Oct. 28, 2007
LOGAN, Utah -
Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
Release #11 • 10/28/07
Oct. 30 * UTAH * 6:00 p.m.Nov. 1 * at Utah Valley * 7:00 p.m.
THIS WEEK
Utah State will take a break from Western Athletic Conference play as it hosts Utah (10-11) on Tuesday, Oct. 30 at 6 p.m. in the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum, followed by a match at Utah Valley (17-8) on Thursday, Nov. 1 at 7 p.m.
LOOKING AT UTAH STATE
Utah State is 14-10 on the season and tied for third-place in the WAC with a 9-4 league record following a four-game win against Fresno State Saturday night. USU is led by senior opposite side hitter Amanda Nielson who is averaging 6.11 points, 5.12 kills, 2.42 digs, 1.04 blocks and 0.44 service aces per game, while junior outside hitter Melissa Osterloh is averaging 3.73 points, 3.14 kills, 2.90 digs and 0.62 blocks per game. As a team, Utah State is hitting .174 on the season as compared to a .180 hitting percentage for its opponents.
AGGIES EXTEND WINNING STREAK TO FIVE STRAIGHT
Utah State extended its season-high winning streak to five matches on Saturday night and has won 12 of its last 16 contests after starting the season with a 2-6 record. During its last five matches, USU is averaging 16.53 kills and hitting .242 and limiting its opponents to a .157 hitting percentage.
RANKING UTAH STATE IN THE WAC
As of Oct. 28, Utah State ranks first in the Western Athletic Conference in service aces per game (1.67) and first in blocks per game (3.03). Individually, Amanda Nielson ranks first in points per game (6.11), first in service aces per game (0.46) and third in kills per game (5.12). Other Aggies who rank in the top-10 in the WAC include Chelsea Fowles who ranks second in assists (12.22), Rebecca Anderson who ranks fifth in blocks (1.29), Jessalyn Payne who ranks fifth in service aces (0.31), Danielle Taylor who ranks eighth in hitting percentage (.248) and Christine Morrill who ranks eighth in digs (3.92).
UTAH STATE LEADS THE WAC AND RANKS 22ND NATIONALLY IN BLOCKING
Utah State continues to lead the Western Athletic Conference in blocking this year and is now averaging 3.03 blocks per game. In league only matches, USU is leading the WAC with 3.64 blocks per game. As of Oct. 21, USU ranked 22nd nationally with 3.08 blocks per game. Last year, USU averaged 2.86 blocks per game which ranked third in the WAC and USU finished the 2005 season by averaging 2.81 blocks per game, which also ranked third in the WAC.
UTAH STATE IN THE DEE GLEN SMITH SPECTRUM
Over the last eight years, Utah State is 65-28 (.699) at home, which includes a 14-4 (.778) record against non-league opponents and a 10-2 (.833) record against in-state foes. During that time period, USU is also 51-24 (.680) against conference opponents, which includes a 17-6 (.739) at home against WAC opponents.
UTAH STATE ON THE ROAD
Utah State is 42-63 (.400) on the road over the last eight years, which includes a 26-40 (.394) record against league opponents. USU is 6-4 on the road this year.
NEXT WEEK
Utah State will play return to WAC action with a pair of matches as it plays at Idaho on Monday, Nov. 5 at 8 p.m. (MT), followed by its home finale against Nevada on Thursday, Nov. 8 at 7 p.m. in the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum.
RECAPPING LAST WEEKEND
Utah State notched a 3-0 record last week with wins against Weber State (3-2), Utah Valley (3-1) and Fresno State (3-1). Against Weber State, Amanda Nielson recorded a season-high 31 kills and a career-high 22 digs, while Melissa Osterloh added 11 kills and a career-high 22 digs. USU hit .222 and WSU hit .188 in the match. Against Utah Valley, Nielson paced the Aggies with 26 kills, while Osterloh added 16 kills and 15 digs. Utah State hit .167 in the match as compared to a .148 hitting percentage for Utah Valley. Versus Fresno State, Nielson continued to dominate as she notched 26 more kills, while Osterloh chipped in with 12 kills and 12 digs. USU finished the match with a .237 hitting percentage, while FSU recorded a .173 hitting percentage.
