GRAND JUNCTION, Colo.— The nation's 17^th-ranked and second-seeded Colorado Mesa University Maverick volleyball team will play in their fifth straight Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Tournament semifinal against sixth-seeded Colorado Christian University on Friday night at 7:30 p.m. inside MSU Denver's Auraria Event Center.
 
The Mavericks, 23-4 overall, will also be trying to knock the Cougars (18-9) out of the tournament for the fourth straight season while trying to reach the RMAC Tournament Championship match for the first time since 2018.
 
Top-seeded and national poll No. 5 MSU Denver (25-2) will play No. 4 seed and cross-town rival Regis (14-13) in the first semifinal at 5 p.m.
 
Follow the Tournament
 
The RMAC Tournament began on Tuesday night as the top four seeds hosted quarterfinal matches in their home gyms.  As the top seed, MSU Denver will host the remainder of the tournament, including Friday's semifinals and Saturday afternoon's championship match at 4 p.m.
 
A complete bracket and other tournament information can be found on the tournament webpage - https://rmacsports.org/tournaments/?id=247
 
Tickets prices for each match are $15 for adults and $10 for kids (6-17), seniors (over 65) & military and can be purchased through that page.  The specific link for CMU's Friday night match is https://fan.hudl.com/tickets/VGlja2V0ZWRFdmVudDY3MTFmYzM5OWE3NmJmM2VkOTlkMjViMQ==
 
All of the matches will also be streamed on a pay-per-view basis through the RMAC Network.  Pricing options can be seen at https://rmacsports.org/sports/2024/10/31/GEN_1031242634.aspx.
 
Live statistics for Friday's match can be seen at: https://roadrunnersathletics.com/sidearmstats/wvball/summary.
 
The tournament's online store can be found at: https://bsnteamsports.com/shop/goHEyjMZe2.
 
Quarterfinal Recap
 
The Mavericks won their fifth straight RMAC Tournament quarterfinal on Tuesday night, claiming a 4-set win over No. 7 seed Westminster University.  The Mavericks dropped the opening set, 25-23, but rallied to win the final three sets by 25-17, 25-15 and 25-21 scores.
 
The Mavericks trailed 10-6 in the third set but went on a 9-0 and 14-1 run to build a 20-11 lead in the critical third set.  They then road that momentum to 7-0 and 10-2 leads in the fourth set before going on to claim the win.
 
Sydney Leffler recorded a match-high 16 kills and a double-double with 10 digs to lead the Mavs while Sierra Hunt put down another 15 kills on .370 hitting while adding four blocks.  Middle blocker Stormi Tadlock also tallied nine kills, seven of which were in the first set alone.  She also matched a season-high with six blocks.
 
Setter Sabrina VanDeList recorded 38 assists and nine digs while libero Allison Waller led the Mavs with 13 digs.

A full meet recap along with highlights and the post-match press conference can be seen here: https://cmumavericks.com/news/2024/11/19/womens-volleyball-mavs-pull-out-gritty-rmac-tournament-win.aspx.
 
Tourney Time
 
The Mavericks are playing in their 13^th consecutive RMAC Tournament, having qualified in all but one (2011) of the 20 seasons with Head Coach Dave Fleming running the program.  The Mavericks have won the RMAC Tournament twice under Fleming (2014, 2018) and are now 19-16 in it under Fleming, who began his tenure at CMU in 2005.
 
The Mavs are 4-1 against the other three teams still alive in this year's tournament this season and have defeated all of them.  They claimed two wins over Regis in the city of Denver and have split the season series with MSU Denver, who they played on the road both times.  The Mavs also claimed a 3-set home win over Colorado Christian on Oct. 26.
 
The Mavs have a winning 12-7 record in the quarterfinal round under Fleming, winning in that round in each of the last five years.  Three straight of those quarterfinal wins came against Colorado Christian in 2021, 2022 and 2023.
 
However, the Mavericks have had recent struggles in the semifinal round, falling at that stage in each of the last four years.  Their last semifinal win came in 2018 en route to their last RMAC Tournament title. 
 
The Mavs are making their 13^th RMAC Tournament semifinal appearance under Fleming on Friday.  They are 5-7 in the semifinal round under Fleming but have not played against the Cougars in the semifinal round.
 
The Mavs have met the Cougars five times in the post-season, winning the last four of those matches during the RMAC Tournament quarterfinals in 2018, 2021, 2022 and 2023.  CCU won a quarterfinal match in 2013.
 
