23-match win streak is the longest in program history against any opponent ... the Seawolves have won 69 of 75 sets during the streak, which started in 2008 ... UAA has won 11 straight at home, including the first five meetings at the Alaska Airlines Center ... SMU swept the 2007 series with a pair of 3-0 wins ... UAA leads 33-4 in GNAC matches (since 2001) ... teams played first two matches as Pac West Conference opponents in 1998 and 1999.
 
vs. SPU: SPU leads 29-27 overall; UAA leads 14-13 in Anchorage
Streak: UAA 1
Last: UAA 3-0 (9-19-19 at SPU)
Notes: SPU snapped UAA's series-best win streak of 11 with last year's 5-set victory in Anchorage ... prior to UAA's sweep in September, the previous three meetings had gone five sets ... the Seawolves have won four of the first five meetings at the Alaska Airlines Center ... UAA is 18-5 against SPU under head coach Chris Green and leads 22-15 in GNAC matches ... first meetings came in 1991 as members of the Pac West Conference.
 
SCOUTING THE FOES: Saint Martin's comes north five days after snapping its 31-match overall and 22-match GNAC losing skids with Saturday's 25-20, 25-19, 22-25, 25-23 home victory over MSU Billings in Lacey, Wash. … the Saints are led by Mackenzie Carter (3.41 kps, .127 att%, 2.27 dps) and Kylie Coon (2.55 kps, .142 att%, 1.26 dps) … trying to get to the .500 mark with victories this week, Seattle Pacific has lost three of its last four, following a six-match winning streak from Oct. 15-Nov. 2 … the Falcons are led by Maddie Batiste (3.59 kps, .154 att%, .326 dps) and all-conference performer Gabby Oddo (3.52 kps, .209 att%, 3.00 dps, 0.44 ace/set).
 
TEAM NOTES: UAA leads the GNAC with 2.17 aces per set and ranks 2nd in blocks per set (2.56), attack pct. (.230) and opponent attack pct. (.157) ... in the NCAA Div. II national stats, the Seawolves rank 6th in aces, 8th in blocking and 45th in attack pct. ... the Seawolves are 69-16 (.812) at the Alaska Airlines Center since its opening in Sept. 2014 and 115-27 (.810) at home since 2009; UAA has never lost consecutive matches at the Alaska Airlines Center ... UAA has reached the 20-win plateau 14 times in 39 years and six times in 11 years under Chris Green ... the Seawolves have clinched their 12th straight winning season, extending the program record that began with Green's arrival at UAA in 2008 ... UAA has also extended program-best streaks of 11 straight winning conference records and top-4 GNAC finishes ... the Seawolves are 20-14 against AVCA Top 25 teams since 2014 and 30-41 overall vs. ranked opponents under Green; prior to Green's arrival, UAA had lost 32 straight to ranked foes ... UAA set an Alaska Airlines Center record for attack percentage in the 25-8, 25-12, 25-12 win over Concord, hitting .444 (37-9-63), while the Mountain Lions' 32 points were the second-fewest allowed by a Seawolf club since 25-point rally scoring took effect in 2008.
 
ROCKIN' EVE: Rightside hitter Eve Stephens delivered one of the best rookie seasons in Seawolf history last year, claiming unanimous First Team All-GNAC, Second Team All-West Region and GNAC Freshman of the Year honors, and this year she started with All-GNAC Preseason Team, all-tournament honors at both the D2 West Region Showcase and Seawolf Invitational, and GNAC Offensive Player of the Week for Sept. 16-22 ... in the GNAC stats, the former Colony High School star leads the way in kills per set (3.90) and points per set (4.61), along with ranks of 14th in blocking (0.85 bps) and 15th in attack pct. (.253) ... in the NCAA Div. II national stats, she is 29th in points and 38th in kills ... playing all rotations after being subbed on the back row last year, Stephens has recorded a team-high 11 double-doubles, averaging 2.29 dps ... on UAA's career lists, the Palmer native currently ranks 5th in kills per set (3.51) and 7th in attack pct. (.286), and she alreaday stands 19th in program history with 710 kills in just 52 career matches ... a star in the classroom as well, Stephens is a candidate for Academic All-America honors, having already been voted CoSIDA Academic All-District 8 with her GNAC-best 4.00 GPA in accounting.
 
