UTAH STATE’S SORENSEN EARNS WAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONORS
Utah State senior opposite Shay Sorensen has been named Western Athletic Conference Volleyball Player of the Week for the week of Sept. 10-16. This is the first-ever WAC Player of the Week honor for Sorensen.

The North Ogden, Utah native averaged 4.30 kills on .296 hitting, 3.30 digs and 0.60 blocks per set in a pair of road wins at UTSA and Texas State. She posted a pair of double-doubles to lead Utah State to its first 2-0 start to WAC action since 2007. In Thursday’s four-set win over UTSA, Sorensen logged 15 kills and 11 digs, adding a pair of blocks and a service ace. In Saturday’s sweep at Texas State, she tallied a match-high 15 kills on a season-high .353 hitting to go with 12 digs and two blocks.

Other nominees included: Denver’s Faimie Kingsley averaged 2.12 kills and 2.50 blocks per set in a pair of losses ... Alyssa Schultz of Idaho averaged 2.88 kills on .529 hitting, 1.62 blocks and 0.50 digs as the Vandals went 1-1 to open WAC play ... Louisiana Tech’s Fenix Calderon averaged 2.71 kills and 1.86 digs per set last week ... Meredith Hays of New Mexico State averaged 4.0 kills, 2.2 digs and 0.80 blocks per set as the Aggies went 2-0 on the week ... UT Arlington’s Amy Davault averaged 3.14 kills, 3.43 digs and 0.57 blocks per set as the Mavericks went 1-1 on the week ... Kaytlyn Dill of Seattle U averaged 3.47 kills, 3.00 digs and 1.00 service aces per set as the Redhawks went 2-1 on the week ... UTSA’s McKenzie Adams averaged 4.55 kills, 3.82 digs and 0.64 blocks per set as the Roadrunners went 1-2 on the week.
   
NEW MEXICO STATE RANKS NATIONALLY IN ATTENDANCE
New Mexico State currently ranks 16th nationally in attendance with an average of 1,891 fans per match. Meanwhile, Texas State ranks 66th (666).

WAC STAT LEADERS
In team statistics, San Jose State leads the WAC in assists (12.51), kills (13.49) and digs (18.26). New Mexico State leads the league in hitting percentage (.232), while Denver is tops in opponent hitting percentage (.154). Utah State leads the WAC in blocks (3.04), while Seattle U is tops in service aces (1.38).

Individually, New Mexico State’s Meredith Hays leads the WAC in kills (4.47) and points (5.16). Idaho’s Alyssa Schultz is tops in hitting percentage (.363), while San Jose State’s Michaela Leonard leads the league in assists (11.33) and teammate Hanah Blume is tops in digs (4.28). Kaytlyn Dill of Seattle U leads the WAC in service aces (0.56), while Utah State’s Elle Brainard Tech is tops in blocks (1.59).

In WAC matches, San Jose State leads the league in assists (14.00) and kills (14.88), while UT Arlington is tops in hitting percentage (.287). Utah State leads the WAC in opponent hitting percentage (.129), while Seattle U is tops in service aces (2.30). Denver the WAC in blocks (3.38), while UTSA leads the league in digs (20.25).

Individually, UTSA’s McKenzie Adams leads the WAC in kills (5.12) and points (6.12) in WAC matches. Schultz is tops in hitting percentage (.529), while Leonard leads the league in assists (12.75) and Dill is tops in service aces (1.10). Denver’s Faimie Kingsley leads the WAC in blocks (2.50), while Utah State’s Ashland Rogers is tops in digs (6.29).

WAC TOURNAMENT TICKETS ON SALE NOW
Tickets for the 2012 WAC Volleyball Tournament are on sale now. The tournament will be held Nov. 19-21 at the Convocation Center in San Antonio, Texas, on the campus of UTSA.

The 2012 tournament will consist of seven matches in three sessions (one session per day). Ticket prices are as follows:
All-Session: $21
Single-Session Adult: $10
Single-Session Senior/Youth: $7
Single-Session WAC Students: $5

Children two and under do not need a ticket. Tickets can be purchased online at goutsa.com or by calling (210) 458-UTSA.

DENVER PIONEERS (6-5, 0-2 WAC)
The Pioneers fell at Idaho (22-25, 12-25, 22-25) last Thursday and at Seattle U (25-19, 16-25, 25-16, 12-25, 13-15) last Saturday to open WAC play ... Faimie Kingsley posted a double-double of 10 kills and a career-high-tying 13 blocks, while Colleen King posted a career-high 18 kills in the loss at Seattle U ... Kingsley has 372 career blocks, good for third all-time in the Pioneers’ Division I record books ... Denver leads the WAC in opponent hitting percentage (.154), ranks second in hitting percentage (.229), third in blocks (2.51) and fourth in service aces (1.24) ... Kingsley ranks second in the WAC in hitting percentage (.360) and blocks (1.58), and ninth in points (3.28) ... Lyndi Johnson ranks third in the WAC in digs (4.03), while Colleen King is eighth in hitting percentage (.267) ... Frances Carroll ranks third in the conference in service aces (0.34) and seventh in assists (8.61) ... The Pioneers host UT Arlington on Thursday and Louisiana Tech on Saturday.