About the Cougars
 
The Cougars are 18-9 overall and have won their last four matches, including a mild upset on Tuesday when they, as the No. 6 seed, claimed a 4-set road win at No. 3 seed South Dakota Mines.
 
The win allowed them to reach the RMAC Tournament semifinals for the first time since 2017.
 
Abby Newell had an eye-popping 29 kills in the win, the second best single-match total in CCU history.  Renee Phillips also added 18 kills on .516 hitting while setter Izzy Jones registered an impressive 63 assists, also the second best total in program history.  Libero Shelby Hernandez recorded 28 digs while Kristina House added 21.
 
Like the Mavs, the Cougars had five players earn All-RMAC honors on Thursday.  However, none were first team picks. CCU did have four second team selections in Jones, Newell, Phillips and Illy Woods.  Hernandez also earned honorable mention plaudits.
 
Newell leads the Cougars with 296 kills and a 3.57 per set average despite not playing in ten of CCU's 93 team sets.  She has started just seven matches as well, but still sits sixth in the RMAC for kills per set.
 
Phillips is second on the team with 260 kills (2.86/set) and is hitting an impressive .363 to rank fourth in the RMAC. 
 
Hernandez leads the team in digs with 457 (4.91/set) and is also pacing the team with 26 service aces (0.28/set).  She ranks second in the conference for digging.
 
Woods has registered 115 total blocks (1.31/set) to rank fourth in the conference and has also added 178 kills (2.02/set) offensively.  She is also hitting .353, to stand fifth in the league.
 
Jones is second behind CMU's Sabrina VanDeList in the RMAC for assists per set (11.12), totaling 1,034, the highest total of her strong career as a 4-year starter.
 
Series Histories
 
The Mavericks hold a 28-15 lead in the series with CCU during their NCAA Division II era (1992-Present), including a 3-set home win over the Cougars on Oct. 26.
 
The Mavs' three big hitters combined for 43 kills in a balanced 25-20, 25-23, 25-20 victory that night.  Sabrina VanDeList tallied 37 assists and 13 digs in that match as Sydney Leffler recorded 17 kills, eight of which were in the tight second set.  Sierra Hunt and Nicole Martin added 14.  Martin hit .579.
 
The Mavs have won 11 out of the last 12 meetings between the teams, including four straight post-season victories.

Maverick Head Coach Dave Fleming  is 19-7 against the Cougars in his time at CMU and is 11-2 against Cougar counterpart Bobby Blanken, in his eighth season at the helm of the CCU program.
 
The Mavs are 4-1 against the Cougars on neutral courts, winning two such matches in 2022, including a RMAC Tournament quarterfinal at the Auraria Event Center.
 
Regional Rankings
 
The Mavericks maintained their No. 4 spot in the latest and final NCAA Division II South Central Regional Rankings of the season, which were released on Wednesday.  The Mavericks have been ranked in all three sets of rankings heading into the NCAA Tournament selection show which will air on Monday night at 5:30 p.m. MST on NCAA.com.
 
Although nothing is guaranteed, the Mavericks do look like they will qualify for a fourth straight NCAA Tournament.
 
It is worth noting that this week's rankings do not yet factor in results of the RMAC Tournament quarterfinals.
 
The Mavs are one of four RMAC teams in the latest rankings with MSU Denver continuing to sit second.  South Dakota Mines, which was not in the top 10 last week, was ranked eighth, but fell to
currently unranked Colorado Christian, which was ranked eighth in the previous rankings on Tuesday.  Regis is in the No. 10 spot and is ranked for the second, but non-consecutive time, in the three sets of weekly rankings.
 
Lone Star Conference teams occupy the other six spots.  West Texas A&M held on to  the No. 1 spot while Angelo State is still ranked third.  Texas Woman's, Dallas Baptist and UT Tyler are then in the fifth, sixth and seventh spots while St. Mary's is ranked ninth.
 
The RMAC and LSC Tournament Champions will receive automatic bids while the other six spots and the one through eight seeding will be filled based on the final regional rankings, which are determined by these eight factors:

• Division II in-region winning percentage
• Division II winning percentage
• Division II strength of schedule (opponents' average winning percentage and opponents' opponents' average winning percentage)
• Division II head-to-head competition
• Results versus Division II common opponents.
• In-region Rating Percentage Index (RPI)
• Kevin Pauga Index (KPI)
• Late-season performance (last 10 matches)

CMU is looking strong for a fourth consecutive and 12th all-time NCAA Division II appearance.  As of Friday morning, the Mavericks currently have the fourth best Division II record (23-4) and  in-region record (19-3).  They also have the fourth best RPI (.597) and tenth best strength of schedule (.527) in the region.  They also have the fifth best KPI (.330), ranking 35^th nationally in that category.
 
