GRAND JUNCTION, Colo.— Off to a 5-0 start and now ranked a program-record fifth in the latest national poll, the Colorado Mesa University Volleyball team will head out on the road for three Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference matches this weekend.
 
The Mavericks, who have a 2-0 conference mark, will play both Fort Lewis and host South Dakota Mines in a RMAC pod on Saturday in Rapid City, South Dakota before heading to Chadron, Nebraska, for a Sunday afternoon (1 p.m.) match at Chadron State, which is a reschedule from a Feb. 6 postponement, which was announced and made official this past Monday.
 
The Mavericks play Fort Lewis at 2 p.m. on Saturday after the Skyhawks will have faced the host Hardrockers at 11 a.m.  CMU will then wrap up the 3-team, 3-match pod in the King Center against the hosts at 5 p.m.
 
Fan Attendance Policies
 
Fans will not be permitted to attend either of the matches on Saturday in Rapid City, South Dakota but will be permitted to attend Sunday's affair at Chadron State's Chicoine Center.  Tickets can be purchased through the Eagles' website.
 
All of the matches will also be streamed on the RMAC Network and live statistics can be accessed at the links above.
 
New Ranking Record
 
The Mavericks are up to fifth in this week's AVCA Division II Coaches' Top 25 Poll, which was released on Wednesday afternoon (Feb. 17).  The No. 5 ranking is a new program record after the Mavs were tabbed seventh, which at the time matched a school-record, in last week's (Feb. 10) poll.
 
Off to a 4-0 start, the Mavericks leapt up 13 spots and are now ranked seventh in the latest edition of the AVCA Division II Coaches Top 25 Poll that was released on Wednesday afternoon. 
 
The Mavs are one of three RMAC teams in the top ten and one of four in the overall poll joining No. 4 MSU Denver (6-0), No. 8 Colorado School of Mines (4-1) and No. 20 Regis (2-2).  CSU Pueblo, Black Hills State, UCCS and Fort Lewis are also in the "others receiving votes and listed on two or more ballots" category of the pool.
 
The Mavericks received 935 total points from the 46 AVCA member coaches who voted in the poll, which remained unchanged in the top four.  Hillsdale (8-0) received 37 first place votes and continues to lead the poll with 1,151 points.  Lewis (4-0), which garnered three first place votes, is second with 1,108 points while Angelo State (6-0), which picked up two first place votes is third with 1,079 points.  MSU Denver received four first place votes and 1,038 total points to remain fourth. 
 
The Mavericks have now been ranked amongst the nation's top 25 teams a total of 27 times in their Division II history, including for 11 weeks during the 2014 season, and for three straight weeks this season.
 
It should be noted that only teams that have played at least one match this spring are eligible to be ranked in the poll.
 
Reschedules in the works
 
The Mavericks are still working to reschedule two other postponed matches against Westminster, which was due to be played inside Brownson Arena last Friday, and another against CSU Pueblo, which was originally scheduled for Feb. 6.  Tentative re-scheduled dates have been put on the table but are not yet finalized, nor official.  Please stay tuned to www.cmumavericks.com for all the latest schedule updates.
 
Last Time Out

Playing for the first time in 13 days, the Mavericks swept visiting Colorado Christian in a Friday afternoon matinee inside Brownson Arena to improve to 5-0 overall and to 2-0 in RMAC matches.  The Mavs are now 3-0 at home this year.
 
CMU had a balanced attack and hit .306 as a team in the 25-21, 25-21, 26-24 win over the Cougars as freshman right side hitter Gabrielle Vogt recorded 13 kills while hitting a career-best .571 in what was her first career start.  Outside hitters Maddi Foutz and Holly Schmidt also recorded double-doubles while freshman setter Sabrina VanDeList tallied a career-high 28 assists.  Foutz had 12 kills and 11 digs while Schmidt put up the same numbers in reverse with 11 kills and 12 digs.
 
Defensively, sophomore middle blocker Haley Hahn was involved in all three of CMU's blocks while junior libero Emily Tucker matched a career-high with 18 digs.
 
5-0 for the first time since '14
 
The Mavericks' 5-0 start is their first since 2014, when they also went 5-0 en-route to a 29-4 overall record, RMAC Regular Season and Tournament titles and a berth in the NCAA Division II South Central Regional title match.  The Mavs lost their sixth match of that season to Regis at the Colorado Premier Challenge.
 
A win over Fort Lewis on Saturday would allow the Mavs to improve to 6-0 for the first time since 2005, when they started 7-0 en-route to a 23-7 record in their first season under veteran Head Coach Dave Fleming.
 
Should the Mavericks sweep their three matches this weekend, they would be off to an 8-0 start for the first time since 1994, when they finished 31-14 while qualifying for the National Invitational Tournament.
 
