November 3, 1998
Rebels scheduled to face Tulsa and Rice, Friday and Saturday at Lied Gym.
Fri., Nov. 6 UNLV Rebels vs. Tulsa Golden Hurricane 7:00 p.m. PST
Sat., Nov. 7 UNLV Rebels vs. Rice Owls 7:00 p.m. PST
Match at Lied Gymnasium (1,500), Las Vegas, Nev.
The UNLV volleyball team, who just snapped its season-long three-match losing streak, will be back at Lied Gymnasium this weekend for two WAC matches. UNLV will host Tulsa on Friday, Nov. 6, and Rice on Saturday, Nov. 7. Both matches will begin at 7:00 p.m.
THE OPPONENTS ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
TULSA (9-12, 1-8 WAC) lost at home last week to Wyoming 3-2 and Colorado State 3-0, and defeated Wichita State 3-1 prior to those WAC matches...The Golden Hurricane are in eighth place in the WAC's Mountain Division and are led by Kristien Van Lierop who is averaging 3.53 kills and 3.19 digs per game...She also leads the team in assists with 5.55 per game...Head Coach Matt Sonnichsen is in his first year as head coach.
RICE (18-7, 6-3 WAC) defeated Colorado State 3-1 and Wyoming 3-0 last week at home and is in the midst of a four-match winning streak...The Owls are in fourth place in the WAC's Mountain Division and are led by Karolina Zelinka who is averaging 3.63 kills per game...Nil Kalagoglu leads the team in digs with 3.27 per game and assists with 12.26 per game...Head Coach Julio Morales is in his third year at Rice with a record of 41-50...He is in his ninth year as a head coach with a career record of 97-57.
THE REBELS ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
UNLV (17-6, 6-2 WAC) snapped its season-long three-match losing streak with its latest win at Air Force 3-1. Earlier last week, the Rebels fell at UC Irvine in a non-conference match 3-1...The Rebels currently sit all alone in third place in the WAC's Mountain Division...UNLV is led by sophomore Justine Kamelamela who is fifth in the WAC in kills per game with 4.18...Junior Angie Sylvas leads the team in digs and is 14th in the WAC with 2.75 per game...Senior Meri-de Boyer is second in the WAC in assists with 13.76 per game...The Rebels return nine players and four starters from last year's squad that finished the season with an overall record of 9-18...The Rebels finished seventh in the Western Athletic Conference's Mountain Division with a mark of 2-12...Head Coach Deitre Collins is in her third season and has a career record of 31-46.
POSSIBLE REBEL STARTERS ------------------------------------------------------------
No. Player Pos. Ht. Yr.-Exp. Hometown/Last School 1998 Statistics 9 Meri-de Boyer S 6-0 Sr.-2V Poway, Calif./UCSB 13.76 apg, 2.60 dpg, 0.83 bpg14 Christel Eves OH/MB 5-10 Jr.-2V Henderson, Nev./Basic HS 2.80 kpg, 1.78 dpg, 1.06 bpg, .347 hp 7 Danielle Gerlach OH/MB 6-0 Jr.-2V Edwards, Calif./Desert HS 2.10 kpg, 1.49 dpg, 0.75 bpg13 Amber Graham MB 6-0 Fr.-HS Las Vegas, Nev./Cimmaron HS 2.02 kpg, 0.95 bpg, .289 hp 6 Jeanette Graves OH 6-1 Jr.-TR West Jordan, Utah/Salt Lake City CC 3.20 kpg, 0.65 bpg 4 Justine Kamelamela OH 6-0 So.-1V Aiea, Hawai'i/Kamehameha HS 4.18 kpg, 2.63 dpg, .223 hp16 Michele Peoples MB 6-3 So-1V Stockton, Calif./Bear Creek HS 1.97 kpg, 1.03 bpg 2 Ana Ramos DS 5-4 So.-1V Honolulu, Hawai'i/Kamehameha HS 1.99 dpg, 0.27 sapg15 Angie Sylvas OH 5-11 Jr.-RS (Med.) Las Vegas, Nev./San Jose State 3.91 kpg, 2.75 dpg, 0.45 sapg
UC IRVINE DEFEATS UNLV --------------------------------------------------------------
Anteaters win non-conference match 3-1.
