THIS WEEK IN ALASKA ANCHORAGE VOLLEYBALL...
 
Thur., Sept. 15 – 5 pm ADT – Alterowitz Gym – Billings, Mont.
#14 Alaska Anchorage (12-1, 2-0 GNAC) at Montana State Billings (6-3, 0-2 GNAC)
&
Sat., Sept. 17 – 1 pm ADT – Brougham Pavilion – Seattle, Wash.
#14 Alaska Anchorage at Seattle Pacific (2-8, 0-2 GNAC [9/15 vs UAF])
 
LIVE VIDEO: Thursday at youtube.com/watch?v=Qjq_oK0EeVE ... Saturday at youtube.com/user/SPUsports ... links also available at GoSeawolves.com.
 
LIVE STATS: Thursday at msubsports.com/sidearmstats/wvball
                       Saturday at spufalcons.com/sidearmstats/wvball
 
SOCIAL MEDIA: Check the @UAAVolleyball Twitter feed for in-match updates
 
UAA PROBABLE STARTERS (2022 stats)
S—Ellen Floyd, 5-10, Sr. (10.86 aps, .190 att%, 2.55 dps, 0.41 ace/set)
RS—Eve Stephens, 6-1, Sr. (4.61 kps, .389 att%, 2.55 dps, 0.61 bps, 0.66 ace/set)
OH—Lisa Jaunet, 5-10, Sr. (3.11 kps, .276 att%, 0.77 dps)
OH—Nicole Blue, 5-9, So. (2.18 kps, .258 att%, 1.14 dps, 0.39 bps)
MB—Isabel Evans, 6-3, So. (1.36 kps, .404 att%, 0.83 bps)
MB—Leilani Elder, 5-10, So. (1.39 kps, .351 att%, 0.86 bps)
L—Talia Leauanae, 5-8, Sr. (4.18 dps, 0.45 ace/set, 0.68 aps)
 
HITTIN' THE ROAD: The 14th-ranked UAA volleyball team starts the road portion of the 18-match GNAC schedule this week with matches at longtime rivals Montana State Billings and Seattle Pacific ... the Seawolves have won four straight after taking their league openers last week, while their opponents are both trying to rebound from 0-2 GNAC starts.
 
SCOUTING REPORT: Following a 6-1 start, Montana State Billings suffered a pair of 3-0 set backs to 2021 NCAA Tournament squads Simon Fraser and Western Washington on the road to begin the GNAC campaign ... picked eighth in the GNAC preseason coaches' poll, the Yellowjackets are led by Jahsita Fa'ali'i (2.53 kps, .142 att%, 2.62 dps) and Lily Gentz (2.31 kps, 2.67 att%, 0.69 bps) ... Seattle Pacific has played a tough schedule, winning its season opener 3-0 over No. 15 Winona State before losing eight of its last nine ... the Falcons have played four ranked teams and rallied from a two-set deficit Saturday at SFU before falling in five ... SPU is led by Sarah Brachvogel (2.44 kps, .159 att%) and Ashley Antoniak (2.03 kps, .188 att%, 2.09 dps).
 
THE SERIES...
vs MSUB: UAA leads 53-11 overall, 25-6 at MSUB
Streak: UAA 6
Last: UAA 3-0 (10/23/21 at MSUB)
Notes: The Seawolves have won 21 of the past 22 meetings, including 3-0 wins in both 2021 contests ... UAA has won 11 straight in Billings, with MSUB's last win coming over the Seawolves' first GNAC title team on Sept. 28, 2009 ... MSUB's lone win last decade was a 3-1 upset in UAA's 2017 home finale ... teams have not played a 5-setter since 2008 ... UAA leads 22-6 since MSUB joined the GNAC in 2007, including 22-4 under Chris Green ... MSUB is UAA's 2nd-most common opponent, trailing only UAF … teams met twice per season every year from 1985-2000 as members of the Pac West.
 
vs SPU: UAA leads 31-30 overall, tied 15-15 at SPU
Streak: SPU 1
Last: SPU 3-0 (10/21/21 at SPU)
Notes: UAA has won 16 of the last 18 meetings ... both home teams earned straght-sets wins in 2021, with the Falcons snapping a 10-match losing skid against the Seawolves in Seattle ... UAA is 22-6 against SPU under Chris Green and leads 24-16 in GNAC matches (since 2001) ... first meetings came in 1991 as members of the Pac West Conference.
 
INTO THE POLLS: The Seawolves remained in the AVCA Div. II Top 25 poll for the third straight week, moving up two spots to No. 14 in Monday's poll ... UAA is one of two GNAC teams in the rankings, along with No. 9 Western Washington, while Central Washington, Alaska Fairbanks and non-conference foe Point Loma are among teams receiving votes.
 
