SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Santa Clara volleyball begins its final homestand of the 2016 season this week in Leavey Center. The Broncos host the West Coast Conference's top two teams — No. 11 San Diego on Thursday at 7 p.m. and No. 10 BYU Saturday at 1 p.m.

Santa Clara will honor the five members of its senior class prior to Saturday's tilt: Sabrina Clayton, Madison Dutra, Nikki Hess, Katrina Inch and Mary Shepherd.

THE BRONCOS

Last week, the Broncos split a pair of matches in their trip to Southern California. Santa Clara was bested in four sets by Pepperdine on Thursday before upsetting third-place Loyola Marymount 26-24, 25-21, 23-25, 25-22 on Saturday. Hess had a team-high 11 kills and Mead posted a double-double (35 assists, 14 digs) to help the Broncos snap LMU's four-match winning streak.

Clayton has led the WCC in aces/set for each of the last two seasons, and is on top of all conference players with 0.37 aces/set in 2016. Clayton recorded a single-season high with five aces against LMU on Saturday, which marked the fourth time in her career that she finished a match with 5+ aces. Her career high of seven aces came in her second match as a Bronco on Aug. 31, 2013 at Fresno State.

Taylor Laugero ranks second in the WCC with 4.36 digs/set. She has posted double-digit digs in 23 of 27 matches during her freshman campaign and hit the 20-dig mark eight times.

Hess has at least 11 kills in each of her last four matches and is averaging 3.94 kills/set over that span. She had 25 kills and 22 digs between two matches last week.

THE SENIORS

Clayton has played in 113 matches and 414 sets as a four-year starter for the Broncos. Her 158 service aces rank second in program history overall and first in program history during the rally-scoring era, while her 1,266 kills rank 10th all-time for the Broncos. Clayton is a two-time All-WCC Honorable Mention selection and made the conference's All-Freshman Team in 2013.

Dutra has played in 26 matches and 39 sets during her four years with the Broncos. Earlier this season, she tied for a match-high eight kills as part of a career-high effort to help Santa Clara sweep Bay Area rival San Francisco on Nov. 4. Dutra is hitting .302 for Santa Clara during her senior campaign.

Hess is one of the most decorated volleyball players in program history. Last season, she earned AVCA All-American Honorable Mention honors, and was the first Bronco All-American since 2008. She was also named AVCA All-Pacific North Region. Hess is a two-time First Team All-WCC selection and made the conference's All-Freshman Team in 2013. Her 1,482 kills rank fourth all-time overall and first all-time overall among Broncos that spent their entire career in the rally-scoring era.

Inch has become a staple in the Bronco lineup during the last two seasons, totaling 40 matches and 98 sets during that stretch. She had 28 kills for the Broncos in 2015 and has provided a steady presence at the net with 35 blocks between the 2015 and 2016 campaigns.

Shepherd took the court in each of her first 113 matches as a Bronco, and has only missed one match during her four year-career. In total, she has played in 116 matches and 403 sets. The defensive specialist has produced 601 digs alongside 121 assists and 77 aces. She needs 16 more digs to top the 200-dig mark for the first time in her collegiate career.

NO. 11 SAN DIEGO (Click here for team site)

San Diego enters the weekend at 22-4 overall and 13-2 in conference play. The Toreros have 14 sweeps in 22 victories, including one over the Broncos on Sept. 24 at the Jenny Craig Pavilion. They are tied for first in the conference with BYU entering the weekend.

The Toreros lead the nation with 14.99 kills/set, and have held the top spot in the NCAA in that category since Oct. 16. They have also ranked first in assists/set since Sept. 11; the mark currently sits at 13.96/set. Individually, Lauren Schad ranks 10th in the country with a .413 hitting percentage.

NO. 10 BYU (Click here for team site)

BYU enters the weekend at 24-3 overall and 13-2 in conference play; the .889 winning percentage is sixth-best in the nation. The Cougars have won eight straight matches, including a sweep of then-No. 5 San Diego on Oct. 28 in Smith Fieldhouse. They travel to San Francisco on Thursday before heading to the South Bay.

The Cougars are a solid team at the net — they rank fifth in the NCAA with a .297 hitting percentage and 22nd with a 2.67 block/set average. Lyndie Haddock tops all WCC players with 10.81 assists/set and Amy Boswell is first in the conference with 1.29 blocks/set.

THURSDAY PROMOTIONS

Hunger Awareness Week: Donate two non-perishable canned food items for a $4 general admission ticket (one ticket per two items). Each additional donation item earns you one entry into a raffle for a prize pack, which will be given away during the game.

Hunger Awareness Week (Students Only): Donate a non-perishable canned food item for a free soda (limit one soda per student).

SATURDAY PROMOTIONS

Hunger Awareness Week: Donate two non-perishable canned food items for a $4 general admission ticket (one ticket per two items). Each additional donation item earns you one entry into a raffle for a prize pack, which will be given away during the game.

Hunger Awareness Week (Students Only): Donate a non-perishable canned food item for a free soda and a free hot dog (limit one soda and one hot dog per student).

Postmatch Autographs (Poster Giveaway Part 4): Approximately 10 minutes after the match, join the volleyball team by the main entrance above section 114 to receive part 4 of our 4-part 2016 Santa Clara Volleyball schedule poster and player autographs.

Pregame Life Skills Development Workshop presented by the Jerry Smith Coaching Academy: One general admission game ticket is included in your workshop registration. For more details and to register, click here.

TICKETS AND PARKING

Tickets: Season or single-game tickets are available. Click here to purchase online or contact the ticket office weekdays between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. at (408) 554-4660 or BroncoTickets@scu.edu. Group discounts are also available through our ticket office sales and service consultants. Doors to the Leavey Center, as well as its ticket office, are open one hour prior to the start of the match. 

Parking: For weekday matches, the Leavey Center lot, located on Accolti Way off El Camino Real, is free beginning one hour prior to first serve. Any other parking facility on campus will be subject to normal daily rates or restrictions, including the main structure, located adjacent to Stevens Stadium on Palm Drive. During the weekend, campus parking facilities are free (except for permit required locations). Click here for a campus map and parking restrictions.

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GO BRONCOS!