SANTA CLARA, Calif. — After sweeping its home slate against Pacific and Saint Mary's last week, Santa Clara volleyball heads back out on the road for a road trip to the Northwest. The Broncos face Gonzaga Thursday at 6 p.m. and Portland Saturday at noon for a Halloween Day matchup.
The Broncos have won eight of their last nine matches overall and seven of their last eight matches away from the Leavey Center. Santa Clara enters the week in a tie for second place in the West Coast Conference; the Broncos and BYU each have an 8-2 conference record and are one game behind WCC-leading San Diego.
SANTA CLARA (17-5, 8-2 WCC) at Gonzaga (13-9, 4-5)
Thursday, Oct. 29, 2015 • 6 p.m. PDT
Game #23 • Away Game #9 • Spokane, Wash.
Live Stats: www.gozags.com/gametracker
Video: TheW.tv
Series: Santa Clara leads 47-10
Previous Meeting: Oct. 3, 2015 in Santa Clara — Santa Clara won 3-1
Last Season: Oct. 10, 2014 in Spokane — Gonzaga won 3-2
Nov. 6, 2014 in Santa Clara — Santa Clara won 3-2
SANTA CLARA (17-5, 8-2 WCC) at Portland (11-10, 1-8)
Saturday, Oct. 31, 2015 • Noon PDT
Game #24 • Away Game #10 • Portland, Ore.
Live Stats: www.portland.statbroadcast.com
Video: TheW.tv
Series: Santa Clara leads 52-8
Previous Meeting: Oct. 1, 2015 in Santa Clara — Santa Clara won 3-2
Last Season: Oct. 9, 2014 in Santa Clara — Santa Clara won 3-1
Nov. 8, 2014 in Portland — Santa Clara won 3-0
THE BRONCOS
Santa Clara played its second five-set contest in as many matches, and defeated Pacific 25-19, 21-25, 25-7, 20-25, 15-6 Thursday night in the Leavey Center. The Broncos hit .357 to record their best attack percentage in a WCC match this season and Kirsten Mead tied a season-high effort with 51 assists.
The Broncos kept pace near the top of the WCC standings by sweeping Saint Mary's 25-19, 25-19, 25-17 Saturday afternoon. Nikki Hess had a match-high 14 kills and nine digs, while Mead chipped in a match-best 39 assists and eight digs.
Santa Clara has players ranked in the top three of four different major statistical categories in the WCC, the most of all conference teams (per set):
Aces — Sabrina Clayton 0.49/s (1st) | Kirsten Mead 0.41/s (2nd)
Assists — Kirsten Mead 11.01/s (2nd)
Digs — Danielle Rottman 4.79/s (1st)
Blocks — Lacey Maas 1.27/s (2nd)
The next closest team is Pacific, who has players ranked in the top three of three major statistical categories. The Broncos also have at least one player in the top five of all major statistical categories (per set).
Mead is the only WCC player ranked in the top two individually of multiple categories (aces/set, assists/set). As a team, the Broncos are 15th in the NCAA with 1.71 aces/set, and individually, Clayton ranks 13th in the NCAA with 0.49 aces/set. She had a match-clinching ace against the Gaels on Saturday.
THE OPPONENTS
Gonzaga swept its lone match last week at home against Portland. The Bulldogs had lost five of their previous six contests entering that contest. They have victories over Pacific, Saint Mary's and Pepperdine along with their win over the Pilots in WCC play. Dave Gantt is in his seventh season as head coach of Gonzaga.
Gonzaga Category Leaders in the WCC's Top 10
Hitting Percentage — Savannah Blinn .306 (7th)
Kills — Blinn 4.15/s (4th)
Assists — Faith Smith 5.95/s (10th)
Blocks — Imani Wimbush 1.05/s (9th)
Digs — Morgan Douglass 4.69/s (8th)
Portland won its WCC opener Sept. 24 against Saint Mary's, and has lost eight consecutive conference matches, including four straight sweeps. The Pilots last won a set Oct. 8 in a 3-1 defeat against Pepperdine. Brent Crouch is in his second season as head coach of Portland.
Portland Category Leaders in the WCC's Top 10
Hitting Percentage — Katie Sullivan .370 (2nd)
Kills — Emily Liger 3.66/s (7th)
Assists — Djurdjina Milovic 10.49/s (4th)
Service Aces — Liger 0.30/s (10th)
GO BRONCOS!
