THIS WEEK IN ALASKA ANCHORAGE VOLLEYBALL...
 
at Alaska/Hawaii Challenge – Patty Center – Fairbanks, Alaska
Friday, Aug. 25
1 pm: Chaminade (0-0) vs #14 Alaska Anchorage (0-0)
7 pm: Hawaii Hilo vs #14 Alaska Anchorage
Saturday, Aug. 26
10:30 am: Chaminade vs #14 Alaska Anchorage
4 pm: Hawaii Hilo vs #14 Alaska Anchorage
 
LIVE VIDEO: youtube.com/TheAlaskaNanooks
LIVE STATS: Thursday at alaskananooks.com/sidearmstats/wvball/summary
SOCIAL MEDIA: Check the @UAAVolleyball Twitter feed for in-game updates.
 
2023 SEASON PREVIEW: Led by first-year head coach Stacie Meisner, the Seawolves return three starters and three other key letterwinners from last year's GNAC title club ... OH Nicole Blue (1.80 kps, .187 att%, 0.40 bps) is the team's lone senior and Preseason All-GNAC honoree, while both starting middles are back in juniors Leilani Elder (1.30 kps, .281, .099 bps) and Isabel Evans (1.11 kps, .274, 1.04 bps), who each finished among the league's top 11 in blocking ... Jr. S Makana Eleneki is back for her fifth season with the program and ready to battle with a pair of newcomers for setter duties, while Jr. DS/L Reilly Plumhoff and So. DS/L Madison Galloway should give UAA one of the West Region's top back-row tandems ... nine of the 11 newcomers begin the season on the active roster, with several sure to play major roles.
 
2022 SEASON RECAP: UAA produced one of the most memorable seasons in program history in 2022, winning the GNAC title, posting and 27-3 record and finishing No. 10 in the final NCAA Div. II national poll ... led by National Player of the Year Eve Stephens and fellow senior All-American Ellen Floyd, UAA went 17-1 in league play, sweeping arch rival Western Washington and finishing the year with  a victory over Central Washington in front of the largest regular-season crowd in D2 Volleyball history.
 
UAA PROBABLE STARTERS (2022 stats/notes)
S—Makana Eleneki, 5-6, Jr. (0.26 dps, 0.28 ace/set)
  -or- Kadyn Osborne, 5-10, Jr. (transfer from Eastern Arizona)
  -or- Hannah Trotter, 5-9, Fr. (true freshman from Wauwatosa, Wis.)
RS—Bella Burney, 6-0, Fr. (true freshman from Tumwater, Wash.)
OH—Bethany Tuchardt, 6-2, So. (NJCAA 2nd Team All-Amer. at Highline Coll.)
OH—Nicole Blue, 5-9, Sr. (1.80 kps, .187 att%, 0.91 dps, 0.40 bps)
MB—Isabel Evans, 6-3, Jr. (1.11 kps, .274 att%, 1.04 bps)
MB—Leilani Elder, 5-10, Jr. (1.30 kps, .281 att%, 0.99 bps)
L—Reilly Plumhoff, 5-5, Jr. (1.40 dps, 0.37 ace/set)
  -or- Madison Galloway, 5-4, So. (1.84 dps, 0.22 ace/set)
 
THE SERIES...
vs Chaminade: CU leads 15-14 overall, 6-1 neutral court
Streak: CU 1
Last: CU 3-2 (11/17/22 at Bellingham, Wash.)
Notes: With 29 meetings, CU is UAA's most common non-GNAC opponent ... this marks the fourth year in a row the teams will play at least twice ... UAA beat CU 3-0 in Honolulu last August before the Silverswords upset the Seawolves 3-2 (15-12) in the first round of the 2022 NCAA West Regional Championships in November ... this also marks the teams' first matches in Alaska since CU traveled to Anchorage in 2000 ... series started in 1989.
 
vs UH Hilo: UHH leads 14-10 overall; tied 2-2 neutral court
Streak: UAA 1
Last: UAA 3-0 (8/20/22 at Honolulu)
Notes: This marks the teams' fourth and fifth meetings since April 2021 ... UAA and UHH did not meet between 2014-20 ... these will be the teams' first matches in Alaska since Hilo traveled to Anchorage in 2005 ... series started in 1981.
 
UAA NCAA HISTORY: UAA made its eighth NCAA appearance in nine seasons and 11th in the last 13 seasons (not including the 2020 pandemic year) in 2022 ... last year marked UAA's 13th overall NCAA Tournament trip (1989, 1990, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2021), with its overall record now at 8-13 … the Seawolves earned their deepest by making the 2016 National Title Match and winning multiple matches for the first time that year ... the Seawolves are 4-9 all-time in the opening round after their 5-set upset loss to Chaminade in 2022.
 
