LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) – The UNLV volleyball team continues its season this week with a trip to Portland, Oregon, for the third round of the Women's National Invitational Volleyball Championship. The Rebels will square off against the Portland Pilots Thursday night (7:00 pm) at the Chiles Center on the campus of the University of Portland.
 
UNLV and Portland are two of eight teams still competing in the NIVC, with Thursday's winner advancing to face either Iowa State or North Texas - who play in Ames, Iowa, Wednesday - in the tournament's semifinals.  The other side of the bracket features Tulane hosting Valparaiso in New Orleans and an all-South Carolina contest between College of Charleston and Clemson.
 
The NIVC's semifinals are slated for Dec. 7-9, while the championship bout is set for Tuesday, Dec. 11.
 
TUNE IN, WATCH & LISTEN
Live stats for Thursday's NIVC match can be found online at UNLVRebels.com in the "schedule" section of the volleyball page. Additionally, it will be streamed live via Stadium, which can be accessed through WatchStadium.com, Stadium mobile apps and over-the-top connected devices (such as Apple TV, Roku, Sling TV, Amazon Fire and XBox), and, it too, will be linked to UNLVRebels.com.
 
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING
UNLV and Portland have met twice before and sit deadlocked at 1-1, as each team won on their respective home court. The Rebels lost the first affair, 3-2, in Portland on Sept. 1, 2012; however, they redeemed themselves one year later (Aug. 31, 2013) with a quick, 3-0 win in Las Vegas.
 
THE POSTSEASON
UNLV's at-large berth into the 2018 NIVC marks the third foray to the postseason for the volleyball program, which previously competed in the 2007 and 2016 NCAA Tournaments.
 
The Rebels are 3-2 all-time, with a first round loss to Long Beach State in 2007 in Los Angeles (USC) and a 1-1 showing nine years later in Provo, Utah. In '16, the Scarlet & Gray upset No. 22 Utah, 3-1, in the first round before it suffered a three-set loss to No. 10 BYU in the second round.
 
MARIENA(CE) TO SOCIETY
UNLV sophomore Mariena Hayden concluded the regular season with 94 aces and notched seven more last week in two home matches in the NIVC. Hayden's 101 aces, thus far, are the most by a NCAA Division I student-athlete this season and they're the third most amassed by a player since the 25-point scoring format was adopted in 2008. She only trails Penn State's Micha Hancock's 126 and Jackson State's Christine Edwards' 118 from 2015 and 2012, respectively.
 
WHAT A DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES
UNLV's 21 wins this season are 13 more than the eight registered by the 2017 squad during its 8-23 campaign. The Rebels are one of four teams with at least a plus-13 differential in victories from one year ago.
 
Bradley leads the quartet with 14 more wins that its 2017 edition posted. With help from the pair of NIVC victories, UNLV drew even with Stetson and FIU.
 
UMKC, a squad the Scarlet & Gray swept in St. Louis in September, was plus-12, while Loyola-Chicago ended the year plus-11.
 
WHAT-A-MARK: WINNING PERCENTAGE
At the conclusion of the regular season the 2018 Rebels owned the sixth-best winning percentage - .656 - in program history. With a 21-11 overall record, this year's squad trails 2006 (20-10/.667) for fifth and five others that are .742 or better.
 
The 2007 edition sits atop the list at .800 following its 24-6 campaign. Ranging from second to fourth are: 2014 (26-7/.800), 2016 (24-8/.750) and 1998 (23-8/.742).