IDAHO VANDALS (3-9, 1-1 WAC)
The Vandals swept Denver (25-22, 25-12, 25-22) last Thursday to end a seven-match losing streak, then fell in five sets (19-25, 19-25, 25-21, 25-16, 8-15) to New Mexico State on Saturday ... Alyssa Shultz posted a career-high .750 hitting percentage in the sweep of Denver with 10 kills and just one error on 12 swings ... In the loss to New Mexico State, Shultz had a career-high nine blocks and added 13 kills on .409 hitting ... Idaho’s 3-2 loss to NM State was its sixth five-set match this season ... As a team, Idaho ranks fourth in the WAC in assists (11.33), and fifth in hitting percentage (.196), blocks (2.20) and digs (14.22)... Allison (Walker) Baker ranks second in the league in kills (4.43) and (4.93) ... Schultz leads the conference in hitting percentage (.363) and ranks fifth in blocks (1.14) ... Janelle Chow is fifth in the WAC in digs (3.98), while Ryann Carter is sixth in assists (9.14) ... The Vandals play at San Jose State on Thursday and at Utah State on Saturday.

LOUISIANA TECH LADY TECHSTERS (3-10, 0-1 WAC)
The Lady Techsters fell in straight sets (11-25, 17-25, 14-25) at Northwestern State last Tuesday, then fell in four sets (16-25, 14-25, 25-18, 14-25) to UT Arlington to open WAC play at home on Saturday ... Against UTA, Clara Vido posted a double-double of a season-high 15 kills and a career-high-tying 22 digs ... Fenix Calderon recorded her first career double-double against the Mavericks, finishing with a career-high 13 kills and 10 digs ... Maria Coelho matched her career high with 42 assists in the match ... Caitlin Germany ranks seventh in the league in blocks per set (1.11), while Coelho is eighth in assists per set (8.04), Stephany Salas is ninth in digs per set (3.23) and Paige Cooper is 10th in service aces per set (0.24) ... Louisiana Tech plays at New Mexico State on Thursday and at Denver on Saturday.

NEW MEXICO STATE AGGIES (8-3, 2-0 WAC)
The Aggies defeated Seattle U (21-25, 23-25, 25-19, 25-20, 15-12) on Thursday and Idaho (25-19, 25-19, 21-25, 16-25, 15-8) on Saturday  ... The Aggies were down 2-0 to Seattle before winning three straight sets to win the match ... Meredith Hays posted a match-high 18 kills to go along with 13 digs in the win at Seattle U ... Hays followed with a 22-kill, nine-dig performance at Idaho ... NM State leads the WAC in hitting percentage (.232), ranks second in blocks (2.66) and service aces (1.38), third in assists (11.89) and kills (12.98), and fifth in opponent hitting percentage (.180) ... Hays leads the WAC in points (5.16) and kills (4.47), ranks fourth in service aces (0.33) and seventh in hitting percentage (.269) ... Desiree Scott ranks sixth in the league in blocks (1.13) and 10th in hitting percentage (.250), while Ciara Brown is 10th in assists (5.43) ... The Aggies host Louisiana Tech on Thursday and UT Arlington on Saturday.

SAN JOSE STATE SPARTANS (4-7, 0-2 WAC)
The Spartans fell at Texas State (23-25, 25-22, 23-25, 26-28) last Thursday and at UTSA (20-25, 25-21, 16-25, 28-30) on Saturday ...
Michaela Leonard recorded two more double-doubles last week, has recorded five consecutive and seven on the season. Against Texas State, she recorded a career-high 52 assists to go with 10 digs. At UTSA, Leonard had 50 assists and 13 digs ... Mary Alice O’Reilly posted a career-best 18 kills on .469 hitting at Texas State ... Alex Akana hit .400 with 16 kills against the Bobcats ... San Jose State leads the WAC in assists (12.51), kills (13.49) and digs (18.26), ranks fourth in opponent hitting percentage (.175) and fifth in service aces (1.23) ... Leonard leads the WAC in assists (11.33), while Hanah Blume is tops in digs (4.28) and Kiely Pieper is fourth (4.00) ... O’Reilly is fifth in the conference in hitting percentage (.348) and points (3.62), seventh in kills (2.98) and ninth in blocks (1.05) ... Akana is sixth in the league in service aces (0.28) and 10th in points (3.27) ... San Jose State hosts Idaho on Thursday and Seattle U on Saturday.

SEATTLE U REDHAWKS (6-6, 1-1 WAC)
The Redhawks defeated Boise State (25-22, 24-26, 23-25, 25-22, 15-13) last Tuesday, then opened WAC play with a five-set loss to New Mexico State (25-21, 25-23, 19-25, 20-25, 12-15) last Thursday, followed by a five-set win over Denver (19-25, 25-16, 16-25, 25-12, 15-13) on Saturday ... Kaytlyn Dill posted a career-high 27 kills to go along with 13 digs vs. Boise State ... The 27 kills is the third-highest single match kill total in program history ... Karina Miastkowska and Karli Pedone both established career highs with 18 kills apiece, while Jacquie Brice dished out a career-high 61 assists and Lani Beadle had a career-high 24 digs ... Against New Mexico State, Dill tied the Seattle U single-match record with eight service aces ... She also picked up her second double-double in as many matches with 17 kills and 17 digs ... Dill leads the WAC in service aces (0.56), and ranks fourth in both points (4.02) and kills (3.20) ... The Redhawks play at Utah State on Thursday and at San Jose State on Saturday.