HAYES MAKER: Sr. OH Vanessa Hayes made the move from middle blocker to outside hitter last year and showed steady improvement, averaging 2.56 kps on .189 hitting ... a Preseason All-GNAC selection and the reigning GNAC Offensive Player of the Week, Hayes has looked like a veteran on the outside this year, hitting .216 and collecting 2.96 kills per set ... a double threat with 0.48 aces per set (3rd in GNAC, 19th nationally), Hayes holds other league ranks of 9th in points per set (3.64) and 12th in kills per set ... the Oregon native earned her third career double-double with 14 kills and a career-high 13 digs in the 5-set win over Biola and has produced double-digit kills in 18 of 26 matches this year, including successive career highs of 18 kills in the 4-set win over No. 2 Western Washington and 19 kills in the 4-set win over Concordia-Portland  ... a starter on UAA's 2016 NCAA Runner-Up squad, she ranks in UAA's career top 20 lists in multiple categories, currently at 6th in block assists (282), 10th in total blocks (304), 11th in kills (943), 10th in matches played (121), 4th in sets played (464) and 4th in victories (94).
 
THE ELLEN SHOW: So. S Ellen Floyd has  dished 10.16 assists per set to rank 2nd in the conference and 46th nationally, improving her average to 10.58 aps in GNAC matches ... having started the year with all-tournament honors at both the Seawolf Invitational and D2 West Region Showcase, the Florida native added GNAC Offensive and AVCA Sports Imports Div. II National Player of the Week honors for her play in the wins at Western Washington and Simon Fraser ...  Floyd already stands 7th on UAA's career list with 1,921 assists, boosted by season-high 52-assist efforts in 4-set wins over Saint Martin's and MSU Billings, and 51 in the 4-set victory at NW Nazarene; she is  4th in Seawolf history in terms of career assists average at 9.21 aps ... along with the third-highest digs average on the team (2.73 dps), she also ranks 6th in the GNAC and 44th nationally with 0.44 aces per set.
 
MORE 'WOLF BITES:  Jr. MB Vera Pluharova and Jr. MB Kayla McGlathery give UAA two front-liners among the GNAC's top-10 blocking leaders and are a huge reason the Seawolves rank 8th nationally in that category ... now in her second year as a starter, Pluharova ranks 3rd in the league and 19th nationally with 1.25 bps, while McGlathery is 5th in the GNAC and 57th nationally with 1.10 bps ... the 2014 GNAC Newcomer of the Year and an all-league pick, McGlathery has returned to the Seawolves this season after taking four years off from the sport and also currently ranks 5th in the league with a .300 attack percentage as well ... meanwhile, Pluharova has recorded at least 6 kills on .300 hitting in six matches, including 9 kills (.438) in the road sweep of Concordia and a career-high 11 kills (.474) in the 5-set win over UAF ... the Seawolves are well stocked at the libero and DS positions, with So. Talia Leauanae and Jr. Anjoilyn Vreeland sharing time in both roles  ... Leauanae ranks 11th in the GNAC with 3.67 digs per set, following recent efforts of 28 digs (career high) in the loss to Simon Fraser, 17 digs in the home upset of Western Washington, 24 in the win over UAF and 21 in the road win at NNU ... a former Dimond High standout, Vreeland is second on the team with 2.84 dps, posting double-digit digs in 13 of 26 matches ... Vreeland stands 15th on UAA's career list with 3.11 dps, and she broke a program record with 7 aces in the win over UAF ... Fr. DS Maggie Schlueter has made her debut after a redshirt campaign and shown off a dangerous serve, producing a UAA freshman record 50 aces ... the Texan is 2nd in the GNAC and ranks 19th nationally with 0.50 aces per set, serving at least one ace in 22 of 26 matches.
 