STROLLIN' THE POLLS: After cracking the rankings for the final 13 polls of 2022, UAA starts at No. 14 in the 2023 preseason AVCA Div. II Top 25 poll ... UAA's No. 10 final ranking in 2022 was second-best in program history behind the 2016 team's No. 3 spot, while the No. 4 ranking in the Nov. 14, 2022 poll was UAA's highest ever in the regular season ... UAA is one of two GNAC teams in the preseason top 25, along with No. 15 Western Washington, while GNAC teams Central Washington and Seattle Pacific are each receiving votes.
 
2023 AVCA NCAA Div. II Top 25 Coaches Poll - Aug. 22
Rk School [1st-Pl. Votes]   2022  Pts.
 1 West Texas A&M [42]      33-4  1139
 2 Concordia-St. Paul [5]   31-6  1096
 3 MSU Denver               30-2   988
 4 Wayne State (Neb.)       30-3   912
 5 Tampa                    29-4   904
 6 Barry                    28-6   815
 7 St. Cloud State          28-6   800
 8 Minnesota Duluth         27-5   780
 9 Cal State LA             25-7   732
10 Missouri-St. Louis       25-7   668
14 Alaska Anchorage         27-3   505
15 Western Washington       21-6   487
19 Cal State San Bernardino 20-7   320
23 Cal Poly Pomona          24-6   163
West Region Teams Receiving Votes: 26) Chaminade 112; 32) Central Washington 61; 47) Point Loma 7; t48) Sonoma State 5; 50) Seattle Pacific 3 ... complete poll at avca.org.
 
GNAC CHAMPS: The Seawolves earned the program's fourth GNAC title – all outright – with a 17-1 league record in 2022 ... UAA took both meetings against arch rival Western Washington and earned the championship by just one match over the Vikings, clinching with road sweeps of Western Oregon and Saint Martin's on the final week of the regular season ... UAA's other titles came in 2009, 2015 and 2016, when the Seawolves advanced all the way to the NCAA Div. II National Title Match ... last year marked the sixth league title in program history, along with the Continental Divide Conference crown in 1990 and a shared Pac West Conference title in 1992.
 
RETURNERS READY: Sr. OH Nicole Blue showed marked improvement in her third season, ripping at least five kills in 22 of 30 matches and hitting at least .300 on nine occasions in 2022 ... the 2023 Preseason All-GNAC pick helped spark the comeback against Point Loma with 13 kills on .313 hitting, and she had a combined 16 kills on .469 hitting in the road wins at MSUB and SPU ... Jr. MB Leilani Elder tallied four or more kills in 18 or her last 23 appearances and multiple blocks in 23 of 26 overall outings as a sophomore, topping out with career highs of 8 kills at Northwest Nazarene and 11 points (7K/3BS/2BA) against UAF ... the Kansas City native ranked 11th in the GNAC with 0.99 blocks per set ... Jr. MB Isabel Evans finished 8th in the GNAC with 1.04 blocks per set after tying her season high with 7 total blocks in the NCAA loss to Chaminade ... the transfer from Williston State (N.D.), Evans had 7 block assists at Central Washington and against Seattle Pacific, and she hit .400 or better on eight occasion, including a UAA season-high .714 (10-1-14) against Florida Southern ... Jr. DS/L Reilly Plumhoff registered 18 aces over the last 11 matches in 2022, giving her 11 multi-ace performances and ranking 9th in the league with 0.37 per set ... the local Dimond High product produced at least six digs in 14 matches, including a season-high 10 in the home sweep of Western Washington and the 4-set home win over NNU ... either Plumhoff or So. DS/L Madison Galloway are likely to don the libero jersey this season ... despite starting her collegiate career as a 17-year-old, Galloway ranked fourth on UAA with 1.84 digs per set in 2022 and recorded the team's best reception percentage at .956 (350 of 366) ... the Floridian registered seven matches with double-digit digs and also posted UAA's second-best service pct. at .932.
 
