GRAND JUNCTION, Colo.— After splitting matches on the opening two days of the season last weekend, the now 2-2 and nation's 22
nd-ranked Colorado Mesa University Maverick volleyball team will head to Texas for another 4-match tournament this weekend in Wichita Falls.
The Mavericks will face three Lone Star Conference foes as well as Arkansas Tech from the Great American Conference in the Midwestern State Hampton Inn-Vitational on Friday and Saturday.
The weekend will feature key matches against out-of-conference, but in-region opponents from the NCAA Division II South Central Region and could have a major impact come NCAA Tournament selection time in November.
On Friday, the Mavericks will take on the host Mustangs at 10:30 a.m. Mountain (11:30 a.m. Central) before taking on Arkansas Tech in the afternoon at 3:30 p.m. Mountain (4:30 Central). On Saturday, CMU will square off against Texas A&M-Kingsville at 10:30 a.m. Mountain (11:30 a.m. Central) and Eastern New Mexico at 1 p.m. Mountain (2 p.m. Central).
Live statistics for all four matches can be accessed at the link above. A live stream for the matches against Midwestern State and Eastern New Mexico is also available on a pay per view basis through the Lone Star Digital Network. Those matches will be played on Court 1 in the Mustangs' Ligon Coliseum. The matches against Arkansas Tech and Texas A&M-Kingsville will be played on Court 2 and will not be streamed.
Recaps for both days of the tournament will be posted on
www.cmumavericks.com each evening.
2-2 results in 22
The Mavericks went 2-2 in their opening weekend of play at the Oredigger Volleyball Classic in Golden, Colorado and are now ranked No. 22 in this week's American Volleyball Coaches Association NCAA Division II Top 25 Coaches' Poll, released on Monday. The Mavericks were ranked tenth in the preseason edition of the poll, released on Aug. 23.
In the spring, the Mavs reached as high as No. 2 and finished in the No. 3 spot of the AVCA polls, which only included teams that played in the spring season during the 2020-21 pandemic effected school year.
In this week's poll, the Mavs received 208 points in the balloting of coaches from around the country and are one of three Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference teams in the top 25 while two others are in the "others receiving votes" category. The Colorado School of Mines, which went 3-1 during the tournament at home last weekend, is now ranked 15
th after starting out in the No. 12 spot of the preseason poll. MSU Denver is now ranked 20
th after a 2-2 start. The Roadrunners were ranked 11
th in the preseason poll. Regis, which started off ranked 22
nd, is now in the receiving votes category after going 2-2 to begin the year. CSU Pueblo is also receiving six votes after a 4-0 start to the season.
Elsewhere in the poll, Concordia St.-Paul gained the top spot after a 4-0 start. The Bears received 20 first place votes to top the poll with 1,114 points while switching spots with preseason No. 1 Angelo State, which received 21 first place votes and 1,086 points after a 4-0 beginning. Nebraska-Kearney, Washburn and Lewis round out the top 5.
Southwest Minnesota State, which defeated the Mavericks to begin the season last Friday, moved from the receiving votes category to No. 16 after going 4-0 as the only undefeated team at the Oredigger Volleyball Classic.
Grand Valley State, which defeated the Mavericks for their only win in four tries last weekend, is also receiving votes.
All-Tourney Duo
The Mavericks had two selections to the Oredigger Classic All-Tournament team in redshirt junior outside hitter
Holly Schmidt and redshirt freshman setter
Sabrina VanDeList.
Schmidt led the Mavericks with 49 total points, an average of 3.50 per set, after putting down 43 kills, six blocks and two service aces last weekend. She currently ranks eighth in the RMAC for kills per set (3.07) and is ninth for total points per set. She had three double-figure kill efforts in four matches recording a team-high 14 in the opener against Southwest Minnesota State. Schmidt also hit .389 and .444 with 19 combined kills in the 3-set sweeps of Sioux Falls and Seattle Pacific and put down ten kills in the tournament finale against Grand Valley State.
VanDeList, playing in a 5-1 system for the first time in her collegiate career, after co-running a 6-2 attack in the spring, doled out 137 assists in the Mavs' four matches last weekend, recording 32 or more in each. She set a new career-high with 37 assists in the Friday afternoon win over Sioux Falls and recorded a 32-assist, 10-dig double-double in the victory over Seattle Pacific on Saturday morning.
VanDeList, who ranks third in the RMAC for assists per set early on in the season at 9.79, also led the Mavericks with seven service aces and is tenth in the conference with her 0.50 per set average.
Freshman standout
Maverick freshman
Sydney Leffler, an outside hitter out of Eaton, Colorado, led the Mavericks with 44 total kills last weekend, an average of 3.14 per set. She ranks sixth in the RMAC for that statistic, two spots ahead of Schmidt, and had three double-figure efforts in her opening weekend of collegiate volleyball. Leffler had a career and team-high 15 kills in the match against Grand Valley State while hitting .321. She also tallied six blocks, four of which came against Seattle Pacific.