GREEN MACHINE: Having led UAA to an unprecedented 11 straight winning seasons, UAA head coach Chris Green (253-96, .725) has established himself as the most successful coach in program history and one of the top mentors in the NCAA Div. II ranks, earning the 2016 AVCA D-II National Coach of the Year award ... a 4-time GNAC Coach of the Year (2009, '13, '15, '16) and 3-time AVCA D-II West Region Coach of the Year (2009, '15, '16), Green has led UAA to NCAA Tournament berths in seven of the last nine seasons, capturing No. 1 seeds in 2015 and 2016; in the 28 years before Green's arrival, the Seawolves made two NCAAs ... UAA has won at a .783 clip (162-45) since the start of the 2013 campaign, including .826 (109-23) in league play ... Green's UAA teams have produced six All-Americans, five GNAC Players of the Year, six GNAC Newcomers of the Year and five GNAC Freshmen of the Year ... hired in Feb. 2008 as the sixth coach in UAA Volleyball history, Green spent the previous nine seasons (1999-07) as the head coach at Western Nebraska Community College, where he built a powerhouse program ... among his list of accomplishments at WNCC were a 453-55 record, the 2007 NJCAA Div. I national championship, 2006 NJCAA runner-up, and four straight 'Final 4' berths ... the Cougars finished in the top 10 at the national tournament in all of Green's seasons, producing a total of 10 first-team and six second-team All-America certificates ... in 2011, he was inducted into the NJCAA Hall of Fame.
 
BEST OF THE WEST: The Seawolves stood at No. 5 in the second version of the NCAA Div. II West Region rankings on Nov. 13 ... the final version of the three public polls will be unveiled Nov. 20, leading to the announcement of the NCAA Tournament field Nov. 25 at 3:30 p.m. AST ... the GNAC, CCAA and Pac West Conference champions qualify automatically, along with the next five highest ranked teams.
 
NCAA Div. II West Region Volleyball Rankings
Nov. 13, 2019 (records through Nov. 10)
Rk Team                   vs West vs DII Conf.
 1 Cal State San Bernardino  19-0   22-0 CCAA
 2 Western Washington        19-1   23-1 GNAC
 3 Cal State LA              15-4   16-6 CCAA
 4 UC San Diego              16-7   17-7 CCAA
 5 Alaska Anchorage          17-6   18-6 GNAC
 6 Azusa Pacific             21-4   21-4 PWC
 7 Central Washington        14-6   16-8 GNAC
 8 Simon Fraser              16-7   16-8 GNAC
 9 Cal State San Marcos      14-9   15-9 CCAA
10 Hawaii Hilo               17-6   18-6 PWC
 
2019 INDIVIDUAL HONORS
ELLEN FLOYD
Seawolf Invitational All-Tournament Team
D2 West Region Showcase All-Tournament Team
GNAC All-Academic Team
GNAC Offensive Player of the Week, Nov. 11-17
AVCA Sports Imports Div. II National Player of the Week, Nov. 12-18
VANESSA HAYES
GNAC Preseason Team
GNAC All-Academic Team
GNAC Offensive Player of the Week, Nov. 4-10
JALISA INGRAM
GNAC All-Academic Team
TALIA LEAUANAE
GNAC All-Academic Team
KAYLA McGLATHERY
GNAC Offensive Player of the Week, Sept. 30-Oct. 6
VERA PLUHAROVA
GNAC All-Academic Team
EVE STEPHENS
GNAC Preseason Team
Seawolf Invitational All-Tournament Team
D2 West Region Showcase All-Tournament Team
GNAC Offensive Player of the Week, Sept. 16-22
GNAC All-Academic Team (highest GPA)
CoSIDA Academic All-District 8 Team
ANJOILYN VREELAND
GNAC All-Academic Team
 
UAA School Records Broken/Tied in 2019
INDIVIDUAL
Match
Most Aces* — 7, Anjoilyn Vreeland vs Alaska Fairbanks, 10/22 (old record: 6, several times)
Season
Most Aces, Freshman ­– 50, Maggie Schlueter (old record: 40, Leah Swiss, 2015)
TEAM
Match
Fewest Points Allowed, Alaska Airlines Center (since 2014) — 32 vs Concord, 9/6 (old record: 34 vs MSU Billings, 9/24/15)
Best Hitting Pct., Home Match^ — .444 (37-9-63) vs Concord, 9/6 (old record: .437 vs MSU Billings, 9/21/13)
Misc.
Most Consecutive Wins vs. Opponent — 23 vs Saint Martin's (extends record)
Most Consecutive Winning Seasons — 12 (2008-19, extends record)
Most Consecutive Winning Conference Records ­— 11 (2009-19, extends record)
^since rally scoring implemented in 2001
*since 25-point rally-scoring system implemented in 2008