SCOUTING UTAH
Utah is 10-11 on the season after winning each of its last three matches against Utah Valley (3-0), Wyoming (3-0) and Air Force (3-0). The Utes, who are 4-3 on the road this year, are currently tied for fourth-place in the Mountain West Conference with a 6-5 league record. Utah is led by junior middle blocker Lori Baird who is hitting .298 and averaging 2.83 kills and 1.60 blocks per game. As a team, Utah is hitting .177 on the season as compared to a .162 hitting percentage for its opponents.
UTAH STATE-UTAH SERIES HISTORY
Utah State is 23-39 all-time against the University of Utah which includes a 10-13 record at home. The last time the two teams played in Logan was on Sept. 6, 2005 with Utah recording a five-game win. Overall, USU has lost three straight matches to the Utes and the last time it beat Utah was on Sept. 23, 2003 in Logan in three games.
UTAH STATE-UTAH CONNECTIONS
Utah assistant coach Burt Fuller spent five years (2001-05) as the head coach at Utah State, leading the Aggies to an 82-70 (.539) record and trips to the NCAA Tournament in 2001 and 2005. Fellow Utah assistant coach, Heather Olmstead, was a four-year starter on Utah State's volleyball team (1998-2001) and earned first-team all-Big West honors in 2001. Olmstead later served as an assistant coach at Utah State for three years (2003-05). Olmstead's brother, Shawn, is now an assistant coach at Utah State after playing volleyball at Brigham Young University (2001-2004).
SCOUTING UTAH VALLEY
Utah Valley is 17-8 on the season following a three-game win against Idaho State in its last match. The Wolverines, who are 5-3 at home this year, are led by senior middle blocker Jessica Endres who is hitting .351 and averaging 3.82 kills and 1.18 blocks per game. As a team, Utah Valley is hitting .228 on the season as compared to a .181 hitting percentage for its opponents. Utah Valley returns two starters and six letterwinners from last year's team that went 17-11 on the season.
UTAH STATE-UTAH VALLEY SERIES HISTORY
Utah State is 3-0 all-time against Utah Valley, which includes a four-game win in Logan on Oct. 25. USU is 1-0 all-time against the Wolverines in Orem recording a four-game win in 2005.
NIELSON NAMED WAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Amanda Nielson was named the Western Athletic Conference Player of the Week on Oct. 22 as she led Utah State to a 2-1 record with wins against Idaho (3-0) and Boise State (3-0) and a loss to 11th-ranked Hawai'i (3-0). Nielson began her week by recording a match-high 16 kills and a team-high nine digs against Hawai'i. She then tied the school record for most kills in a three-game match with 24 against Idaho as she also had eight digs against the Vandals and hit .312 (24-9-48). Nielson then concluded her week by again tying the school's single-match kills record with 24 more kills against Boise State. In the match against the Broncos, she hit .353 (24-6-51) and notched her sixth double-double of the season with 11 digs. For the week, Nielson averaged an amazing 7.83 points, 7.11 kills, 3.11 digs, 0.78 blocks and 0.33 service aces per game.
NIELSON 17TH IN THE NATION IN KILLS
As of Oct. 21, senior opposite side hitter Amanda Nielson ranked 17th in the nation with 4.88 kills per game and 94th in the nation with 0.46 service aces per game.
NIELSON FIFTH ALL-TIME AT UTAH STATE IN KILLS
Senior opposite side hitter Amanda Nielson recorded her 1,000th career kill against 25th-ranked New Mexico State on Sept. 20 and is now one of just five players in school history to record 1,000 kills joining Zuzana Cernianska (1,813), Amy Crosbie (1,463), Erin Cartwright-Davis (1,309) and Denae Mohlman (1,294). Overall, Nielson has 1,247 career kills.
NIELSON CONTINUES TO CLIMB THE CAREER CHARTS
Senior opposite side hitter Amanda Nielson continues her climb in several career categories at Utah State as she currently ranks second all-time at Utah State in attack attempts (3,645), third in block assists (321), third in service aces (113), fourth in total blocks (344) and fifth in kills (1,247).
