NO. 1 SEED REBELS HEAD TO 2022 MWC VOLLEYBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS
@UNLVvball | Tournament Central | Watch Live | Schedule | Tournament Tickets
The no. 1 seed UNLV volleyball team (26-3, 17-1 MW) will head to Fort Collins, Colorado for the 2022 Mountain West Conference Volleyball Tournament held Wednesday through Friday evening.
The Rebels earned a bye for the first round and will go directly into the semifinals to play the winner between no. 4 Utah State and no. 5 New Mexico, Thursday afternoon at 12 p.m. (PT).
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
– The Scarlet & Gray defeated no. 4 Utah State in five sets at home on Oct. 13 by scores of 25-22, 25-22, 16-25, 17-25 and 15-8, and again in five sets on the road (Oct. 29) by scores of 26-24, 15-25, 18-25, 26-24 and 15-8.
– UNLV swept no. 5 Lobos both times the teams played each other this season. The first time being on the road on Oct. 6 by scores of 25-22, 31-29 and 26-24. The second time was at home on Nov. 5 by scores of 25-15, 25-21 and 25-18.
REGULAR SEASON CHAMPIONS
The Rebels were named the 2022 Mountain West Regular-Season Champions Thursday evening after sweeping Wyoming, for just the second time in program history.
FOLLOW ALONG
Fans can follow this week’s contests through live stats and social media. The link to stats can be found online at UNLVRebels.com in the “schedule” section of the team’s baseball page, as well as on the team’s official social media channels. In-game updates will be provided through @UNLVbaseball, the team’s official Twitter account.
TOURNAMENT CENTRAL
The first two matches are set to be played Wednesday, the first match beginning at 12 p.m. (PT) with no. 4 Utah State and no. 5 New Mexico, followed by a match against no. 3 Colorado State and no. 6 San Diego State at 3 p.m. (PT).
The winner of the second first round match will go on to play against no. 2 San Jose State Thursday at 3 p.m. (PT).
The championship match will be held Friday evening at 5:30 p.m. (PT) against the winners of the first and second semifinal matches.
TUNE IN, WATCH & LISTEN
Fans can follow this weekend’s conference matchups through live stats and social media. Both matches will be available to live stream through the Mountain West Network. Links to video and stats can be found online at UNLVRebels.com in the “schedule” section of the volleyball page, as well as on the team’s official social media channels: @UNLVvball (Twitter and Instagram) and @UNLVRebelVolleyball (Facebook).
REBELS CLAIM WEEKLY AWARDS
– Maya Sands received the first weekly award for the Scarlet & Gray (Sept. 19) earning both MW Freshman and Defensive Player of the Week after recording 55 digs, seven assists, five service aces, five points and three receptions to help the Rebels to a 2-1 weekend.
– Sands earned her second weekly honors of the season after being named Freshman of the Week again (Oct. 17) after helping the Rebels to its third consecutive 2-0 weekend in conference play.
– Junior Gabrielle Arretche-Ramos earned MW Offensive Player of the Week (Oct. 3) after totaling 31 kills, 57 attacks, a .436 hitting percentage, 10 digs, 37 points, three blocks and three service aces during the Scarlet & Gray’s 2-0 weekend.
– Graduate student Ellease Crumpton earned MW Offensive Player of the Week (Oct. 24) after totaling 24 kills, a hitting percentage of .455, 11 digs, 32.5 points, three solo blocks and two service aces during UNLV’s fourth consecutive 2-0 weekend in conference play.
– Redshirt junior Isabel Martin earned MW Offensive Player of the Week (Oct. 31) after totaling 30 kills, a hitting percentage of .406, 19 digs, one service ace, three solo blocks and 36 total points during UNLV’s fifth consecutive 2-0 weekend in conference play.
– Martin earned her second weekly honors of the season after being named the MW Offensive Player of the Week for the second consecutive week (Nov. 7) after accumulating 31 kills, a hitting percentage of .369, recording two service aces, 19 digs, five block assists and 35.5 total points during UNLV’s sixth consecutive 2-0 weekend in conference play.
LEADERS IN THE MW AND THE NATION
– UNLV currently ranks tied for 12th in the NCAA for match W-L percentage with .897, they also sit 28th for hitting percentage (.263), 30th for kills per set (13.85) and 44th in the NCAA for assists per set (12.71).
– The Rebels currently sit second in the conference for hitting percentage (.263), second for both assists (12.71 per set) and kills (13.85 per set) and sit third for digs with 14.42 per set.
– Graduate student Jhenna Gabriel leads in the conference and ranks 38th in the nation for assists with 10.47 per set.
– Redshirt-junior Isabel Martin ranks second in the MW for both kills per set with 3.89 and in points with 4.40 per set.
– Freshman Maya Sands currently sits third in the MW for digs per set with 3.71.
– Junior Gabrielle Arretche-Ramos ranks fourth in the MW for both kills per set with 3.65 and fifth in points per set with 4.04.
– Graduate student Ellease Crumpton sits sixth in the MW for hitting percentage (.363), followed by redshirt junior Jordyn Freeman and sophomore Dakota Quinlan who are tied for eighth in hitting percentage with .337.
OTHER NEWS & NOTES
– Dating back to 2019, UNLV has gone 83-15 in its last 98 matches. The Rebels have won 26 of 29 matches this season and 52 of its last 61.
– UNLV returned eight letterwinners this season. Also returning to the squad from last season were Gabrielle Arretche-Ramos, Arien Fafard, Jordyn Freeman, Chloe Thomas, Isha Knight, Keyana Cruse, Dakota Quinlan, Livvy Setla, Isabel Martin and Thea Sweder. There are eight newcomers, which include three freshmen, a trio of transfers and a pair of graduate transfers.
– UNLV is led by fifth-year head coach Dawn Sullivan, who looks to guide her squad to the postseason for the fifth straight season.
– Junior Arien Fafard had her 1,000th career assist during the opening weekend of the Rebels’ 2022 campaign at UNT.
– The Rebels defeated No. 19 Kansas on September 10, 2022, making that the second win over a ranked team since 2016. The first being then No. 25 Washington State during the fall 2021 season at the Rebel Challenge (Sept. 4, 2021).
– Head Coach Dawn Sullivan notched 100 wins during the match against then MW leaders San Jose State, 3-1.
– UNLV was the first MW program to clinch a spot in the MW Tournament held November 23-25 in Fort Collins, Colorado.
– Jhenna Gabriel recorded her 1,000th assist for the season during the Fresno State match (Nov. 12).
– UNLV earned at least a share of the MW Regular Season title after sweeping Fresno State (Nov. 12).
