GRAND JUNCTION, Colo.— The Colorado Mesa University volleyball team will begin Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play this week, hosting rival Western State Colorado Tuesday night in their home-opener in Brownson Arena before traveling to Salt Lake City to face Westminster on Friday.  Both matches begin at 7 p.m.
 
Home, Sweet Home
 
The Mavericks have won each of their last four home-openers dating back to 2013 and have gone 37-8 (.822) at home over that span.  The Mavericks have posted a winning record at home in each of the last five seasons and will play five of their first six RMAC matches in Brownson Arena.
 
RMAC Openers
 
The Mavericks have also fared well in their recent conference openers, winning each of the last five dating back to 2012.  The Mavericks posted a 4-set away win at Western State to begin the conference slate in 2016.
 
Lone Star success
 
The Mavericks went a perfect 4-0 this past weekend at the Lubbock Christian University Chap Classic in Lubbock, Texas to win the unofficial team title as the only undefeated team in the 6-team affair.  The success is nothing new for the Mavericks, who have now won 13 straight regular season matches in the Lone Star State dating back to 2013.
 
Raking in the honors
 
The Mavericks have already had a laundry list of award winners this season.  Both junior libero Taylor Woods and junior outside hitter MacKenzie Edwards were named to the Chap Classic's All-Tournament Team.  Sophomore Samantha Ritter had been named as the RMAC's Setter of the Week for her efforts at Colorado Mines' Oredigger Classic in the first weekend of the campaign.  Woods, Edwards and senior Hattie Gianinetti had also been named to the Preseason All-RMAC team prior to the campaign.  Woods was also named as the Preseason Defensive Player of the Year for the second straight year.
 
Quickly moving up the charts
 
Taylor Woods recorded 94 digs, an average of 5.53 set, last weekend at the Chap Classic. In the process, she moved from 12^th all the way to sixth on CMU's career digs chart.  She now has 1,215 and passed Drew Choules (1,212), Phyills Jennings (1,197), Stacey Vogel (1,191), Kate Matthews (1,145), Kelly Beer (1,139) and Michelle Mather (1,128) this weekend.  Woods started the year 15^th with 1,056 digs and moved up three spots on the chart over the opening weekend.  She has a RMAC-leading 159 digs so far this season, good for an average of 5.13 set, which is the second best average in the conference.  Up next on the list is Jenny Day, who had 1,293 digs in her 1988-91 Maverick career.  Amy Miller holds the CMU record with 2,542 career digs.
 
Defense, Defense
 
Led by Woods' back-row prowess, the Mavericks are holding opponents to a combined .120 attack percentage thus far in 2017, the best defensive mark in the RMAC.  They have also allowed their opponents just 9.90 kills per set, which also leads the RMAC.  They have also allowed an average of just one service ace per set, the second best defensive mark in the league.
 
Elsewhere in the statistical rankings
 
The Mavericks are also ranked third in the RMAC as a team for both kills (13.16) and assists (12.33) per set.  Individually, the Mavericks have four different players ranked amongst the RMAC's top five in four different statistical categories.  In addition to the aforementioned Taylor Woods, MacKenzie Edwards is second in the RMAC for kills (120) and third for kills per set (3.87).  Samantha Ritter is second for assists (332) and assists per set (10.71).  Megan Gianinetti is tied for second in the RMAC with 14 service aces and ranks third in aces per set (0.45).
 
Scouting the Opponents
 
Western State will enter Brownson Arena with a 1-8 overall mark.  After dropping their first eight, the Mountaineers claimed their first win in five sets and come-from-behind fashion on Saturday against Northwestern Oklahoma State at a tournament in Kearney, Neb.  The Mountaineers were picked ninth in the RMAC's Preseason Coaches' Poll and have a balanced attack that has seen six different players averaging more than a kill per set.  Defensively, Kathleen Kasel, is ranked second in the RMAC with her 1.18-block per set average.  Logan Franek is seventh in the RMAC for digs per set (4.28).

The Mavericks have won eight straight matches in the series with the Mountaineers and have lost just once in their last 21 head-to-head meetings dating back to 2006.
 
Westminster went 3-1 in their home tournament last week, raising their season record to 3-5.  The Griffins, who were tied for 12^th in the RMAC Preseason Coaches' Poll, have two common opponents with the Mavericks.  They defeated Western New Mexico in four sets last Friday after falling to Lubbock Christian, 3-0 in their season-opener at the Concordia-Portland Labor Day Tournament.  The Mavericks defeated both teams in three sets.
 
Audrey Green leads the Griffins with 76 kills (2.81/set).  Amara Spare is fourth in the RMAC with her 1.13 block per set average although Katie Hutchins leads the team with 21 total blocks (0.95 per set).  Megan Gallegos is 10^th in the RMAC with her 4.04-dig per set average.
 
The Mavericks are 3-1 against the Griffins since Westminster joined the RMAC in 2015.  Westminster won in Salt Lake City on Sept. 22, 2015.  The Mavericks have since recorded three straight victories, all in straight sets.
 
Up Next
 
After this week's two matches, the Mavericks will be at home for their next four.  They will face No. 21 Regis on Friday, Sept. 22 and Chadron State on Saturday, Sept. 23.