NIELSON RECORDS 20-PLUS KILLS IN FIVE STRAIGHT MATCHES
Senior opposite side hitter Amanda Nielson has recorded at least 24 kills in each of her last five matches and tied the school record twice with 24 kills in a pair of three-game wins against Idaho and Boise State. During her last five matches, Nielson is hitting .266 and averaging 7.48 points, 6.89 kills, 2.95 digs, 1.21 blocks and 0.32 service aces per game.
OSTERLOH RECORDS THIRD-STRAIGHT DOUBLE-DOUBLE
Junior outside hitter Melissa Osterloh recorded her third straight double-double Saturday night against Fresno State with 12 kills and 12 digs. She began her week with 11 kills and a career-high 22 digs at Weber State. Overall, Osterloh leads the team with 10 double-doubles this year.
NIELSON NAMED PRESEASON ALL-WAC
Senior Amanda Nielson was one of 12 student-athletes named to the 2007 preseason all-WAC team. Nielson is the second player in USU history to be named preseason all-WAC joining Zuzana Cernianska who received the honor prior to the 2005 season. Other players named preseason all-WAC in 2007 are Niki Clement (San Jose State); Teal Ericson (Nevada); Kari Gregory (Hawai'i); Tara Hittle (Hawai'i); Jamie Houston (Hawai'i), Haley Larson (Idaho); Kim Oguh (New Mexico State); Shannon Phillips (Louisiana Tech); Juliana Sanders (Hawai'i); Jennifer Senftleben (San Jose State); and Amber Simpson (New Mexico State).
AGGIES ON THE INTERNET
All of Utah State's home matches are available to watch live via the internet at www.UtahStateAggies.com. Fans can also follow all of the action on the internet via GameTracker, with up-to-date score and stats.
QUOTING COACH DUBOSE
On last weekend's matches ... "We are on a little bit of a roll right now and figuring out how to win. Amanda (Nielson) is doing a great job for us and she is turning into a good volleyball player, and obviously she had a real nice week."
On the upcoming matches this week... "It's always fun to play Utah and it's a nice rivalry. Both teams are playing well right now and it should be an entertaining match. I think we're getting better and better, but I think there are some things that we can continue to improve at and hopefully we can see some of that improvement this week."
UTAH STATE PLAYER NOTES
#1 - Monarisa Ale - Tied her career-high with 14 kills against New Mexico State and also tied her career-high with 15 digs at Fresno State... Is averaging 1.85 kills, 2.41 digs and 0.99 blocks per game ... Is three block assists and four total blocks shy of entering the USU career top 10 in each category.
#2 - Chelsea Fowles - Averaging 12.22 assists per game to rank second in the WAC... Tied her season-high with 63 assists against Fresno State.
#3 - Melissa Osterloh - Has recorded 10 double-doubles this year... Had a season-high 20 kills at Montana State and a season-high 22 digs at Weber State... Is averaging 3.73 points, 3.14 kills, 2.90 digs and 0.63 blocks per game... Named the WAC's Player of the Week on Oct. 1.
#4 - Jessalyn Payne - Recorded a season-high 18 digs against Saint Mary's and Eastern Washington and had a season-high three service aces at Weber State... Averaging 1.51 digs and 0.31 service aces per game to rank fifth in the WAC.
#5 - Danielle Taylor - Hit a career-high .500 (12-3-18) at Boise State as she had a career-high 12 kills in the match... Hitting .248 on the season and averaging 2.09 kills and 1.04 blocks per game... Ranks eighth in the WAC in hitting percentage.
#7 - Katie Astle - Had her best match of the season against Minnesota as she had four kills on six attempts... Is hitting .409 on the season and averaging 0.68 kills per game.
#8 - Melissa Larson - Averaging 2.14 points, 1.35 kills and 1.54 blocks per game to rank first in the WAC... Had a season-high seven kills against Arizona and 10 block assists against San Jose State.
