Oct. 14, 2008
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - The No. 18 Santa Clara volleyball team returns to the Mission Campus this weekend to host two in West Coast Conference action. The Broncos will battle the No. 20 Toreros of San Diego in a nationally-televised match on ESPNU on Thursday, Oct. 16. First serve is scheduled for 8 p.m. at the Leavey Center.
SCU then takes on the only other undefeated team in the WCC, San Francisco, on Saturday, Oct. 18 at 1 p.m. Santa Clara will then take a break from league action to travel down The Alameda to battle San Jose State on Tuesday, Oct. 21 at 7 p.m.
Follow The Broncos Online
Bronco fans can follow the volleyball team online with live stats via the GameTracker link on the main page of www.SantaClaraBroncos.com. Thursday's match will not feature live video/audio stream due to the contest being nationally-televised. Live video/audio will resume for Saturday's match against San Francisco.
Check Out The Broncos Under The Bright Lights
Thursday's match against No. 20 San Diego will be televised live on ESPNU with Krista Blunk providing all the play-by-play action and Cathy Nelson providing color commentary for the match.
Last Time Out
Santa Clara pushed its win streak to five matches with back-to-back sweeps of the Pacific Northwest conference teams of Portland and Gonzaga. Freshman Tanya Schmidt led the Broncos with a 63.2 hitting percentage, while junior setter Lindsy Davigeadono posted a 54.5 hitting percentage, 12.50 assists, 2.17 digs and 0.83 blocks per set. Redshirt senior Anna Cmaylo led the group with 1.33 blocks per set and two service aces.
Bronco Watch
Middle blockers Schmidt and Cmaylo remain the Broncos to watch this season. Schmidt has a 39.7 hitting percentage and averages 0.74 blocks per set, while Cmaylo averages 2.87 kills and 1.13 blocks per set, has a 37.9 hitting percentage and 15 aces.
Scouting San Diego
The Toreros enter the weekend with a 12-3 overall record and a 2-1 mark in WCC play. San Diego faced its first league loss of the season to San Francisco last weekend. Players to watch: Amy DeGroot (4.15 k/s, 13 SA, 2.62 d/s, 0.54 b/s), Ashton Basch (2.80 k/s, 0.71 b/s)
Last Time Out
In 2007, Santa Clara went 2-0 against San Diego, while sharing the WCC crown with the Toreros.
Oct. 4, 2007 - SCU 3, No. 14 USD 1 - Lowe and Davigeadono post match-high 16 kills on ESPNU.
Nov. 3, 2007 - SCU 3, No. 15 USD 1 - Krista Kelly posted a match-high 22 kills. Caroline Walters sets new school and WCC digs record.
All-Time vs. San Diego
Thursday's match marks the 47th meeting of the two programs in which Santa Clara leads 30-16.
Scouting San Francisco
The Dons enter the weekend with a 13-4 overall record and a 3-0 WCC mark. USF will face Saint Mary's on Thursday before battling SCU on Saturday. Players to watch: Carly Babin (3.15 k/s, 44.5 PCT, 10 SA, 1.08 b/s), Sarah Mandala (3.52 k/s, 12 SA, 0.86 b/s)
Last Time Out
In 2007, the Broncos went 1-1 against the Dons.
Oct. 6, 2007 - USF 3, SCU 0 - Lowe posts double-double with 10 kills and 12 digs.
Nov. 1, 2007 - SCU 3, USF 1 - Kelley tallies match-high 20 kills
All-Time vs. USF
Saturday's contest marks the 61st meeting of the two programs in a series that Santa Clara leads 55-5.
Scouting San Jose State
The Spartans will host the Roadrunners of Cal State Bakersfield on Oct. 18 before playing the Broncos on Oct. 21. SJSU is currently 8-11 on the season. Players to watch: Kelly Crow (3.54 k/s), Nia Freeman (0.78 b/s), Nikki Clement (2.77 k/s).
Last Time Out
The Broncos and Spartans last met on Sept. 21, 2007 when SCU blanked SJSU, 3-0.
All-Time vs. San Jose State
Next Tuesday's meeting marks the 38th match between the Broncos and Spartans in a series SJSU leads 24-13.
On Deck
Santa Clara returns to action on Friday, Oct. 24 against the Gaels of Saint Mary's. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m. in Moraga.
"DIG FOR THE CURE"
The Broncos will once again participate in the annual "Dig For The Cure" breast cancer awareness fundraiser on Nov. 6 in their match against Gonzaga. Fans interested in donating or pledging for the cause should visit the volleyball homepage on www.SantaClaraBroncos.com.
Movin' On Up
Santa Clara continues to steadily climb in the AVCA/CBS College Sports Top-25 Coaches poll this season. This week the Broncos jumped up two spots to No. 18.
Davigeadono Enters The Record Books
Junior setter Davigeadono enters the Bronco record books this season for career assists tally. Her current total is 1,097 and checks in at No. 8 on the all-time list. This is the first career ranking for the Sonora, Calif., native.
Cmaylo Locks In On Target
Middle block Cmaylo is set to make Santa Clara history this season. The Napa, Calif., native is just four block assists shy of setting a new school record. Her current count is 359 and the current record of 362 is held by Jennifer Guigliano '93.
Lowe Takes Over Fifth
The outside hitter's lone service ace last weekend gave her solo possession of the No. 5 spot in the career service aces list. Her current career tally is 126.
In the WCC
Santa Clara remains tied for first in the WCC this week with an undefeated 4-0 record. The Broncos are tied with the Dons of San Francisco, who have a 3-0 league record. As a team, Santa Clara ranks second in blocks and aces.
Individually, Schmidt is fourth in hitting percentage, while Cmaylo is tied for second in blocks, fifth in hitting percentage and 10th in kills. Senior Lowe is tied for third in aces and fifth in kills. Senior libero Taylor O'Brien is fifth in digs, while Davigeadono is second in assists.
In league matches only, SCU leads in opponent hitting percentage, and third in digs, kills and hitting percentage.
On the National Stage
In this week's national rankings, Santa Clara has four top-50 rankings and six top-100 rankings. The Broncos are No. 32 in match win-loss PCT, No. 36 in assists per set, No. 38 in hitting percentage, No. 39 in kills per set, No. 60 in blocks per set and No. 69 in aces per set.
Individually, setter Davigeadono ranks 16th in the nation in assists per set, while Cmaylo's hitting percentage (.379) is 25th overall. Cmaylo is also 65th in blocks per set and Lowe is 71st in kills per set.