IRVINE, Calif. (10/28)-Led by sophomore Larissa Carter's team-high 20 kills, UC Irvine defeated the UNLV volleyball team 15-10, 14-16, 15-10, 15-10, in a non-conference match Wednesday at Crawford Hall.
UC Irvine (8-17) was assisted in the win by freshman Michelle Wong's team-high 17 digs. Junior Tandie Wade added a double-double of 14 kills and 13 digs for the Anteaters.
UNLV (16-6) was led by junior Jeanette Graves' career-high of 25 kills. She also added 12 digs for the double-double. Junior Christel Eves also turned in a double-double of 14 kills and 10 digs, while Meri-de Boyer recorded match-highs of 65 assists and 17 digs.
The Rebels were out-hit by the Anteaters .241 to .207 for the match. UNLV recorded 75 kills to UCI's 72, 77 digs to its 69 and 60 assists to the Anteaters' 63.
UNLV DEFEATS AIR FORCE -------------------------------------------------------------
Rebels run WAC record to 6-2 with victory over Falcons.
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (10/30)-Led by junior Jeanette Graves' match-high 20 kills, the UNLV volleyball team defeated Air Force 15-4, 8-15, 15-11, 15-9, in a Western Athletic Conference match Friday at East Gym.
With the win, the Rebels snapped their three-match losing streak and remain all alone in third place in the WAC's Mountain Division.
UNLV (17-6, 6-2 WAC) was assisted in the win by junior Angie Sylvas' 15 kills and junior Christel Eves' 10 kills. Sophomore Ana Ramos recorded a match-high 11 dig, while senior Meri-de Boyer turned in a double-double with a match-high 45 assists and 10 digs.
Air Force (8-12, 1-7 WAC) was led by junior Brooke Effland's 19 kills. Sophomore Ana Ortega led the team in digs with 10.
UNLV out-hit the Falcons .174 to .113 for the match and recorded 52 kills to AFA's 47. The Rebels also out-dug the Falcons 53-42 and recorded 50 assists to AFA's 45.
The Rebels also recorded 25 block assists, their second-highest output this season.
UNLV took control of the first game by breaking a 4-4 tie and scoring the next 11 points to win the game, which included five-straight points on junior Jeanette Graves' serve
Air Force led 11-5 in the second game when UNLV cut the score to 11-8. The Falcons ran away from there scoring the final four points of the game to even the match at one game apiece.
Trailing 4-0 in the third game, Air Force made a run of nine-straight points to take a five points advantage. UNLV battled back to tie the score at 9-9 and won the game by scoring 11 of the final 13 points.
With the score tied at 5-5 in the fourth game, UNLV pulled away and scored the next eight points including seven on sophomore Ana Ramos' serve. The Rebels held off Air Force's late run and eventually won the game 15-9 and the match 3-1.
NEXT WEEK -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
UNLV will make its final road trip of the season next week as it travels to TCU and SMU. The Rebels will face TCU on Friday, Nov. 13, and SMU on Saturday, Nov. 14. Both matches will begin at 7:00 p.m. CST.
LAST YEAR ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The 1997 UNLV volleyball team opened the season with a best-ever start of 7-1...After suffering some critical injuries the team struggled and finished with an overall record of 9-18 and seventh in the WAC's Mountain Divison with a 2-14 mark, failing to make the conference tournament.
IN ONLY ITS THIRD YEAR ----------------------------------------------------------------
This is UNLV's third season with volleyball since the program was restarted in '96 after 11 years off.
REBELS EXCEED LAST YEAR'S WIN TOTAL ---------------------------------------
With its win over Nevada, Reno, on Sept. 28, UNLV won its 10th match of the season in only its 13th try...Last season the Rebels won nine matches total, while losing 18.