THE NEXT LEVEL: Five of UAA's nine active newcomers are junior college transfers ... Jr. OH Bethany Tuchardt was an NJCAA Second Team All-American and the NWAC West Region MVP as a sophomore ... Tuchardt (pronounced TOO-hart) led the 32-team NWAC with a .346 attack pct. and was second with 3.94 kps in 2002, leading Highline College to a 23-6 record ... another Highline transfer, Jr. MB Dijah Morgan returns home after posting 2.25 kps and 0.78 bps last year alongside Tuchardt ... the former East High T-bird was also a First Team All-NWAC West honoree ... teammates in high school (Dimond) and junior college (Eastern Arizona), Jr. OH/RS Larssen Anderson and Jr. S Kadyn Osborne continue their pattern with the Seawolves ... Anderson averaged 2.15 kps and 0.52 bps in 56 career matches at EAC, while Osborne racked up over 1,300 assists and nearly 500 digs in her two years, earning All-ACCAC Second Team honors last year ... So. MB Jada Schultz is another Arizona JC (Yavapai College) and local product (Wasilla) looking to make an impact.
 
FEELING FRESH: UAA welcomes four true freshmen to the fold, including exciting front-row prospects Bella Burney (Tumwater, Wash.) and Trinity Tatupu (Wahiawa, Hawaii) ... Wisconsin native Hannah Trotter could make an early impact at setter, while Ketchikan native Reilly McCue joins the back row and gives UAA seven Alaskans on the roster.
 
EYES ON MEISNER: After six seasons as the program's top assistant, former Seawolf standout Stacie Meisner takes the head coaching reins in 2023 ... in her six years on former mentor Chris Green's staff, Meisner helped the Seawolves achieve a 119-42 record and NCAA Tournament appearances in four of the five seasons not affected by Covid ... UAA went a combined 74-20 in the GNAC during her assistant-coaching tenures, finishing no worse than third place and capturing the league title in 2022 ... Meisner began her collegiate coaching career as a graduate assistant on UAA's 2011 club that went 18-9 and earned an NCAA berth ... she rejoined UAA in the same capacity in 2018 and was promoted to top assistant in 2019 ... UAA's starting libero from 2008-09, helping spark the program's turnaround; in 2009, she led UAA with 4.54 digs and 0.36 aces per set as the Seawolves won their first GNAC title, reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament and equaled the best record in school history at 23-8 ... an honorable mention All-GNAC and academic all-conference honoree, she finished No. 2 in digs per set (4.53) and No. 3 in aces per set (.357) on UAA's career lists ... also a JC star at Western Nebraska CC in 2006-07, Meisner graduated from UAA with magna cum laude honors in English in 2011, before earning her Master of Arts in English from UAA in 2015.
 
TEAM NOTES: The Seawolves' 2.38 aces per set and .270 team attack percentage ranked 7th and 8th, respectively, in the NCAA Div. II national stats, along with top-60 ranks in blocks per set (28th, 2.29), opponent attack pct. (41st, .150), kills per set (57th, 12.98) and assists per set (60th, 11.97) ... UAA led the GNAC in attack percentage, opponent attack pct., and aces ... at 27-3, UAA tied the 2015 team for the fewest losses and second-most wins in program history ... the Seawolves' 13-0 home record was their first perfect mark since moving into the Alaska Airlines Center in 2014 and the program's first since going 14-0 at the UAA Sports Complex in 1989 ... UAA held three opponents to negative hitting percentages this year, with the -.022 allowed vs. Western Oregon ranking as the third-lowest in 20 years of GNAC play ... the Seawolves claimed their 15th consecutive winning season, 13th straight winning conference record and 13th straight top-4 GNAC finish in 2022 ... the Seawolves have won a record 15 straight matches at the Alaska Airlines Center, improving to 94-19 (.832) since the arena's opening in Sept. 2014 and 141-31 (.820) at home since 2009 ... with a 3-0 mark last year, the Seawolves improved to 25-18 against AVCA Top 25 teams since 2014.
 
FOR THE RECORD: The Seawolves set or tied 17 school records in 2022, with season marks for fewest losses (3) and highest hitting percentage (.270) among their four team records ... Eve Stephens and Ellen Floyd combined to capture 13 individual school records (see complete list at end of release), along with GNAC career records for points (Stephens, 2,293), kills (Stephens, 1,926), aces (Floyd, 213) and sets played (Floyd 495).
 
HOT TICKET: The Seawolves continued to be one of the hottest draws in town as they averaged 1,051 fans in 2022, boosted by an NCAA Div. II regular-season record 3,888 figure for the season finale against Central Washington on Nov. 5 ... UAA finished No. 3 in the NCAA Div. II attendance standings, continuing a streak of eight straight years among the nation's top six; the Seawolves were No. 1 in D-II attendance each year from 2015-18.
 