They are a combined 4-3 against the other nine ranked teams having split matches with MSU Denver while beating Regis twice.  They Mavs have lost to Angelo State and South Dakota while defeating Colorado Christian.
 
The Lone Star Conference Tournament got underway on Thursday in Canyon, Texas and went mostly according to form with West Texas A&M, Angelo State and UT Tyler as the top three seeds all claiming wins.  UT Tyler defeated St. Mary's in five sets and likely ended the Rattlers' season.
 
Dallas Baptist, the No. 5 seed, defeated No. 4 seed Texas Woman's in the fourth quarterfinal and will play West Texas A&M in Friday's semifinal round.  UT Tyler and Angelo State will play in the other semifinal. 
 
Double-Digit Win Streaks
 
Although the winning streak was snapped last Saturday in the Mavs' regular season finale at South Dakota Mines, the Mavericks had won 14 straight matches leading into the regular season finale and have now posted six double-figure winning streaks under Head Coach Dave Fleming and in their Division II history, including one in all five of the Mavs' seasons this decade.
 
Their 14-match winning streak is the third longest in their Division II history, which dates back to 1992.
 
The Mavs also won 11 straight matches in 2023, starting the year 11-0 and won 12 straight matches from Sept. 24-Nov. 1 in 2022.
 
They also won 10 straight from Oct. 2-Nov. 5 during the 2021 fall season and started the 2021 spring season with a 15-match winning streak before finishing that COVID effected season with a 15-1 record.
 
The Mavs' longest winning streak in program history is 20 matches, which came in the 2014 season, when CMU went 29-4 while winning the RMAC Tournament and reaching the NCAA South Central Regional Final.
 
Bouncing Back
 
The Mavericks have been able to bounce back from each of their four losses this season, recording a win in their ensuing match.  They have swept three of those bounce back matches and won in four sets on Tuesday in the RMAC Quarterfinals over Westminster after ending the regular season with a 5-set loss to South Dakota Mines.
 
20 & Counting
 
The Mavericks have now reached and surpassed the 20-win mark for the fourth straight season and for the ninth time under 20^th year Head Coach Dave Fleming.  The Mavs went 24-5 in 2023, 22-7 in 2022 and 21-7 in 2021.  A win in the semifinal round against Colorado Christian would put the Mavericks at 24-4, which would be their second best record under Fleming and in their Division II era, trailing only the 2014 team that went 29-4 while reaching the South Central Regional Championship match. 
 
RMAC History Maker
 
Maverick setter Sabrina VanDeList made conference history on Thursday as she was named to the First Team All-RMAC squad for the fifth time.  VanDeList was also named as the RMAC Setter of the Year for the second straight season and is now the only player in conference history to earn five First Team All-RMAC honors, made possible by her use of the NCAA's COVID related eligibility waiver.
 
She was tabbed as the RMAC Freshman of the Year during the abbreviated and pandemic-effected 2021 spring season, which saw the Mavericks win their first 15 matches to win the RMAC regular season title before ending their season with a 15-1 record after falling in the semifinal round of the RMAC Tournament, which CMU hosted.
 
Four First Teamers
 
VanDeList was one of four Mavericks on the First Team All-RMAC squad.  Her three favorite hitters in outside hitter Syndey Leffler, right side hitter Sierra Hunt and middle hitter Nicole Martin joining her.  That trio has combined for 1,013 kills this season.
 
Leffler was picked to the first team for the second straight and third overall time.  She was tabbed as the RMAC Freshman of the Year in 2021 as well and picked up second team honors as a sophomore in 2022.
 
Hunt earned a previous first team honor in that season and was an honorable mention all-conference pick in the spring of 2021.
 
Martin received her first All-RMAC honor on Thursday.
 
The Mavericks also had an honorable mention pick this year in junior Allison Waller, who was a First Team All-RMAC pick and the RMAC Defensive Player of the Year last season.
 
5K Possibility
 
Sabrina VanDeList has a solid chance at reaching the 5,000 career assist mark this weekend and will enter the RMAC Tournament semifinal with 4,956 career assists and just 44 away from the milestone.
 
VanDeList is the Mavs' all-time record holder for both assists and career service aces (183) and  leads the RMAC by 83 assists this year, having recorded 1,140 so far this season.  She has surpassed the 1,100 mark in four straight seasons and is just 36 away from matching last year's total, the best of her career to date.
 