UNLV ON PACE TO HAVE RECORD-SETTING YEAR ----------------------------
UNLV's current win percentage is .739. The best winning percentage a Rebel volleyball team has ever recorded was .588 in 1978 when the squad went 10-7. The most wins a UNLV volleyball team has had was 23 in 1984 when the team was 23-17. The Rebels would need to win the remainder of their regular season matches to meet that total and can exceed it with a WAC Tourney win.
REBELS SET RECORD FOR CONSECUTIVE WINS --------------------------------
With its win over TCU on Oct. 17, UNLV won its 10th match in a row, which set the program record for most consecutive vicories. The old mark was seven-in-a-row set in 1984. The Rebels had their streak snapped with the loss at Wyoming on Oct. 23.
UNLV EXCEEDS WIN TOTAL OF LAST TWO YEARS COMBINED -----------
With their 15th win of the season vs. SMU on Oct. 15, the Rebels exceeded their win total of the last two years combined. UNLV won five matches in 1996, its first season after 11 years off, and won nine matches in 1997.
UNLV EXCEEDS LAST YEAR'S CONFERENCE WIN TOTAL -------------------
The win at Tulsa on Oct. 10 was UNLV's third conference victory of the season. That exceeds last year's total of two as UNLV was 2-14 in WAC play. UNLV also matched its win total in conference play of the last two years combined with its win over SMU on Oct. 15. UNLV won three WAC matches in 1996 and two in 1997.
UNLV CAN DOUBLE LAST YEAR'S WIN TOTAL ----------------------------------
With its next victory, UNLV will have 18 wins for the year. That would double last year's win total of nine.
SERIES HISTORY ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
UNLV leads the all-time series with Tulsa in volleyball 3-0. The first meeting was in 1996 and the last was earlier this season. UNLV leads the all-time series with Rice 1-0. The only meeting was earlier this season.
THE LAST TIME ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
UNLV defeated Tulsa in Tulsa, Okla., on Oct. 10 of this year the last time the two met 17-15, 15-13, 15-10. UNLV defeated Rice in Houston, Texas, on Oct. 8 of this year the last time the two met 12-15, 15-6, 15-12, 15-5.
HEAD COACH DEITRE COLLINS --------------------------------------------------------
Head Coach Deitre Collins (Hawai'i, '95) is in her third season at UNLV. A former member of the U.S. National Team and a three-time NCAA All-American middle blocker at Hawai'i, Collins, led her first Rebel team to a 1996 WAC Tournament berth and this past summer led the U.S. Junior National Team to a gold medal performance at the NORCECA Zonal Championships, qualifying the team for the junior world championships in 1999. Before being named head coach of the 15th intercollegiate athletics program at UNLV on July 10, 1995, she served as an assistant at the University of South Alabama for one season (1994). Prior to that, she was an assistant at Houston (1993) and Northern Arizona (1993-94). The fourth coach in the history of Rebel volleyball, Collins is the only volleyball player ever to be named the Broderick Cup recipient, earning the award as the best collegiate athlete in 1983. She also is a two-time Broderick Award honoree, being named the best collegiate volleyball player in 1983 and 1984. In 1982 and 1983, she led the Rainbow Wahine to consecutive NCAA Championships as well as a record of 110-5 in her final three seasons. Her career head coaching record is 31-46.
ASSISTANT COACH KEVIN HAMBLY -------------------------------------------------
Kevin Hambly (BYU, '98) is in his second year as assistant coach at UNLV. He is a former Brigham Young standout volleyball player, playing for the Cougars from 1992-95. The starting middle blocker from 1993-95, Hambly was a first-team All-American in 1995. He was the head coach of Highline, a men's club team in Northridge, Calif., prior to joining the Rebel coaching staff.
ASSISTANT COACH KEE WILLIAMS --------------------------------------------------
Kee Williams (Hawai'i '95) was named to the UNLV coaching staff this past summer. Williams, in her first year, came to UNLV from the U.S. National Team where she was training before suffering a career-ending injury. A star at Hawai'i from 1990-94, she was a first-team All-American selection and a three-time All-Big West Conference Honoree.