2022 Individual Honors
NICOLE BLUE
GNAC All-Academic Team
Coaches' Award (team award)
LEILANI ELDER
Most Improved Player (team award)
MAKANA ELENEKI
GNAC All-Academic Team
ELLEN FLOYD
First Team All-America (AVCA)
First Team All-West Region (D2CCA & AVCA)
First Team All-GNAC
Most Inspirational Player (team award)
GNAC Defensive Player of the Week, Oct. 31-Nov. 6
CSC Academic All-District Team
GNAC All-Academic Team
GNAC Offensive Player of the Week, Oct. 3-9
Seawolf Invitational co-Most Outstanding Player
Preseason All-GNAC Team
CHRIS GREEN
GNAC Coach of the Year
LISA JAUNET
All-GNAC Honorable Mention
CSC Academic All-District Team
GNAC All-Academic Team (4.00 GPA)
Seawolf Invitational All-Tournament Team
TALIA LEAUANAE
All-GNAC Honorable Mention
CSC Academic All-District Team
GNAC All-Academic Team
Best Defensive Player (team award)
REILLY PLUMHOFF
GNAC All-Academic Team
EVE STEPHENS
D2CCA Ron Lenz National Player of the Year
First Team All-America (AVCA & D2CCA)
CSC First Team Academic All-America
West Region Player of the Year (D2CCA & AVCA)
GNAC Player of the Year (unanimous)
First Team All-West Region (D2CCA & AVCA)
First Team All-GNAC
UAA Bill MacKay Athlete of the Year
Team MVP
AVCA D-II National Player of the Week, Oct. 18-24
AVCA D-II National Player of the Week, Aug. 30-Sept. 5
GNAC Offensive Player of the Week, Oct. 31-Nov. 6
GNAC Offensive Player of the Week, Oct. 17-23
GNAC Defensive Player of the Week, Oct. 3-9
GNAC Offensive Player of the Week, Sept. 19-25
GNAC Offensive Player of the Week, Sept. 12-18
GNAC Offensive Player of the Week, Aug. 29-Sept. 4
GNAC Offensive Player of the Week, Aug. 15-21
NCAA West Regional Championships All-Tournament Team
Ice Block Classic MVP
Seawolf Invitational co-Most Outstanding Player
CSC Academic All-District Team
GNAC All-Academic Team
Preseason All-GNAC Team
 
UAA School Records Broken/Tied in 2022
INDIVIDUAL
Match
Most Kills — 33, Eve Stephens at Western Washington, 10/22 (old record: 32 by Rhea Cardwell at Central Washington, 11/13/08; and by Cherie Knox vs Regis, 10/15/89)
Most Points — Broken twice by Eve Stephens, 35.5 at Western Washington, 10/22 and 34.0 vs Florida Southern, 9/2 (old record: 33.5, Rhea Cardwell at Central Washington, 11/13/08)
Most Points per set — Old record broken twice and tied twice by Eve Stephens, 9.00 vs Central Washington, 11/5 and 8.88 at Western Washington, 10/22 (old record: 7.67, Jackie Matthisen vs Western Oregon, 10/1/09)
Season
Most Points per Set — 5.78, Eve Stephens (old record: 4.90, Eve Stephens, 2020-21)
Most Kills per Set — 4.75, Eve Stephens (old record: 4.48, Rhea Cardwell, 2008)
Career
Most Points — 2,292.5, Eve Stephens, 2018-22 (old record: 1,973, Jen Szczerbinski, 1988-90, 1992)
Most Points per Set — 4.69, Eve Stephens, 2018-22 (old record: 4.38, Rhea Cardwell, 2007-08)
Most Kills — 1,926, Eve Stephens, 2018-22 (old record: 1,691 by Jen Szczerbinski, 1988-90, 1992)
Most Attacks — 4,844, Eve Stephens, 2018-22 (old record: 4,511 by Jen Szczerbinski, 1988-90, 1992)
Most Assists — 4,773, Ellen Floyd, 2018-22 (old record: 3,920 by Morgan Hooe, 2013-16)
Most Aces — 213, Ellen Floyd, 2018-22 (extended record set in 2021)
Sets Played — 495, Ellen Floyd, 2018-22 (ties record set by Jen Szczerbinski, 1988-90/92, and by Tracy Zink, 1987-90)
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)
Season
Fewest Losses — 3 (ties record from 2015 and 2016)
Highest Attack Pct. — .270 [1,363-435-3,435] (old record: .250, 2015)
MISC.
Largest Home Crowd: 3,888 vs Central Washington, 11/5 (old record: 2,710 vs Western Washington, 12/3/16; also breaks NCAA Div. II regular-season attendance record of 3,520, Omaha at Neb.-Kearney, 10/15/96)