ABOUT LAST WEEK: The Seawolves slogged their way to a pair of defensive-minded sweeps of Saint Martin's and Western Oregon to begin the GNAC campaign last week at the Alaska Airlines Center ... on Thursday, Sr. RS Eve Stephens produced 10 kills and three of UAA's 10 aces in a 25-15, 25-17, 25-23 decision over the previously unbeaten Saints ... Sr. OH Lisa Jaunet added 8 kills and So. MB Leilani Elder returned from an injury absence with 5 kills and 4 block assists, while Sr. L Talia Leauanae led with 13 digs ... on Saturday, Stephens had team highs of 9 kills, 5 aces, 8 digs and 4 total blocks to propel a 25-21, 25-11, 25-18 sweep of WOU ... Sr. S Ellen Floyd dished 28 assists and Elder added four more blocks as UAA held the Wolves to -.022 hitting – their third-best defensive mark ever in a GNAC match.
 
TEAM NOTES: The Seawolves' .307 team attack percentage leads the nation, along with top-30 ranks in assists  per set (22nd, 12.66), aces per set (28th, 2.39) and kills per set (30th, 14.55) ... UAA leads the GNAC in attack percentage and is second in kills, assist and aces per set ... at 12-1, UAA has matched the 2016 team for the second-best 13-match record in program history, trailing the 14-0 start from 2015 ... UAA's 8-0 record marked its third-longest unbeaten streak to begin a season ... the -.033 attack percentage allowed against Hawaii Hilo was UAA's best defensive mark since holding Concord to -.082 hitting on Sept. 6, 2019, while the -.022 allowed vs. WOU was UAA's third-lowest in 20 years of GNAC play ... UAA's .488 attack pct. against Emmanuel and the .427 mark against Lubbock Christian rank as the program's 2nd- and 5th-best hitting percentages since the rally-scoring era began in 2001 ... the Seawolves are aiming for their 15th consecutive winning season, hoping to extend the program record that began with Chris Green's arrival at UAA in 2008 ... UAA is also on program-best streaks with 12 straight winning conference records and 12 straight top-4 GNAC finishes ... the Seawolves are 87-19 (.821) at the Alaska Airlines Center since its opening in Sept. 2014 and 134-31 (.812) at home since 2009; UAA has never lost three straight matches at the Alaska Airlines Center ... the Seawolves are 23-18 against AVCA Top 25 teams since 2014 and 32-45 overall vs. ranked opponents under Green; prior to Green's arrival, UAA had lost 32 straight to ranked foes.
 
EVE OF DESTRUCTION: A three-time unanimous All-GNAC performer and two-time AVCA Second Team All-American, Sr. RS Eve Stephens continues to rack up numbers at a record-setting pace, now standing as the GNAC's all-time leader in both points (1,935) and kills (1,630) ... the active career kills leader in NCAA Div. II, Stephens was named the AVCA National Player of the Week for her MVP effort at the Ice Block Classic in Fairbanks two weeks ago, while her nine career GNAC player-of-the-week honors are the second-most in league history ... after producing 19 kills and eight aces last week, she holds national ranks of 3rd in points per set (5.66), 8th in kills per set (4.61) and 25th in aces per set (0.66), making her the only D-II player in the top 25 in all three categories ... the Palmer (Colony HS) product has 34 double-doubles for her career, having led the GNAC in both kills and points per set in 2019 and 2020-21 ... after claiming the GNAC kills record Sept. 10 against WOU, she is now on the verge of becoming UAA's all-time leader in points (38 shy of record) and kills (61 shy of record), along with career ranks of 2nd in kills per set (3.81), 7th in attack pct. (.290), 7th in block assists (307), 9th in total blocks (333) and 8th in victories (84) ... a star in the classroom as well, she is a two-time CoSIDA Academic All-District 8 and 2021 Third Team Academic All-America honoree.
 
PLAY SOME FLOYD: A two-time All-GNAC selection and 2019 AVCA honorable mention All-American, Sr. S Ellen Floyd has led UAA to the third-best team attack percentage (.307) in NCAA Div. II thus far, while ranking 17th individually with 10.86 assists per set ... the co-MVP of the Seawolf Invitational, she holds GNAC ranks of 2nd in assists per set, 14th in aces per set (0.41) and 19th in digs per set (2.55) ... having already broken the UAA career records for assists (4,202) and aces (185), Floyd has her sights on both GNAC marks, currently at No. 3 on those lists; she needs just three more aces to tie SPU's Alyssa Given (188 aces, 2004-07) for second ... the Florida native has produced at least 30 assists in nine of 13 matches, helping UAA hit no lower than .240 all but twice ... Floyd's 64 assists against Florida Southern were the most by a Seawolf since 2004, and she has produced double-digit digs in four matches ... on UAA's career lists, Floyd currently sits 1st in assists (4,402) and aces (185), 3rd in assists average (9.68 aps), 3rd in aces per set (0.43), 8th in digs (1,133) and 6th in victories (86) ... with a 3.86 GPA in accounting, Floyd earned her third straight GNAC All-Academic nod last year and joined Eve Stephens to give UAA two of the eight selections to the CoSIDA Academic All-District 8 Team.
 