TWO REBELS EARN WAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONORS -----------------
Senior Meri-de Boyer was named the Western Athletic Conference Volleyball Player of the Week for the Mountain Division on Oct. 19. It marked the second time this season a UNLV volleyball player has received the honor and the third time in the program's history. Boyer led the Rebels to a 2-0 record during the week with wins against SMU and TCU. Against TCU, she recorded a triple-double with 55 assists, 10 digs and 11 block assists. Her block assists tied a single-match school record. She also added eight kills with only one error in 15 attempts for a .467 hitting percentage. Against SMU, she notched 70 assists with 13 digs.
Sophomore Justine Kamelamela received the same honor on Sept. 28. Kamelamela led the Rebels to a 2-0 record that week with wins against Utah State and San Diego State. Against Utah State, she had a match-high 14 kills, with only two errors on 28 attempts for a .429 hitting percentage. She also added 10 digs and four total blocks in the match. Against San Diego State, she hit .375 (15-3-32) along with five digs, one assist and one service ace.
MORE REBEL HONORS --------------------------------------------------------------------
Sophomore Justine Kamelamela and junior Christel Eves were both named to the all-tournament team of the Carolina Classic in Chapel Hill, N.C....Kamelamela was named to the all-tournament team of the Official All-Star Cafe/UNLV Volleyball Classic in Las Vegas...Junior Angie Sylvas was named tournament MVP of the Nanook Classic in Fairbanks, Alaska...Senior Meri-de Boyer Kamelamela were both selected to that all-tournament team.
REBEL RECORDS SET ----------------------------------------------------------------------
UNLV set four team records vs. Southwest Texas State...They are most kills in a match (102), most attack attempts in a match (254), most assists in a match (89) and most digs in a match (96)...Angie Sylvas set the UNLV individual record for most attack attempts in a match with 75 vs. Southwest Texas State...Against TCU Meri-de Boyer tied the record for most block assists in a match with 11.
DOUBLE-TROUBLE ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
So far this season four Rebels have recorded double-doubles...senior Meri-de Boyer has 12 in assists and digs, sophomore Justine Kamelamela has 11 in kills and digs, junior Angie Sylvas has nine in kills and digs, junior Christel Eves has four in kills and digs, and junior Jeanette Graves has one is kills and digs.
TRIPLE-DOUBLE ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Senior Meri-de Boyer recorded the team's first triple-double of the season when she had 55 assists, 11 block assists and 10 digs vs. TCU.
CAREER HIGHS SET -----------------------------------------------------------------------
UNLV players are putting up some impressive numbers this season and have added to their career highs...Meri-de Boyer had 11 block assists vs. TCU...Christel Eves had 16 kills vs. Idaho, five service aces vs. Fresno State, nine block assists, and tied her career-high three times with 11 digs vs. New Mexico State, George Mason and San Diego State...Danielle Gerlach had 15 kills vs. SWT...Justine Kamelamela had 29 kills at Rice and 16 digs vs. Duke...Keala Nihipali had 19 digs vs. SWT and 10 assists vs. Air Force...Michele Peoples had 11 kills vs. SWT...Ana Ramos recorded 19 digs vs. Southwest Texas State...Angie Sylvas had 27 kills vs. SWT.
NEWCOMERS STANDOUT --------------------------------------------------------------
Freshman Nora Bernson turned in a solid performance recording 11 digs and nine kills in the victory over Iowa State and added 14 kills vs. Youngstown State and 12 kills vs. Cincinnati...Most recently she had 15 digs vs. UC Irvine...Sophomore Keala Nihipali has had four games with double figures in digs including a career-high 19 digs vs. SWT...Junior Jeanette Graves was impressive vs. Duke, recording 14 kills and seven digs before recording 20 kills vs. Cincinnati...Most recently she recorded a career-high 25 kills and 12 digs at UC Irvine...Freshman Amber Graham recorded 12 kills vs. SWT and 13 kills vs. SMU before recording a career-high 19 kills at Colorado State.
