FAIRBANKS, Alaska – The Alaska Nanooks volleyball team will conclude the 2017 Great Northwest Athletic Conference regular season this week, taking on in-state rival Alaska Anchorage in Anchorage on Tuesday, Nov. 14 before hosting the Montana State Billings Yellowjackets at the Alaska Airlines Court in Fairbanks on Saturday, Nov. 18. Tuesday's game in Anchorage at the Alaska Airlines Center is scheduled for 7pm AKST, while Saturday's game in Fairbanks is slated for 2pm AKST.
Where to Watch & Listen
If fans aren't able to make this weekend's games in Fairbanks, all Alaska Nanooks volleyball games for the remainder of the season (home and away) will be streamed live for free through the Alaska Nanooks Stretch Internet Portal (link posted above). Fans have the option to watch the stream, follow the live stats or both. Please be advised when on the road, Alaska volleyball games are produced and streamed through the respective home school.
Senior Day
Prior to Saturday's contest against the Yellowjackets, the Alaska Nanooks volleyball team will be honoring their four seniors in their final home game of the 2017 season. Alaska will have a short presentation to honor outside hitter
Maddie Davis, outside hitter
Ariana Horner, setter Rachel Nichols and middle blocker
Riley Podowicz.
Last Time Out
The Alaska Nanooks volleyball team split a pair of GNAC contests at home last week, falling 3-1 to the Concordia Cavaliers on Thursday, Nov. 9 before earning their fourth conference win on Saturday by sweeping the Western Oregon Wolves 3-0.
GNAC Standings
With a conference mark of 4-14, the Alaska Nanooks are tied for eighth in the GNAC standings with SMU and MSUB, each with a .222 winning percentage. The Nanooks are currently only of only eight teams in the conference with 11-or-more wins throughout the 2017 season. As of Monday, Western Washington sits in first place in the conference rankings with a 17-1 record.
En Route
Alaska's 11th victory of the season on Saturday over Western Oregon marks the first time Alaska has registered double-digit wins in one season since the 2009 campaign, which saw 12 victories. The 11 wins also marks a new single-season record for head coach
Brian Scott since taking over the program in July of 2015.
Record Watch
The Nooks have four players on this year's squad looking to either break onto the Alaska Nanooks volleyball team's All-Time Leaders list or move up from their current standings. Here are records we've been looking out for:
- Individual Match Highs:
- Digs:
- T-6th: Jenna Hickel (33) on Sept. 3 vs. Slippery Rock
- 9th: Jenna Hickel (27) on Oct. 21 at Seattle Pacific
- 10th: Jenna Hickel (26) on Sept. 22 at Central Washington
- Service Aces:
- T-10th: Maddie Davis (5) on Oct. 7 vs. Simon Fraser
- T-10th: Lahra Weber (5) on Nov. 11 vs. Western Oregon
- Individual Season Highs (2017)
- Digs:
- Hickel currently sits at 456 digs, which tied her for third on the all-time leaders list for a single season. Hickel only needs six more digs to move to second place on the list (462).
- Solo Blocks:
- Riley Podowicz has registered 11 solo blocks this season, ranking her seventh on the list and needs 14 to move into sixth place.
- Individual Career Highs:
- Kills:
- Davis has registered 700 kills throughout her career as a Nanook (2013-17) and will tie for tenth place if she can make it 775
- Assists:
- Rachel Nichols already sits in sixth place with 1,614 career assists in her two seasons as a Nanook (2016-17) and will move up to fifth place if she can surpass 1,806.
- Service Aces:
- Podowicz has collected 110 service aces in her career as a Nanook (2014-17) and will crack the top-10 if she can conclude the season with 117.
For more information on the Alaska Nanooks volleyball team, follow @NanooksVB on Twitter or like the Alaska Nanooks Volleyball team page on Facebook.
