Oct. 8, 2008
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - The No. 20 Santa Clara volleyball team continues West Coast Conference play this week with two matches in the Pacific Northwest. The Broncos face the Pilots of Portland on Thursday, Oct. 9 at 7 p.m. and then travel to battle to Bulldogs of Gonzaga on Saturday, Oct. 11 at 12:30 p.m.
Follow The Broncos Online
For the match against Portland, Bronco fans can listen into the play-by-play by clicking the free audio link on the Santa Clara schedule page or by clicking here. The match against Gonzaga will feature GameTracker live stats and can be accessed by visiting www.SantaClaraBroncos.com.
Last Time Out
The Broncos compiled a 2-0 weekend with victories over Loyola Marymount (3-1) and then-No. 15 Pepperdine (3-2). Senior Brittany Lowe notched a double-double in both outings, while senior Taylor O'Brien collected a career-high 25 digs against the Waves. Junior Nina Sevastopoulos also had a strong weekend performance, posting five total blocks and averaging 2.44 kills per set.
Bronco Watch
Redshirt senior Anna Cmaylo and freshman Tanya Schmidt continue to lead the Broncos attack this season as they are now tied for first on the team with a 37.1 hitting percentage. Cmaylo leads the squad's blocking, averaging 1.10 per set, while outside hitter Lowe averages a team-best 3.57 kills per set. Lowe also leads the Broncos with 15 aces. Junior setter Lindsy Davigeadono has dished out 10.98 assists per set this season and O'Brien leads SCU's backline with 3.42 digs per set.
Broncos Climb Three Spots To No. 20
After breaking into the AVCA/CBS College Sports Top-25 Coaches Poll last week, Santa Clara moved up three spots to a No. 20 ranking this week. The jump comes on the heels to a 3-2 edge over then-No. 15 Pepperdine.
Wallace Reaches 100 Conference Wins
Santa Clara head coach Jon Wallace became the third coach in West Coast Conference volleyball history to reach 100 league wins with the Broncos 3-2 win over Pepperdine. Wallace owns a 100-28 WCC record and a 205-80 career record.
Cmaylo Earns WCC Player Of The Week Honors
Redshirt senior Cmaylo was named the WCC's Volleyball Player of the Week on Oct. 6. The honor was her second of the season and third in her career. The middle blocker led the team over the weekend with a 41.7 hitting percentage, four service aces and nine total blocks. The Napa, Calif., native previously received the honor on Sept. 22.
Cmaylo Makes Waves In Record Books
Cmaylo entered a new all-time ranking this week as she tallied her 45th career solo block. She is now tied for 10th overall with Katie Hunsaker '89. Cmaylo also moved up one spot to No. 3 all-time in career total blocks. She is also 12 block assists shy of setting a new school record. The current record of 362 is held by Jennifer Guigliano '93.
Lowe Ties for Fifth In Career Aces
The outside hitter's three service aces against LMU pushed her ahead of former Bronco teammate Crystal Matich '08 in the all-time aces leader category and her single ace against Pepperdine tied her for fifth all-time with Stacey MacDonough '88 with 125.
In the WCC
The Broncos are tied for first in the WCC with No. 15 San Diego and San Francisco. As a team, SCU continues to lead the league in service aces and total blocks. Individually, Schmidt and Cmaylo are tied for fourth in hitting percentage, Cmaylo is fourth in total blocks, Lowe is fifth in aces and sixth in kills, Davigeadono is third in assists and O'Brien is sixth in digs.
In WCC matches only, SCU ranks third in digs, and fourth in kills and aces. Individually, Cmaylo is fourth in hitting percentage, Davigeadono is third in assists, Cmaylo and Lowe are tied for fourth in aces, and O'Brien is fifth in digs. The full list is available on page 6 of this week's notes.
On the National Stage
In this week's national rankings, Santa Clara has three top-50 rankings and six top-100 rankings. The Broncos are No. 45 in hitting percentage and match win-loss percentage. SCU is also No. 50 in assists per set, No. 55 in kills per set, No. 60 in blocks per set and No. 65 in aces per set.
Individually, setter Davigeadono ranks 20th in the nation in assists per set, while Cmaylo's hitting percentage (.371) is 36th overall. Cmaylo is also 89th in blocks per set and Lowe is 91st in kills per set.
Scouting Portland
The Pilots enter the weekend with a 5-12 overall record and have won just one match is the last six outings. Players to watch: Jennifer Sheedy (2.71 k/s, 0.63 b/s), Jessica Clemens (22 sa, 2.51 d/s, 2.19 k/s).
Last Time Out
In 2007, Santa Clara went 2-0 against Portland.
Sept. 27, 2008 - Santa Clara 3, Portland 1: Davigeadono had a match-high 21 kills.
Oct. 27, 2008 - Santa Clara 3, Portland 0: Krista Kelley records a match-high 16 kills.
All-Time vs. Portland
Thursday's match marks the 46th meeting of the two programs with Santa Clara leading the series 38-7.
Scouting Gonzaga
The Bulldogs enter the weekend with a 6-11 overall record and will face Saint Mary's on Thursday before battling the Broncos. Gonzaga has lost four of their last five outing. Players to watch: Elaina Renius (3.52 k/s, 11 sa, 1.24 b/s), Emily Johnson (12 sa, 2.36 d/s, 2.14 k/s).
Last Time Out
In 2007, the Broncos went 2-0 against the Zags.
Sept. 29, 2007 - Santa Clara 3, Gonzaga 0: Lowe registered a match-high 19 kills.
Oct. 25, 2007 - Santa Clara 3, Gonzaga 0: Kelley tallies match-high 26 kills.
All-Time vs. Gonzaga
Saturday's contest marks the 43rd meeting of the two programs in a series that Santa Clara leads 36-6.
On Deck
The Broncos return to the Mission Campus for a nationally-televised match against their 2007 WCC Co-Champions the Toreros of No. 15 San Diego. First serve is scheduled for 8 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 16 on ESPNU. Santa Clara then hosts USF on Saturday, Oct. 18 in the national Dig For a Cure Fundraiser. Match time is scheduled for 1 p.m.