SENIOR STRENGTH: One of three Seawolves in her fifth year in Green & Gold, Sr. L Talia Leauanae is producing her finest campaign to date ... the Hawaiian has posted double-digit digs in 11 of 13 matches, including a UAA season-high 25  against Florida Southern and 22 in the sweep of Black Hills State ... she also delivered 4 aces with no service errors  in wins over both Point Loma and Arkansas-Fort Smith ... with 5.35 digs per set at the Ice Block Classic two weeks ago, Leauanae now holds GNAC ranks of 3rd in digs per set (4.18) and 10th in aces per set (0.45) ... on UAA's career lists, she stands 5th in total digs (1,222; needs five to tie for 4th) and 11th in digs per set (3.41) ... a former JC transfer, Sr. OH Lisa Jaunet appears twice as comfortable in her second season in Green & Gold ... the St. Denis, France, native has had at least seven kills in each match and double figures in five contests, producing 10 on .563 hitting against Lubbock Christian, eight on career-best .667 hitting against Emmanuel and a career-high 25 to to lead the comeback win over Point Loma last week ... in the GNAC stats, Jaunet ranks 5th in kills per set (3.21), 13th in points per set (3.20) and 17th in attack pct. (.276).
 
MORE 'WOLF BITES: Third-year sophomore OH Nicole Blue has also shown marked improvement from her 2021 production, ripping at least five kills 12 of 13 matches and hitting at least .300 on six occasions ... the Southern Californian helped spark the comeback against Point Loma with 13 kills on .313 hitting, and she had 12 kills on .300 hitting in the win over Ark.-Fort Smith ... she also leads the Seawolves with a .971 reception pct., not committing a reception error over the last eight matches ... another pair of sophomores have taken over in the middle this year, with returnee Leilani Elder and JC transfer Isabel Evans combining for 2.75 kills per set on .382 hitting and 1.69 blocks per set ... after playing well at the Seawolf Invitational and subsequently missing the Ice Block Classic due to injury, Elder returned to the lineup with 5 kills and 4 total blocks in each match last week ... the Kansas City native has tallied exactly five or six kills in each of her last six matches and produced multiple blocks in all nine of her appearances ... meanwhile, Evans has recorded at least .250 hitting in 10 of 13 matches since transfering from Williston State College, including five .500-plus efforts ... the Montanan hit a  UAA season-best .714 with 10 kills against Florida Southern, .600 in the win over Hawaii Pacific and .667 in the sweep of No. 25 Chaminade.
 
GREEN MACHINE: Having led UAA to an unprecedented 14 straight winning seasons and with more than 750 combined victories at the JC and D-II levels, UAA head coach Chris Green (298-114, .723) has established himself as the most successful coach in program history and one of the top mentors in the NCAA Div. II ranks, earning five GNAC Coach of the Year awards ('09, '13, '15, '16, '19) ... the 2016 AVCA D-II National Coach of the Year and 3-time AVCA D-II West Region Coach of the Year (2009, '15, '16), Green has led UAA to NCAA Tournament berths in 10 of the last 12 full seasons, capturing No. 1 seeds in 2015 and 2016, and piloting the Seawolves to the national title match in 2016 ... in the 28 years before Green's arrival, the Seawolves made just two NCAA appearances ... UAA has won at a .767 clip (207-63) since the start of the 2013 campaign, including .812 (125-29) in league play ... Green's UAA teams have produced nine 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.
 
2022 Individual Honors
ELLEN FLOYD
Seawolf Invitational co-Most Outstanding Player
Preseason All-GNAC Team
LISA JAUNET
Seawolf Invitational All-Tournament Team
EVE STEPHENS
AVCA D-II National Player of the Week, Aug. 30-Sept. 5
GNAC Offensive Player of the Week, Aug. 29-Sept. 4
Ice Block Classic MVP
Seawolf Invitational co-Most Outstanding Player
GNAC Offensive Player of the Week, Aug. 15-21
Preseason All-GNAC Team
 
UAA School Records Broken/Tied in 2022
INDIVIDUAL
Career
Most Assists — 4,202 by Ellen Floyd, 2018-current (old record: 3,920 by Morgan Hooe, 2013-16)
Most Aces — 185 by Ellen Floyd, 2018-current (extends record set in 2021)
TEAM
Match
Highest Attack Pct. vs. Non-Conference Opponent, Rally-Scoring Era (since 2001) — .488 (46-4-86) vs Emmanuel, Ga., 8/26 (old record: .444 vs Concord, 9/6/19)
Fewest Blocks Allowed — 0 at Hawaii Pacific, Aug. 19 (ties record last accomplished vs. Northwest Nazarene, 10/9/21)