UT ARLINGTON MAVERICKS (5-8, 1-0 WAC)
UT Arlington was swept by TCU (16-25, 22-25, 9-25) last Tuesday, then defeated Louisiana Tech (25-16, 25-14, 18-25, 25-14) on Saturday to earn its first-ever WAC win ... Three Mavericks posted double-doubles against the Lady Techsters – Shelby Dickson (12 kills, 19 digs), Amy Davault (13 kills, 14 digs) and Amanda Welsh (45 assists, 13 digs) ... UTA had a .287 hitting percentage, the fifth time this season it hit above .200 ... The Mavericks rank third in the WAC in digs (16.04) and fifth in kills (12.15) ... Shelby Dickson ranks fifth in the league in digs per set (3.85), eighth in kills per set (3.00) and 10th in points per set (3.30) ... Welsh ranks third in the WAC in assists (9.88) and fifth in service aces (0.31), while Charmaine Whitmore is fourth in blocks (1.18) and Ashley Bennett is 10th in blocks (1.00) ... Dickson ranks sixth in the conference in digs (3.90) and ninth in kills (2.90) ... UT Arlington plays at Denver on Thursday and at New Mexico State on Saturday.

UTSA ROADRUNNERS (7-4, 1-1 WAC)
The Roadrunners fell in straight sets (21-25, 21-25, 21-25) at Houston Baptist last Monday and fell to Utah State (22-25, 22-25, 25-23, 20-25) on Thursday before defeating San Jose State (25-20, 21-25, 25-16, 30-28) on Saturday ... In the win over the Spartans, UTSA overcame a nine-point deficit to win the fourth set, 30-28 ... The Roadrunners tallied 91 digs in the victory, a season high ... McKenzie Adams and Brandy Huskey each tallied a pair of double-doubles last week ... UTSA recorded a season-high 17 blocks vs. Utah State ... The Roadrunners held all three opponents under a .200 hitting percentage and have held nine of their 11 opponents under the .200 mark this season ... UTSA ranks second in the league in opponent hitting percentage (.166), assists (12.14), kills (13.28) and digs (17.56) ... Huskey is second in the WAC in assists (10.26) and Annie Kunes is second in digs (4.22) ... The Roadrunners host Houston Baptist on Tuesday, then host Texas State on Friday.

TEXAS STATE BOBCATS (6-7, 1-1 WAC)
The Bobcats defeated San Jose State (25-23, 22-25, 25-23, 28-26) on Thursday for their first-ever WAC win before falling in straight sets to Utah State (23-25, 15-25, 27-29) on Saturday ... There were six match points in the win over the Spartans in a match that featured 34 total tie scores and 18 lead changes over four sets ... In the loss to the Aggies, Alexandra Simms led the team in kills for the eighth time in the last 13 matches, posting 10 kills and the team’s only ace ... Caleigh McCorquodale notched her fourth double-double of the season, finishing with 14 assists and a team-high 15 digs ... The Bobcats rank third in the WAC in service aces (1.26) and fourth in digs (14.49) ... Patti Bradshaw ranks eighth in the WAC in service aces (0.26), while Sierra Smith is ninth (0.24) ... Simms ranks fifth in the WAC in kills (3.12) and eighth in points (3.49) ... McCorquodale is ninth in the league in assists (6.71) ... Texas State plays at UTSA on Friday in its only match this week.

UTAH STATE AGGIES (7-4, 2-0 WAC)
Utah State defeated UTSA (25-22, 25-22, 23-25, 25-20) last Thursday and swept Texas State (25-23, 25-15, 29-27) on Saturday to open WAC play ... Shay Sorensen posted a pair of double-doubles, finishing with 15 kills and 11 digs vs. the Roadrunners and 15 kills and 12 digs vs. the Bobcats ... In its win at UTSA, USU posted season-highs for attacks (158) and digs (82) ... The Aggies are 2-0 in WAC play for the first time since 2007 ...
USU head coach Grayson DuBose is one win shy of 100 on his career. When he reaches 100 victories, DuBose would become just the second coaching position to reach 100 wins ... With 1,192 career assists, Paige Neves needs just 38 more to enter the USU top 10 ... Josselyn White has 275 career total blocks, four shy of the top 10 ... Utah State leads the WAC and ranks seventh nationally in blocks (3.04) ... Elle Brainard leads the WAC in blocks (1.59) and ranks third in hitting percentage (.357) ... Ashlan Rogers ranks second in service aces (0.44) and seventh in digs (3.83) ... The Aggies host Seattle U on Thursday and Idaho on Saturday.