LARAMIE – The University of Wyoming women’s volleyball team will continue its chase for a Mountain West Championship this week as it hits the road for two matches. UW will play against Nevada on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. MT, before a date with San Diego State on Saturday night at 7:30 p.m.
“Both Nevada and San Diego State are talented offensively and when they are on, they are hard to stop,” UW head coach Chad Callihan said. “We understand what is at stake and we realize what we need to do. Now it’s just a matter of going out and executing. Just like every week, it is one match at a time.”
Wyoming is currently third in the Mountain West standings with a 10-3 conference mark while Boise State and Colorado State hold the top spot with an 11-2 record. With Saturday’s win over UNLV, UW has won ten or more conference matches in all four years of head coach Chad Callihan’s tenure. The Cowgirls came away with two wins last week by defeating New Mexico and UNLV. For their efforts, senior Kayla Slofkiss and freshman Madi Fields were named the MW Offensive and Defensive Players of the week, respectively. It was the second-consecutive honor for Fields and the first of Slofkiss’ career.
Earlier this year, UW defeated San Diego State in five sets. Sophomore Reed Copeland recorded her first double-double with a career-high 19 kills and 13 blocks against the Aztecs. Senior setter Courtney Chacon also had a double-double against SDSU with 45 assists and ten digs. The first time the Cowgirls saw Nevada during the 2016 season ended with the Wolf Pack giving UW its only loss at home this season. Senior Laura Beach led the team tying her career-high of 17 kills in addition to nine blocks. Fields added a match-high 17 digs for the Brown and Gold.
The Aztecs (14-12, 6-7 MW) return to San Diego having lost four of its last five matches. In conference matches, senior Danielle Bolden is second with 0.52 service aces per set. Sophomore Alexandra Psoma is fourth in the MW averaging 3.36 kills per set. Sophomore Indigo Thompson is fifth in assists (10.19 aps) while sophomore Deja Harris is 11th in the league with 1.06 blocks per set.
Nevada (17-8, 8-5 MW) currently has a three match winning streak. The Wolf Pack are the only MW team with two players in the top eight in kills. Senior Madison Morell (3.94 kps) and junior Madison Foley (3.25 kps) lead the squad. Senior Lyndsey Anderson is sixth in assists with an average of 10.06, as senior Kathryn Groenweghe is seventh in hitting percentage (.329). Additionally, freshman Shayla Hoeft is tied seventh in blocks (1.15 bps) and senior Madison Thorpe is 11th in digs (2.81 dps).
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Notes
– With 46 MW wins, Chad Callihan is tied with Hall of Fame coach Mike English for the most conference wins in Wyoming history.
– Courtney Chacon needs three double-doubles to be tied for tenth all-time in MW history. She leads all active MW players with 35 career double-doubles. Chacon is sixth all-time with 3,178 career assists and is tied seventh with 422 sets played.
– With a .374 hitting percentage, Laura Beach is first all-time in Cowgirl history. She leads the MW and is ninth in the NCAA with a .416 hitting percentage this season. Additionally, her career hitting percentage is fourth-best in MW history.
– Kayla Slofkiss joined Jodi Purdy (2009-12), Ronda Munger (1984-87) and Michele Rauter (2000-03) as the only players with 1,000 kills and 900 digs during their career.
– Reed Copeland is third in the MW and 29th in the NCAA with 1.33 blocks per set. She has led Wyoming in blocks in 11 different matches.
– Madi Fields is seventh in the MW in digs with an average of 3.63 per set. She has twice been named the MW’s Defensive Player of the Week.
– Wyoming leads the MW and is 13th in the nation with a .153 opponent hitting percentage. UW is also 51st in the nation with 237 total team blocks.
– Aided by a tough nonconference schedule and a 10-1 record at home, the Cowgirl volleyball team sits at No. 61 in the NCAA’s fifth RPI Rankings. UNLV (28th), Boise State (33rd) and Colorado State (47th) are ahead of UW in the rankings.
Cowgirls Sweep MW Honors
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Wyoming’s Kayla Slofkiss and Madi Fields have been named this week’s Mountain West Volleyball Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week, respectively. The tandem led UW to a pair of home victories against New Mexico and UNLV this past weekend.
The wins extended the Cowgirls win streak to five as it improved to 17-9 overall and 10-3 in league play, good for third place in the MW standings. This is the first career player of the week honor for Slofkiss and the second for Fields, as she won the defensive award last week. It also marks the first time that Wyoming has ever swept the weekly honors.
Over the weekend, Slofkiss became the 11th Cowgirl in school history to record at least 1,000 career kills. The Aurora, Colo., native finished the match against UNLV with eight kills, four digs and three total blocks to help guide UW over the Rebels. Against the Lobos, the senior recorded her fourth double-double of the season with 14 kills and 13 digs. It was the tenth match this season for Slofkiss with double-digit kills and ninth with at least ten digs. She also tied her season-high six blocks. Additionally, with four digs against UNLV she is now the fourth-ever Cowgirl with at least 1,000 kills and 900 digs.
Fields played a key defensive role in helping the Cowgirls win a pair of matches over the weekend. The Oceanside, Calif., native had a season-high 20 digs for Wyoming against New Mexico. She also had four assists and led both squads with four service aces. It was the 11th match of the year for the freshman with at least ten digs and also the seventh in a row at the time. She then added seven digs against UNLV on Saturday.
Slofkiss had 22 total kills (3.14 kps) during the two matches. She also recorded 17 digs (2.43 dps) and nine total blocks (1.29 bps). Fields posted a team-best four service aces and also led UW with 27 digs (3.86 dps) against New Mexico and UNLV.
Wyoming will hit the road for its next three matches. UW will face Nevada and San Diego State this week before a matchup at Air Force on Nov. 16.