Impressive and balanced attack
 
The Mavericks continue to lead the RMAC in both kills (15.05) and assists (13.37) per set and rank third and fourth, nationally in those statistics as of Monday.  They also have a team hitting percentage of .263, which ranks second in the RMAC and fourth nationally.
 
The Mavericks have hit above .240 in all five of their matches and have hit above .300 in both of their RMAC matches, recording percentages of .324 against Regis and .306 against Colorado Christian, both of which were 3-set sweeps.
 
A big reason for the impressive numbers is CMU's balance.  Five different players are recording more than two kills per set.  Senior outside hitter Maddi Foutz leads the Mavs with 62 total kills (3.26/set) and ranks fourth in the RMAC for both total kills and her per set average.  She has been in double-figures in all five of CMU's matches putting down between 10 and 14 kills in each match throughout the young campaign.
 
Freshman right side hitter Gabrielle Vogt, who is second on the team with 56 kills (2.95/set) has been in double figures in four straight matches and is hitting .305.  Vogt is seventh in the RMAC for kills per set and stands eight for hitting percentage.
 
Junior outside hitter Holly Schmidt has 51 kills (2.68/set) from her outside hitter position to stand 11^th in the conference for kills per set while sophomore Savannah Spitzer has 39 kills (2.17/set) and leads the team with a .450 attack percentage from the middle to stand second in the RMAC and fifth nationally.
 
Ashton Reese, who missed the match against Colorado Christian due to injury, has 35 kills (2.69/set) and is tenth in the RMAC for her per set average.
 
Serving up some aces
 
Junior libero Emily Tucker continues to lead the RMAC in both total aces (15) and her aces per set average of 0.79, a mark that ranks her sixth in all of Division II volleyball so far this season.   She has had at least one ace in all five of CMU's matches this season.
 
The double-doubles continue
 
Outside hitters Maddi Foutz (12 kills, 11 digs) and Holly Schmidt (11 kills, 12 digs) both recorded double-doubles in Friday's win over Colorado Christian.   Foutz has now had double-doubles in each of her last four matches after narrowly missing one against Regis in the season opener, when she had ten kills and nine digs.    Schmidt now has three double-doubles so far this season.
 
As a team, five different Mavericks have combined to register 13 total double-doubles this year.  In 2019, the Mavericks had 18 combined double-doubles from three players throughout their entire 17-10, 27-match season.
 
Stronger as we go along
 
The Mavericks are a perfect 9-0 in the third, fourth and fifth sets combined this year.  The Mavs, who are 3-2 in both the first and second sets this year, have won the third set in all five of their matches and have closed out two of their five wins in the fourth set.  They also came from 2-0 down to Northwest Nazarene to win the Jan. 30 5-set match against the Nighthawks.
 
Consistent point-scorers

The Mavericks have scored at least 20 points in all 19 sets they have played, including the four that they have dropped.  Two of those set losses have come in "overtime" by 26-24 margins.  The Mavs also have four extra-point set wins, including 27-25 victories in both matches on Jan. 30 and another 29-27 third set win over CSU Pueblo on Jan. 24.  They won the third set over Colorado Christian by a 26-24 margin.
 
RMAC's winningest coach
 
Maverick Head Coach Dave Fleming is in his 16^th season with the Mavericks and is the winningest active RMAC Coach with 290 career victories. He is 290-158 in his tenure, which is good for a .647 winning percentage.  His tenure is equal to the longest in the RMAC, amongst active coaches, and he will coach his 450^th career match on Saturday.
 
In his time at CMU, Fleming has guided the Mavericks to seven NCAA Division II National Tournament berths, two Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Tournament titles (2014, 2018), a 2014 RMAC Regular Season and Tournament titles and three RMAC West Division crowns (2005, 2009, 2010).  The Mavericks have had winning campaigns in all but one of his seasons and his teams have reached the 20-win mark five times, most recently in 2018, when they went 24-7.  Fleming was also named as the RMAC Co-Coach of the Year last year in a vote of his peers.  He also earned that honor outright in 2009 and 2014.
 
About Fort Lewis
 
The Skyhawks are fairing well under first-year head coach Giedre Tarnauskaite, who has guided her team to a 3-3 overall and RMAC record thus far.  The Skyhawks have won three of their last four matches and all three losses have come to teams that were ranked in last week's national poll.  They also claimed a 5-set win at UCCS in their last match on Thursday (Feb. 11), their first over a nationally-ranked foe since moving to the Division II level in 1994.
 
Junior setter Makena Ahuna is second in the RMAC for both total assists (220) and assists per set (9.57) as of Monday and ranks second nationally in total assists.  Sophomore middle blocker Rylee Johnson also stands seventh in the RMAC for hitting percentage at .326 and fifth for total aces with 10. 
 