#9 - Rebecca Anderson - Is hitting .346 on the season and averaging 1.29 blocks and 1.19 kills per game... Hit a career-high .545 (6-0-11) at Boise State... Tied her career-high with nine kills against Fresno State... Ranks fifth in the WAC in blocking.
#10 - Kris Hymas - Had a season-high seven kills at Montana State and is averaging 1.21 kills and 1.39 digs per game.
#14 - Christine Morrill - Named the Defensive Standout at the 2007 Golden Bear Invitational... Had a season-high 244 digs against Fresno State and is averaging 3.92 digs per game to rank eighth in the WAC.
#17 - Lori Wilson - Has played in 10 games this year, recording a season-high five kills against Eastern Kentucky.
#23 - Heather Hillier - Is averaging 2.90 assists and 1.03 digs per game... Ranks 10th all-time at Utah State with 1,115 career assists... Had a season-high 43 assists against Montana State.
#33 - Amanda Nielson - Recorded season-highs with 31 kills and 22 digs at Weber State.... Has been named to three all-tournament teams this year... Tied a school record with six service aces against Eastern Washington in four games and hit a career-high .609 (15-1-23) against Eastern Kentucky... Is hitting .193 and averaging 6.11 points, 5.12 kills, 2.42 digs, 1.04 blocks and 0.44 service aces per game.
HEAD COACH Grayson DuBose
Entering his second season as Utah State's head volleyball coach is Grayson DuBose, who is optimistic that his 2007 team can rebound from a disappointing 13-19 record a year ago and a sixth-place finish in the Western Athletic Conference. DuBose was hired by USU on March 27, 2006. In his inaugural season at Utah State, DuBose (pronounced Do-Boz) inherited a team that lost four starters and seven quality letterwinners from an NCAA Tournament team that went 21-13 overall and finished in a tie for second-place in the WAC with an 11-5 league record in 2005. Despite all the turnover, DuBose led Utah State to an early 10-8 record, including a 3-1 mark in WAC play before numerous injuries and inexperience took its toll in the final six weeks. In 2006, DuBose coached two all-league players as junior Amanda Nielson earned second-team all-WAC honors, while Melissa Larson was named to the conference's all-freshman team. Utah State also had six players earn academic all-conference honors, and one player earn WAC Player of the Week honors, marking just the second time that a USU player has received the award. Prior to accepting the head coaching position at Utah State, DuBose spent four seasons (2003-06) as an assistant on Brigham Young University's men's volleyball team. DuBose began his collegiate coaching career at Utah State from 1999-2000 as an assistant to Tom Peterson. During that time, the Aggies won the Eastern Division of the Big West Conference in 1999 and advanced to the school's first-ever NCAA Tournament in 2000, defeating Missouri in the first round. USU finished the 2000 season ranked 22nd in the country, the program's first-ever top-25 ranking. In his four seasons at Brigham Young, DuBose helped lead the Cougar's men's program to a 90-30 (.750) record, including a National Championship in 2004 and a second-place finish at the 2003 NCAA Tournament. During his time at BYU, he coached nine All-American's, including the 2004 NCAA Player of the Year. DuBose began his coaching career as an assistant at Brighton High School in Sandy, Utah from 1997-98 and also assisted with the Cache Valley Juniors and the Mountain West Volleyball Club during that time period. Following his two-year stint at Utah State, DuBose spent one year as an assistant to Peterson at the University of New Mexico, working with the women's program, before following Peterson to Brigham Young. DuBose played two years of collegiate volleyball at Golden West Community College in Huntington Beach, Calif., after graduating from Edison High School in Huntington Beach where he earned all-county honors his senior season. DuBose graduated from Brigham Young University with a degree in history in 1993 and then received his teaching certificate from Utah State University in 1995. He and his wife Lenonnie have three children, Kline (9), Cassandra (7) and Jackson (3).
Year School Overall WAC NCAA2006 Utah State 13-19 (.406) 6-10 (.375)2007 Utah State 14-10 (.583) 9-4 (.692) Totals 27-29 (.482) 15-14 (.517)