Block Record
As a team, the Mavericks tallied 16 blocks in the Saturday 3-set sweep of Seattle Pacific, setting a rally-scoring era school record for blocks in a 3-set match. The total, which included four solo blocks, surpassed the former record of 14, set back on Sept. 26, 2008 at CSU Pueblo and was the highest single-match total in any match since the Mavs had 18 blocks against Dixie State on Nov. 9, 2018 in a 4-set semifinal victory during the RMAC Tournament, which CMU went on to win.
In Saturday's win over the Falcons,
Savannah Spitzer recorded a career-high eight blocks, including two solos, while
Tye Wedhorn made six blocks, a new high for her time in a Maverick uniform in what was her first start as a Maverick. Right side
Ashton Reese also added five while Schmidt and Leffler recorded four blocks apiece from the outside.
1 & 2
Thanks in part to that effort against Seattle Pacific, the Mavericks have the No. 1 and 2 ranked blockers in the entire RMAC in terms of blocks per set. Wedhorn, who had 13 blocks in her eight sets played, leads the conference at 1.63 while Reese ranks second at 1.50 after recording 15 blocks in the ten sets she played.
The Mavericks also lead the RMAC in team blocks per set, averaging 2.64 per stanza. CSU Pueblo and Chadron State are tied for second at 2.50.
2-0 in the "region"
Although the Mavericks dropped two matches last weekend they did go 2-0 in the two matches that will count on their "in-region" record, which is part of the NCAA Division II Championship selection criteria. Although Sioux Falls and Seattle Pacific are in the Central and West Regions, both victories will count as regional wins under the NCAA's regionalization philosophy and contiguous state policies.
All four of this weekend's upcoming matches will also be considered "in region", making it a massively important stretch before the start of conference play next week.
RMAC Poll
Coming off their impressive 15-1 spring season, the Mavericks were unsurprisingly receiving some pre-season attention. They were picked first in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll, where the conference's 15 head coaches ranked their opposition 1-14 without voting for their own squad. The Mavs received seven first place votes and scored 182 points. MSU Denver and Mines were picked second and third with 174 and 172 points, respectively. Both received three first place votes as well. Regis was picked fourth with one first place vote and 156 points.
300 & Counting
With CMU's RMAC Tournament Quarterfinal win over UCCS on Apr. 8, Maverick Head Coach
Dave Fleming became just the fifth coach in RMAC history to reach 300 career wins while coaching in the league. Fleming, who is just the fourth head coach in the program's history, which celebrated its' 35
th season last spring, was also named as the RMAC Coach of the Year for the fourth time.
Now in his 17
th season, Fleming is 302-161, good for a .652 winning percentage. His 302 career wins are the most of any active RMAC Coach and his tenure is equal to the longest in the conference amongst active coaches.
The success is nothing new for Fleming, who has led the Mavericks to seven NCAA Division II National Tournament berths, three Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Tournament titles (2014, 2018, 2021-Spring), 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, including in 2018, when they went 24-7 while winning the RMAC Tournament title and advancing to the semifinals of the NCAA South Central Regional. Fleming was also named as the RMAC Co-Coach of the Year that year after earlier earning that honor outright in 2009 and 2014.
The 2014 team went 29-4, won the RMAC Regular Season and Tournament titles and hosted the South Central Regional portion of the NCAA Division II Tournament while advancing to the regional final.
About Midwestern State
The Mustangs also participated in the Oredigger Classic last weekend in Golden. They went 0-4 dropping matches to Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference foes Colorado Christian and Mines on Friday (Sept. 3) before falling to Sioux Falls and Seattle Pacific, the two teams the Mavericks defeated, on Saturday (Sept. 4). The Mustangs won a set against Colorado Christian and Seattle Pacific.
They are now 0-5 overall after dropping a 4-set match at Southern Nazarene on Tuesday night in Bethany, Oklahoma.
The Mustangs have hit. 125 as a team thus far and surrendered a combined .290 hitting percentage to their four opponents.
Outside hitter Laurryn Bourne leads the team with 56 kills with Kaitlynn Stoker, also an outside hitter, has put down 37 as both have averaged more than two per set. Senior middle blocker Lissette Lefforge is third on the team for the weekend with 34 kills while also leading the team with 22 blocks.
In the spring of 2021, the Mustangs went 10-7 overall and were 8-4 in Lone Star Conference play. Bourne led the team with 148 kills in the spring, an average of 2.85 per set. They also recorded 151 service aces as a team, an average of 2.13 per set that was more than double their opponents' total of 71 aces.