VanDeList also comfortably leads the RMAC with her 11.88 per set average, which is the best average of her career.  Colorado Christian's Izzy Jones is second in the RMAC with a 11.12 per set average while Regis' Reagan Hickey is second behind VanDeList in total assists with 1,057.  Jones is third with 1,034.
 
Kill title fight
 
Maverick senior outside hitter Sydney Leffler finished the regular season atop the RMAC statistics for both kills per set (4.08) and total points per set (4.70) and is now averaging 4.01 kills and 4.69 total points per set after the RMAC Tournament Quarterfinals.
 
With a strong performance this weekend, Leffler could also move into the top spot for both total kills and total points.  She has registered 391 kills and 450 points to trail only South Dakota Alessandra Meoni, who is no longer in the RMAC Tournament.  Meoni has 414 kills and 473 total points and is right behind Leffler in the average categories at 4.06 and 4.64 having played in 102 sets, six more than Leffler and the Mavs thus far.
 
Leffler led all four categories in 2023 and was named as the RMAC Player of the Year last season.
 
1,500 Club & Active Leader
 
Leffler is also the current leader amongst active RMAC players with her career total of exactly 1,500 kills, reaching that milestone on Tuesday night. 
 
That total puts Leffler 14^th amongst all active NCAA Division II players and fourth highest in CMU history and third highest in the rally-scoring era.
 
The Veteran Court boss
 
Now in his 20^th year in charge of the Maverick program, Head Coach Dave Fleming is the longest-serving and winningest active head coach in the RMAC, racking up 390 overall career wins and a .682 winning percentage (390-182) in his tenure. 
 
He and his Maverick squads have fared even better in conference play, as Fleming now has an impressive .733 winning percentage (258-94) when coaching conference matches.
 
Fleming recently claimed his 250^th career RMAC win at home against CSU Pueblo.
 
He is just one of six RMAC Coaches to have 300 or more overall wins while coaching in the league.
 
Fleming has been named as the RMAC Coach of the Year four times and has guided the program to four total RMAC regular season and tournament titles and to three other RMAC West Division crowns.  They have had winning campaigns in 19 of his 20 previous seasons and have now reached 20 wins nine times, including in each of the last four seasons after going 15-1 to win the RMAC title in the spring of 2021, an abbreviated season.
 
The Mavs also have reached the NCAA Tournament ten times under Fleming, including in each of the last three.
 
First Set Streak no more
 
The Mavericks had won the first set of all 26 of their regular season matches this season, but were downed in the first set on Tuesday against Westminster, stopping that streak.  CMU has gone on to sweep 14 matches this year and have won eight times in four sets.  They are 1-1 in 5-set matches.
 
Home Sweet Home
 
The Mavericks have consistently taken advantage of their home and supportive crowd in Brownson Arena, something they continued on Tuesday.  The Mavs won their final ten home matches of the season and finished the year 12-1 at home this fall.  The Mavs have not lost more than a single home match in each of the last seven seasons since 2018, going 65-7 (.903) in that stretch.
 
The Mavs are also 101-15 (.871) in their last 116 home matches since the start of 2014., when they went 15-1 at home en-route to a RMAC Tournament Championship and NCAA South Central Regional final appearance.
 
The Mavs have now had winning records at home in each of the last 13 seasons since and including 2012, going 116-24 (.829) since the start of 2012.
 
In the polls
 
The Mavericks are in the No. 17 spot of last week's American Volleyball Coaches Association/TARAFLEX NCAA Division II Coaches' Poll, which was released on Monday afternoon.
 
The Mavs had been ranked 14^th in the previous two polls but slipped three spots after losing their regular season finale at South Dakota Mines last Saturday.
 
CMU has now been ranked amongst the nation's top 25 in 39  consecutive polls since the first regular season poll of the 2022 campaign.  They had hovered between No. 14-18 all season.
 
Up Next
 
Should the Mavericks win on Friday, they would improve to 24-4 overall and advance to the RMAC Tournament Championship for the first time since 2018, when they would play the winner of the first semifinal between Regis and MSU Denver on Saturday at 4 p.m.
 
If CMU loses to the Cougars, they would fall to 23-5 and would await an expected NCAA Tournament bid on Monday, when they will learn their seed, opponent and location for the South Central Regional, which will begin the week after Thanksgiving on either Thursday, Dec. 4 or Friday, Dec. 5.