Volleyball looks for redemption against rival UAA
October 25, 2012
Jamie Foland
474-6807
The Alaska volleyball team caps off a three-match home stand this weekend when it plays hosts to arch-rival Alaska Anchorage in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference matchup this Saturday at 7 p.m.
Back on Sept. 29, the Seawolves (13-6, 8-3 GNAC) rallied from a 2-0 deficit to defeat the Nanooks (4-13, 2-9 GNAC) in front of a raucous crowd of 884 spectators at the Wells Fargo Sports Center in Anchorage. UAA has won four straight against Alaska and leads the all-time series 59-34.
Last week, the 'Nooks split its two home matches with a 3-1 loss to Western Oregon before downing Saint Martin's 3-0 to end the week.
Freshman outside hitter Sam Harthun produced a team-best 36 kills with a pair of 18-kill outings to go with a .413 hitting percentage and three service aces as she was named GNAC Red Lion Co-Offensive Player of the Week.
Junior outside hitter Keri Knight tallied 22 kills and five service aces while freshman middle blocker Megan Morrison had 16 kills with a .316 hitting percentage. Freshman setter Katlyn Mataya accrued 10 kills, hit .400, dished out 77 assists and had 13 digs and senior libero Allison Oddy had 34 digs and three aces.
In the GNAC rankings, Mataya moved up one spot to fourth with 9.84 assists per set. Harthun is sixth in points (3.73 pps) and seventh in kills (3.32 kps) while Oddy is also seventh in digs (4.35 dps). Mataya also ranks 52nd (62nd last week) in the country in assists, Harthun is moved up 47 spots in kills to 98th and 109th in points and Oddy is 102nd in digs.
In the GNAC rankings, Mataya places fifth with 9.70 assists per set, Harthun is eighth with 3.09 kills per set and Oddy is also eighth with 4.29 digs per set. Nationally, Mataya ranks 62nd in assists, Oddy is 102nd in digs while Harthun returned to the top 150 in kills in 145th.
Match #18: Alaska Anchorage at Alaska – Saturday, Oct. 27 at 7 p.m. (AKDT)
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The Seawolves went 1-1 at home last week with a 3-1 win over Saint Martin's before falling in straight sets to Western Oregon. Katelynn Zanders led the team with 24 kills to go with a .246 hitting percentage and three block assists. Julia Mackey contributed 21 kills, a .333 hitting percentage six total blocks. Kimya Jafroudi had 79 assists, seven aces and 22 digs while Siobhan Johansen led the squad with 29 digs. As a team, UAA had 16 aces and 14 blocks.
A number of Seawolves rank in the top 10 of the GNAC, led by Jafroudi, who is first in aces (36) and second with 10.91 assists per set. Jodi Huddleston is fifth in hitting (.316) while Zanders is sixth in kills (3.06 kps) and eighth in points (3.58/set). Johansen places sixth in digs (4.41 dps) and Mackey is ninth in kills (3.06 kps) and points (3.45/set).
Jafroudi is also 18th in assists and 34th in the aces category across the country. Zanders is 90th in kills and Johansen is 92nd in digs while Huddleston is 94th in hitting.