LEADERS OF THE WAC -------------------------------------------------------------------
The Rebels are second in the WAC in assists with 15.21 per game, third in kills with 17.18 per game, fourth in service aces (1.75), seventh in hitting efficiency (.220) and eighth in digs (15.49)...Individually Meri-de Boyer, Christel Eves, Amber Graham, Justine Kamelamela and Angie Sylvas are all among the WAC leaders...Boyer is second in the WAC in assists with 13.76 per game...Eves is ninth in hitting efficiency at .347...Graham is 19th in hitting efficiency at .289...Kamelamela is fifth in kills with 4.18 per game...Sylvas is fourth in service aces with 0.45 per game, is seventh in kills with 3.91 per game, and 14th in digs with 2.75 per game.
AMONG NCAA LEADERS ----------------------------------------------------------------
Through matches of Nov. 1, UNLV was 15th in the nation in kills with 17.18 per game...UNLV was 17th in the nation in assists with 15.21 per game...Individually, senior setter Meri-de Boyer was 13th in the nation in assists per game at 13.76...Stats are updated every Tuesday.
REBEL POWER RATING -------------------------------------------------------------------
In the AVCA/Sagarin Power Ratings through Oct. 25, UNLV was 59th in the nation...Tulsa was 183rd and Rice was 81st...As a conference the WAC was sixth in the nation out of 32...The new ratings come out every Wednesday.
OTHER REBEL NOTES ---------------------------------------------------------------------
The Rebels had five players record double figures in digs vs. Duke, while three had double figures in kills...UNLV had four players record double figures in digs vs. New Mexico State...The Rebels had five players record double figures in digs vs. SWT and five had double-digits in kills, two with more than 25...UNLV had four players record double-figures in kills vs. Idaho...The Rebels had three players in double figures in digs vs. North Carolina...UNLV had four players in double figures in kills and digs vs. Cincinnati...The win over #24 Fresno State was UNLV's first over a ranked opponent since the program restarted in 1996...It was also the first time UNLV has won more than one game in a match against a ranked team since the program restarted in 1996...UNLV recorded its best hitting percentage of the season vs. Air Force with .315...Air Force hit -.051 in the match, which is the lowest an opponent has hit this season vs. UNLV...Air Force recorded only 17 kills which is also the lowest for a UNLV opponent this season...UNLV had four players record double figures in kills vs. SMU...The Rebels had 32 block assists vs. TCU, which is the most they have had in a match this season...For the first time since the program restarted in 1996, the UNLV volleyball team received votes in the USA Today/AVCA collegiate volleyball poll...In the Oct. 5 poll the Rebels received 12 votes and in the Oct. 12 poll UNLV received seven votes...At Colorado State, UNLV had four players in double figures in kills and three in digs...At UC Irvine three players recorded double figures in kills and four in digs.
USA TODAY/AVCATOP 25 POLL
Poll No. 9, Nov. 2
Rank Team Pts Rec. Lst Wk 1 Lng Bch St. (35) 1475 22-0 1 2 Penn State (24) 1459 22-0 2 3 Nebraska (1) 1381 21-0 3 4 BYU 1316 21-1 4 5 Stanford 1263 19-2 5 6 Florida 1178 22-2 6 7 UCSB 1129 22-3 7 8 Wisconsin 1066 20-3 8 9 Hawaii 1026 18-2 9 10 Pacific 958 19-4 10 11 USC 891 15-4 11 12 Texas 869 17-3 12 13 Colorado 792 17-2 13 14 Arkansas 724 19-3 14 15 Illinois 641 16-6 17 16 Michigan State 581 16-4 18 17 San Diego 492 18-3 20 18 Arizona 469 18-4 16 19 L. Marymount 444 15-6 15 20 UCLA 234 9-10 23 21 Kansas State 205 14-7 21 22 Texas A&M 202 12-8 19 23 Minnesota 136 15-8 25 24 Texas Tech 106 17-8 N/R 25 Louisville 100 18-4 22Others receiving points: Northern Iowa (79), Colorado State (38), North Carolina (31), Miami, Ohio (25), Florida State (21), Santa Clara (21), Ohio State (13), Oral Roberts (11), Fairfield (11), Sacramento State (9), Northern Illinois (7), Georgetown (7), Arizona State (6), Western Michigan (4), San Jose State (4), South Carolina (2), Auburn (2), Eastern Washington (2), Nevada, Reno (1), Indiana (1), Rice (1), South Florida (1).Italics indicate 1998 UNLV opponent
1998 WAC TOURNAMENT
The 1998 WAC Tournament makes its return to Las Vegas after a successful 1997 event. The tournament will be held Tuesday-Saturday, Nov. 24-28, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. The top six teams from each division will participate in the four-round tournament, with matches every day except Thanksgiving (Nov. 26). The MGM Grand Hotel will serve as the tournament headquarters. Ticket prices are $30 for an all-session pass (11 matches) or $8 per single session (six total sessions). Tickets may be purchased by calling 1-800-929-1111.