Bourne, who was also named to the LSC's All-Freshman Team, Lefforge and Jaycie Fuller were all selected to the 45-player LSC All-Conference Team in the spring. Fuller was a senior and did not return to the team this fall.
The Mustangs, who return ten players from their 2021 spring roster this fall, were picked eighth out of 18 teams in the LSC's Preseason Poll after going 1-1 and reaching the quarterfinals of the LSC Tournament spring.
About Arkansas Tech
The Golden Suns went 2-1 to begin the season at the Dallas Baptist Invitational. They recorded 3-0 wins over Eastern New Mexico and Westminster on Friday before falling in three sets to No. 24 Wayne State on Saturday. Their final scheduled match against the host Patriots was canceled due to COVID-19 protocols.
Fourth-year Golden Sun Head Coach Kera Dukic used the same starting lineup in all three matches.
Emily Ragsdale led the squad with 23 kills (2.56/set) on the opening weekend while hitting a massive .588 from her middle blocker position. Tymber Riley was right behind with 20 kills (2.22/set).
In the spring, the Golden Suns went 7-5 overall and were 6-4 in Great American Conference regular season play. They then went 1-1 in the GAC Tournament falling to then fifth-ranked Oklahoma Baptist in the semifinal round.
Madison Grantham, an All-GAC Honorable Mention pick in the spring, recorded 28 digs to lead the team last weekend after averaging an impressive 5.49 digs per set in the spring. She also had 17 aces in the spring to pace the squad.
Setter Brianna Merkel is a 2-time All-GAC Honorable Mention pick and tallied 54 assists (6.00/set) on the opening weekend.
The Golden Suns were picked third in the GAC Preseason Poll this fall.
Texas A&M-Kingsville
The Javelinas got off to a great start as they went 4-0 on the opening weekend of the season at Angelo State's Kathleen Brasfield Invitational picking up wins over Western Colorado, Northwestern Oklahoma State, East Central and Anderson.
They outhit their opponents .249 to .158 as four different players averaged more than two kills per set. Jackie Alanis led the group with 50 kills for an average of 3.13 per set. Ayanna Jackson was right behind with 48 (3.00/set). Kailey Estrada hit .333 with 35 kills (2.19/set).
Defensively, Jackson tallied 14 blocks (0.88/set) on the opening weekend while Nicole Murff tallied 89 digs, an average of 5.56 per set. Setter Emily Witt recorded 135 assists, an average of 8.44 per set after being named as the Lone Star Conference's Preseason Setter of the Year. Jackson was tabbed as the Preseason Defensive Player of the Year.
The Javelinas, who were picked third in the LSC's Preseason Poll, were an impressive 13-1 in the spring season going 12-0 in the regular season before falling to Angelo State in the semifinal round of the LSC Tournament. They were 17-16 in the fall of 2019.
They are receiving votes in the AVCA Division II Top 25 Coaches' Poll heading into a Wednesday match at Ouachita Baptist in Arkadelphia, Arkansas.
About Eastern New Mexico
The Greyhounds had a rough start to their season going 0-4 at Dallas Baptist's tournament last weekend, where they fell to Arkansas Tech, the host Patriots, Westminster and then 24
th-ranked Wayne State (Neb.). A scheduled Tuesday match at New Mexico Highlands has been postponed due to COVID precautions.
They did not play at all in 2020-21 after going 5-21 overall and 3-15 in Lone Star Conference play in the fall of 2019.
On the opening weekend of this season, the Greyhounds hit .143 as a team and surrendered a .209 attack percentage. Jasmine Gannon led the team with 38 kills and 50 points. She also had a team-best eight service aces while hitting .209, the team's second best mark amongst regular swingers.
Series Histories
CMU has not previously faced Midwestern State nor Texas A&M-Kingsville despite being in the same NCAA Division II region.
The Mavs have played Arkansas Tech once before, winning a 3-set home match in Grand Junction back more than 17 years ago on Sept. 3, 2004.
CMU last played Eastern New Mexico on Sept. 8, 2017 defeating the Greyhounds by a 15-11 score in the decisive set of a match played in Lubbock, Texas. The Mavs have won four straight matches in the series, which CMU leads 7-2 since 1998. ENMU's records also show ten earlier matches dating back to 1981, although the location of some of those matches is unknown. CMU leads the series 12-7 according to those records.
ENMU's last win over the Mavericks was on Nov. 19, 2004 in a neutral-site encounter in Kearney, Nebraska.
Up Next
The Mavericks will begin Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play next week hosting MSU Denver for their home and conference-opener on Thursday, Sept. 16 at 6 p.m. That match will be a battle of the top two teams from the spring season standings and the RMAC's Preseason Coaches' Poll this fall.
The Mavs will then get on a bus bound for Salt Lake City to play Westminster a day later (Friday, Sept. 17) at 7 p.m.
