THIS WEEK IN ALASKA ANCHORAGE VOLLEYBALL...

at D2 West Region Showcase
Coussoullis Arena — San Bernardino, CA
(All times listed ADT)
Thursday, September 12
9 am: Alaska Anchorage (2-2) vs Cal State San Marcos (5-0)
7 pm: Alaska Anchorage at #2 Cal State San Bernardino (3-0)
Friday, September 13
1:30 pm: Alaska Anchorage vs Biola (2-2)
Saturday, September 14
11 am: Alaska Anchorage vs Point Loma (3-1)
 
LIVE VIDEO: ccaanetwork.com
 
LIVE STATS: csusbathletics.com/sidearmstats/wvball/summary
 
SOCIAL MEDIA: Check the @UAAVolleyball Twitter feed for in-match updates.
 
SEAWOLF INVITE RECAP: The Seawolves got off to a 2-2 start in their own tournament last week, suffering losses to Regis (2-3) and UC San Diego (1-3), while earning victories over Biola (3-1) and Concord (3-0) ... So. RS Eve Stephens (3.88 kps, .250 att%, 2.38 dps, 0.94 bps) and So. S Ellen Floyd (9.69 aps, 0.56 ace/set) made the all-tournament team, while Sr. OH Vanessa Hayes produced 3.38 kps ... 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.
 
BRIEF SEASON PREVIEW: UAA returns seven letterwinners from 2018 – including full- or part-time starters Ellen Floyd, Vanessa Hayes, Vera Pluharova, Eve Stephens and Anjoilyn Vreeland ­– as the Seawolves try to return to the NCAA Tournament after a one-year absence ... Stephens and Hayes were recently named to the All-GNAC Preseason Team, while Hayes brings the most experience as the squad's lone senior, having started on UAA's 2016 NCAA runner-up club ... UAA also gets a boost with the return of all-league MB Kayla McGlathery, who is returning to the sport after a 4-year break, and an influx of seven newcomers and three returning redshirts.
 
UAA PROBABLE STARTERS (2019 stats)
S—Ellen Floyd, 5-10, So. (9.69 aps, 0.62 kps, .044 att%, 1.38 dps, 0.56 ace/set)
RS—Eve Stephens, 6-1, So. (3.88 kps, .250 att%, 2.38 dps, 0.94 bps, 0.31 ace/set)
MB—Kayla McGlathery, 6-0, Jr. (2.07 kps, .268 att%, 1.20 bps)
MB—Vera Pluharova, 6-2, Jr. (1.56 kps, .275 att%, 1.25 bps)
OH—Vanessa Hayes, 5-11, Sr. (3.38 kps, .222 att%, 1.50 dps, 0.81 ace/set)
DS—Maggie Schlueter, 5-8, Fr. (1.25 dps, 0.44 aps, 0.81 ace/set)
L—Anjoilyn Vreeland, , 5-6, Jr. (3.81 dps, 0.50 aps)
 
THE SERIES
vs. CSUSM: UAA leads 1-0
Last: UAA 3-2 (8-31-18 at Concordia-Irvine) / Notes: Teams met for the first time last season since San Marcos recently moved to the NCAA Div. II level ... last year's meeting was also took part in the West Region Showcase.

vs. CSUSB: CSUSB leads 8-3 overall, 4-0 in San Bernardino)
Streak: CSUSB 1 / Last: CSUSB 3-2 (9-9-17 at UAA) / Notes: Last meeting occurred in the West Region Showcase in Anchorage ... last three meetings have gone five sets ... Friday marks 10th meeting since 2009, including three matches in the NCAA Tournament (all CSUSB wins) ... UAA's last win came 3-2 in the West Region Showcase at Sonoma State in 2016.

vs. Biola: UAA leads 1-0
Last: UAA 3-1 (9-6-19 at UAA) / Notes: Teams will square off twice in eight days after having never played previously ... Biola is in its third season of NCAA Div. II membership and first year of eligibility for the NCAA Tournament.

vs. Point Loma: UAA leads 3-1 overall, 2-1 on neutral courts)
Streak: UAA 3 / Last: UAA 3-2 (9-1-17 at PLNU) / Notes: This marks programs' first meeting in West Region Showcase ... UAA roared back from an 0-2 deficit to beat Point Loma in the last meeting ... PLNU won first meeting, 3-1, when Sea Lions were an NAIA program in 2008; subsequent three meetings have been as fellow NCAA Div. II foes.
 
SCOUTING THE FOES...
CAL STATE SAN MARCOS (csusmcougars.com)
  2018: 13-13, 9-8 (4th) California Collegiate Athletic Assoc. South Div.
  2019 CCAA South Preseason Poll: t-3rd (of 6)
Week 1 results: def. Saint Martin's 3-0; def. WNMU 3-0; def. Bentley 3-1; def. Azusa Pacific 3-0; def. ENMU 3-1
 
CAL STATE SAN BERNARDINO (csusbathletics.com)
  2018: 28-3, 16-1 (1st) California Collegiate Athletic Assoc. South Div.
  2019 CCAA South Preseason Poll: 1st (of 6)
Week 1 results: def. West Alabama 3-0; def. Minnesota Duluth 3-1; def. Tarleton State 3-0
 
BIOLA (athletics.biola.edu)
  Nickname: Eagles
  Location: La Mirada, California
  2018: 30-6, 19-3 (2nd) Pac West Conference
  2019 PWC Preseason Poll: 3rd (of 12)
Week 1 results: lost to Regis 3-1; lost to UAA 3-1; def. UCSD 3-2; def. Concord 3-1.
 
