UNLV VOLLEYBALL LOOKS TO EXTEND WIN STREAK ON ROAD THIS WEEK
Rebels have won six straight matches, including a 2-0 start in Mountain West play; At Wyoming Thursday and Colorado State Saturday
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The defending Mountain West regular-season champion UNLV volleyball team will look to extend its win streak this week as it plays its first two road matches in league play.
The Rebels, who have won six straight matches, including a 2-0 start in MW action, will play at Wyoming on Thursday, Sept. 28 and at Colorado State on Saturday, Sept. 30. The match in Laramie is scheduled for a 5:30 p.m. PT start, while the one in Fort Collins will begin at 11 a.m. PT. Both matches will be broadcast on the Mountain West Network.
LAST WEEK: UNLV (10-4, 2-0) started 2-0 in Mountain West play with home wins last week over San Diego State (3-2) and San Jose State (3-0). The Rebels were down 2-0 in the match against the Aztecs and fought back to take the final three sets.
UNLV’S MOUNTAIN WEST WEEKLY HONORS: UNLV volleyball senior outside hitter Isabel Martin and freshman libero Caleigh King were both recognized by the Mountain West on Sept. 18. Martin was named the league’s Offensive Player of the Week, while King earned Freshman of the Week honors.
REBEL LEADERS: Senior outside hitter Isabel Martin leads the UNLV attack this season and is second in the MW averaging 4.4 kills per set and second in points with 4.8 per set. Junior middle blocker Dakota Quinlan leads the team and conference in hitting percentage at .425, while senior setter Arien Fafard is the team’s assist leader and seventh in the MW with 7.6 per set. Freshman libero Caleigh King is the team’s leader in service aces and is fourth in the MW at 0.4 per set. King also leads the team in digs with 3.0 per set and senior middle blocker Jordyn Freeman is the blocks leader with 0.9 per set. As a team, UNLV ranks second in the MW in kills with 13.4 per set, third in hitting percentage at .247 and fourth in service aces with 1.6 per set.
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS:
Wyoming (11-2, 0-2)
Wyoming started the season with 11 straight victories, but has lost each of its last two matches. The Cowgirls are coming off road losses at Utah State (3-2) and at Boise State(3-1) last week to open MW play. UW is led in kills by Rylee Schulz with 3.3 per set (7th in MW), assists by Kasia Partyka with 11.0 per set (2nd in MW), digs by Skylar Erickson with 3.4 per set and blocks by Tierney Barlow with 1.3 per set (5th in MW). As a team, Wyoming is second in the MW in assists (12.3 per set) and blocks (2.8 per set).
Colorado State (6-7, 0-2)
Colorado State enters this week having lost three straight matches. The Rams have started MW play 0-2 with road losses at Boise State (3-2) and at Utah State (3-1). CSU will host San Diego State on Thursday before facing UNLV. Colorado State is led in kills by Malaya Jones with 3.4 per set (6th in MW), assists by Emery Herman with 9.0 per set (6th in MW), digs by Kate Yoshimoto with 3.7 per set (7th in MW) and blocks by Naeemah Weathers with 0.9 per set. As a team, CSU is sixth in the MW in hitting percentage at .217.
LIVE COVERAGE: Video stream and live stats links from UNLV’s matches are available on the volleyball schedule page at UNLVRebels.com.
REBEL ROSTER MAKEUP: The Rebels, who are led by first-year head coach Malia Shoji, returned 11 letterwinners from last season’s team, including the 2022 MW Player of the Year and the 2023 Preseason MW Player of the Year in senior outside hitter Isabel Martin. Also returning are last season’s all-conference honorees: senior outside hitter Gabrielle Arretche-Ramos and senior middle blocker Jordyn Freeman.
Martin also earned all-region honors last season and was named an honorable mention All-American.
The Rebels have also added five new players to their 2023 roster.
PRESEASON FAVORITES: UNLV was named the preseason league favorite along with Utah State in a poll voted on by the conference’s head coaches.
LAST SEASON: UNLV went 26-5 overall in 2022, including a 17-1 record in Mountain West play, and made another NCAA Tournament appearance.
2023 TICKETS: Tickets for UNLV volleyball may be purchased at UNLVtickets.com or by calling 702-739-3267. Single-game tickets are $6 per adult when purchased in advance of game day, $10 on game day and free for kids in high school or younger.
