FAIRBANKS, Alaska – The Alaska Nanooks volleyball team continues its four-match Great Northwest Athletic Conference home stand on Thursday night, as they host Saint Martin's (Wash.). First serve from the Alaska Airlines Court is set for 7 p.m.
The Nanooks (0-11, 0-4 GNAC) come into the match off a pair of four-set defeats to No. 11 Alaska Anchorage and Montana State Billings last week. It was the first time since the opening weekend that Alaska took a set in back-to-back matches. Senior outside hitter Sam Harthun provided the offensive spark for the Nanooks last week, as she collected a pair of 15-kill performances. The senior collected her third double-double of the year against the Yellowjackets, with 15 kills and 14 digs.
Last Time Out
Sophomore setter Dylan Branch handed out a career-best 16 assists and senior outside hitter Sam Harthun paced the offense with her second-straight 15-kill outing, but it would not be enough to lift the Nanooks past Montana State Billings, as they fell 3-1 (19-25, 29-31, 25-15, 14-25) last Saturday at the Alaska Airlines Court.
All-Time Series
Alaska holds a 22-8 advantage in the all-time series against Saint Martin's. The Nanooks have won each of the last three matches against the Saints, which includes a season sweep of SMU last year.
Continuing the Home Stand
Thursday's match is the third in a season-long four-match home stand for the Nanooks. Alaska is currently 0-2 during stretch, as they dropped a pair of four-set matches to No. 11 Alaska Anchorage and Montana State Billings. The home stand concludes this Saturday with a contest against Seattle Pacific at 7 p.m.
It's All About That Ace
Alaska comes into Thursday's match as the top-ranked service ace team in the GNAC. Currently, the Nanooks are averaging 1.83 service aces per set. Sophomore Riley Podowicz leads the conference in aces per set with her 0.55 average, as she has collected 23 aces in 42 sets. Last Saturday, the sophomore collected a personal-best five service aces against Montana State Billings. Senior Miranda Grieser is also inside the top five in service aces, as her 17 aces is 42 sets (0.40) puts her fourth in the GNAC.
Slammy Sam
Senior outside hitter Sam Harthun has been a fixture atop the GNAC kills and points rankings throughout her Nanook career and this year is no different. The senior is currently third in the conference in kills per set (3.38) and points per set (3.75). Harthun leads the team in kills with 142.
Record Chasing
Senior Sam Harthun is closing in on becoming the school's all-time leader in kills, as she is just 124 kills shy from tying Mallory Bergstrom's record of 1,363. Last Tuesday, Harthun moved into second place on the list, as she surpassed Megan Thigpen's 1,213 kills when she landed her fifth ball against No. 11 Alaska Anchorage in the second set.
Doubling Down
With her 15-kill, 14-dig performance last Saturday against Montana State Billings, senior Sam Harthun locked down her third double-double of the season. The 14 digs were a season-best, and just one shy of her career-high. Harthun has three of the five Nanook double-doubles for Alaska this year, as senior setter Miranda Grieser claims the other two.
Scouting the Opposition – Saint Martin's
The Saints come to Alaska Airlines Court with a 2-8 record on the year and a 1-3 mark in the GNAC. SMU comes into the match off of a loss to Concordia, yet they captured their first GNAC win of the season last Thursday, defeating Western Oregon in five sets at home.
Saint Martin's is currently ranked last in the conference in hitting percentage, with a .093 mark. Over the last four matches, SMU hasn't hit over .130. Sophomore Nicolette Nesbitt is the team's top hitter, as she holds a .226 hitting percentage, which ranks 19th-best in the conference.
Defensively, Saint Martin's ranks ninth in the GNAC in opponent hitting percentage, as teams are hitting .223 against the Saints. SMU ranks 10th in the conference in digs per set with a 13.59 average and eighth in blocks at 1.15 blocks per set. Elizabeth Colon is sixth in the conference in digs with her 4.44 digs per set average and Kyra Davidson ranks seventh in the GNAC in blocks per set at 1.15.
Coaches Corner"We need to build off of what we've been doing over the last two matches. We need to play well in back-to-back sets. Other than that, our game plan is the same as it always is, and that's to make improvements every time we step on the court. We would like to see a little bit more from our defensive side of the court. We have a pretty good scouting report and hopefully that will translate into a better defensive performance on our end." – Head coach Brian Scott on Thursday's Match.
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