POINT LOMA (plnusealions.com)
  Location: San Diego, California
  2018: 18-11, 15-7 (5th) Pac West Conference
  2019 PWC Preseason Poll: 4th of 12
Week 1 results: def. SFSU 3-0; def. CSUEB 3-0; lost to Southern Nazarene 3-0; def. SPU 3-1
 
2018 SEASON RECAP: The Seawolves posted the 14th 20-win season in program history and their sixth in 11 years under head coach Chris Green, barely missing the NCAA Tournament with a 21-7 overall record ... UAA also claimed its 11th straight winning record as it went 7-1 in non-conference play and finished third in the 11-team Great Northwest Athletic Conference at 14-6 ... individually, Eve Stephens landed First Team All-GNAC and GNAC Freshman of the Year honors, Sr. OH Chrisalyn Johnson and Sr. MB Tara Melton were honorable mention All-GNAC picks, and Sr. RS/L Taylor Noga tied for No. 2 in UAA career history with 101 victories in Green & Gold.
 
TEAM NOTES: After one week, UAA leads the GNAC with a .154 opponent hitting percentage, 3.00 aces per set and 2.50 blocks per set (tied with CWU) ... in the NCAA Div. II national stats, the Seawolves rank 8th in blocks per set and 9th in aces per set, with their 48 total aces leading the country ... UAA has reached the 20-win plateau 14 times in 39 years and the six times in 11 years under Chris Green ... the Seawolves recorded their 11th straight winning season in 2018, extending the program record that began with Green's arrival at UAA in 2008 ... UAA also extended program-best streaks of 10 straight winning conference records and top-4 conference finishes ... the Seawolves are 62-15 (.805) at the Alaska Airlines Center since its opening in Sept. 2014 and 108-26 (.806) at home since 2009; UAA has never lost consecutive matches at the Alaska Airlines Center ... the Seawolves are 18-13 against AVCA Top 25 teams since 2014 and 28-40 overall vs. ranked opponents under Green; prior to Green's arrival, UAA had lost 32 straight to ranked foes.
 
GOOD 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 season she has started with All-GNAC Preseason Team and Seawolf Invitational all-tourney awards ... the former Colony High School star ranks 2nd in the GNAC (22nd nationally) with 4.69 points per set and 3rd in the GNAC (36th nationally) with 3.88 kills per set, along with league ranks of 12th in bps (0.94) and 15th in attack pct. (.250) ... playing all rotations now after being subbed on the back row last year, Stephens has already recorded her first two career double-doubles, with 19 kills/13 digs against Regis and 16 kills/11 digs in the 3-1 win over Biola.
 
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 in her final campaign, Hayes looked like a veteran on the outside in week one, hitting .222 and collecting 3.38 kills per set (6th in GNAC) in the Seawolf Invitational ... the Oregon native earned her second career double-double with 14 kills/10 digs in the win over Biola, and she ranks 4th in the GNAC with 4.38 points per set ... Hayes has also added a major weapon to her game this year, leading the GNAC and ranking 20th nationally with 0.81 aces per set ... a starter on UAA's 2016 NCAA Runner-Up squad, she ranks in UAA's career top 20 lists in multiple categories, currently at 7th in block assists (253), 11th in total blocks (272) and 19th in kills (692).
 
MORE 'WOLF BITES: So. S Ellen Floyd dished 9.69 assists per set on opening weekend to rank 3rd in the early GNAC stats ... a Florida native, Floyd surpassed 1,000 career assists during the loss to UCSD and now stands just 60 shy of reaching the top 15 on UAA's career list ... Jr. MB Vera Pluharova and Jr. MB Kayla McGlathery give UAA two front-liners among the GNAC's top-10 hitting and blocking leaders after one week ... now in her second year as a starter, Pluharova ranks 3rd with 1.25 bps and 8th with .275 hitting, while McGlathery is right behind in both categories at 1.20 bps and .268 ... 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 ... boosted by 27 digs in the loss to Regis, Jr. L Anjoilyn Vreeland ranks 10th in  the early GNAC stats with 3.81 dps ... Fr. DS Maggie Schlueter made her debut last week and showed off a dangerous serve, producing 13 aces and just four errors; the Texan is tied for the early GNAC lead with teammate Vanessa Hayes at 0.81 aces per set.

GREEN MACHINE: Having led UAA to an unprecedented 11 straight winning seasons, UAA head coach Chris Green (235-92, .718) 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 an .778 clip (144-41) since the start of the 2013 campaign, including .825 (94-20) 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.
 
2019 INDIVIDUAL HONORS
Ellen Floyd
Seawolf Invitational All-Tournament Team
Vanessa Boyer
GNAC Preseason Team
Eve Stephens
GNAC Preseason Team
Seawolf Invitational All-Tournament Team