Johnson and senior outside hitter Alexa Treguboff co-lead the teams with 58 kills (2.52/set) apiece.  Sophomore Kamryn Lopez has 74 digs (3.36/set) to lead the team while Treguboff is right behind with 68 (2.96/set).  Junior Cameron Callahan has 10 blocks to pace the Skyhawks in that category.
 
As a team the Skyhawks are at or nearly in the middle of the RMAC in most of the statistical categories.
 
They were 10-17 overall and 6-12 in the RMAC last season (fall 2019) and were picked 13^th in this year's Preseason RMAC Coaches' Poll.
 
About South Dakota Mines
 
The Hardrockers are off to an 0-3 (0-2 RMAC) start.  All three matches have been decided in straight sets and they have been out-hit .303 to .045 by their combined opponents, which are Chadron State, Colorado School of Mines and Regis.  Jacey Koethe has 19 kills to lead the team while Claire Smith is right behind with 18.  Shyann Bastian has 41 assists and six blocks to lead the team in those categories while Anna Thomas has 23 digs to lead the team, one more than Smith.
 
Two-time Second Team All-RMAC selection Dana Thompson, a native of Fruita, Colorado, is on the Hardrockers' roster but has not played this spring.  Thomas was an honorable mention selection as a freshman in 2019.
 
Third-year head coach Lauren Torvi Prochazka's squad was picked ninth in this season's RMAC Preseason Coaches' Poll after going 11-16 overall and 7-11 in RMAC play in the fall of 2019, their best conference record since joining the Division II ranks.
 
About Chadron State
 
The Eagles, who will play two home matches against Western Colorado on Saturday before facing the Mavericks, are 2-2 overall and 1-1 in RMAC play after a bit of disjointed start to the campaign.  They split a pair of 5-set matches at nationally-ranked Black Hills State last Saturday, winning the opener by a 19-17 margin in the fifth set, which counted towards their 1-1 record before falling in the nightcap.
 
Rylee Greiman had a 13-kill, 13-dig double-double in the victory while Karli Noble (27) and Alexia Hurtado (24) put up big numbers, defensively, which has been an early hallmark of the Eagles' season thus far.
 
They are holding opponents to a combined .136 attack percentage to rank third in the RMAC and just outside the top 20 nationally.  Noble also ranks third in the RMAC for digs per set (4.59) while Rhiannon Nez is fourth in the RMAC and 21^st nationally with her 1.18 block per set average.
 
However, the Eagles, under the direction of second year head coach Jennifer Stadler, are hitting just .128 as a team to rank 11^th in the RMAC.  They do rank fifth in the conference for service aces (1.82/set) but are in the bottom half of the conference in other team statistics.
 
Hurtado leads a balanced team with 29 kills while Nez is right behind with 28.   Olivia Moten-Schell has 18 kills and is hitting a team-best .278.   Setter Breshawna Kelly has 82 assists.
 
The Eagles finished the 2019 campaign, their first under Stadler, with a winning record of 14-12, their first above .500 mark since 2003, and were picked tenth in this year's RMAC Preseason Coaches' Poll after finishing tied for eighth — but edged out of a post-season berth on a tiebreaker— in the 2019 RMAC standings at 8-10. 
 
Series Histories
 
The Mavericks hold a 40-12 lead in the series with long-time rival Fort Lewis dating back to their first season at the NCAA Division II level (1992).  However, the Skyhawks did win both the 2017 and 2018 season meetings in five sets before the Mavericks swept Fort Lewis last academic year in the fall of 2019.  The Mavericks had also won 11 out of the previous 12 meetings from 2010-16.
 
Saturday's encounter will be mark the first time the two will meet on a neutral floor in at least the Division II era.
 
The Mavericks are 7-0 all-time against South Dakota Mines, which joined the RMAC in 2015.  The two teams had also met in non-conference matches in 2013 and 2014.  CMU has won all four matches in Rapid City, winning each of the last three in straight sets after claiming a 4-set non-conference win in 2013.  Four of the seven matches have been decided in just three sets while CMU's other three wins have come in four sets, including the last, a 3-1 home win in Brownson Arena on Oct. 19, 2019.
 
The Mavericks have absolutely dominated the series with Chadron State, winning the last 25 matches between the teams while holding a commanding 31-3 series lead in the Division II era (1992-Present).  However, two of the Eagles' three wins during that time have come in Chadron, where the Eagles last defeated the Mavericks on Oct. 6, 1995.
 
Additionally, the Mavericks have been pushed to five sets in each of their last two visits to Chadron on Oct. 5, 2019 and Sept. 24, 2016.
 
Up Next
 
After this busy weekend's 3-match slate, the Mavericks' indoor volleyball squad is slated to have the following 10 days off before returning to action on Thursday, Mar. 4 when they will host UCCS and No. MSU Denver in a RMAC pod.
 
However, a few members of the CMU indoor squad are slated to travel with and compete CMU Beach Volleyball team to their first matches of the season on Feb. 26-27 in Phoenix, Arizona.