UNLV'S RECORD WHEN IT:
wins the first game.. 15-2
wins the second game.. 12-1
wins the third game.. 15-2
wins the fourth game.. 7-1
plays a three-game match.. 8-1
plays a four-game match.. 6-4
plays a five-game match.. 3-1
has more kills than opp.. 17-6
has fewer kills than opp.. 0-0
has equal kills as opp.. 0-0
has higher hitting % than opp.. 17-0
has lower hitting % than opp.. 0-6
has equal hitting % as opp.. 0-0
has more team blocks than opp.. 12-0
has fewer team blocks than opp.. 4-4
has equal team blocks as opp.. 1-2
has more digs than opp.. 13-3
has fewer digs than opp.. 4-3
has equal digs as opp.. 1-0
has more assists than opp.. 16-4
has fewer assists than opp.. 1-2
has equal assists as opponent.. 0-0
has more service aces than opp.. 13-3
has fewer service aces than opp.. 2-2
has equal service aces as opp.. 2-1
STANDINGS
1998 WAC Volleyball Standings (as of 11/2)
Mountain Division WAC Matches All Matches W L Pct. W L Pct.Colorado State 8 1 .889 18 5 .783Wyoming 7 2 .778 12 11 .522UNLV 6 2 .750 17 6 .739Rice 6 3 .667 18 7 .720SMU 4 4 .500 13 11 .542Air Force 1 7 .125 8 12 .400TCU 1 7 .125 4 19 .174Tulsa 1 8 .111 9 12 .429
Pacific Division WAC Matches All Matches W L Pct. W L Pct.Brigham Young 8 0 1.000 21 1 .955Hawai'i 9 1 .900 19 2 .905San Jose State 5 3 .625 17 6 .739Fresno State 4 4 .500 15 5 .750Utah 4 4 .500 14 7 .667UTEP 2 7 .222 10 10 .500San Diego State 2 8 .200 5 18 .217New Mexico 1 8 .111 7 14 .333
INTERVIEWS - Interviews with UNLV volleyball players and coaches may be arranged through volleyball SID Andy Grossman. Requests for interviews should be made at least 24 hours in advance by calling the UNLV sports information department at (702) 895-3764.
COACHES' POLL
1998 WAC Volleyball Coaches' Preseason Poll
Pacific Division
Brigham Young (13) 118
Hawai'i (3) 105
Utah 88
Fresno State 73
San Diego State 72
New Mexico 49
San Jose State 37
UTEP 26
Mountain Division
Colorado State (13) 117
Wyoming (3) 108
SMU 76
UNLV 72
TCU 63
Rice 59
Tulsa 47
Air Force 22
1998 WAC Champion
Brigham Young 13
Hawai'i 3
REBELS ONLY, PLEASE!
Please remember, UNLV (acronym on all references please) is home to the Rebel volleyball team -- not the Runnin' Rebels! Only the men's basketball team at UNLV is named the Runnin' Rebels.
UNLV TICKET PRICES
Admission for UNLV volleyball matches is $4.00 for adults, $2.00 for students and $2.00 for UNLV faculty and staff. UNLV students are admitted free with valid I.D. For more information please call 895-UNLV.
