Saturday, December 8
Ames, IA
10:00 am PT (Semifinals)
University of Nevada Las Vegas
at
Iowa State
Photo by: Zak Krill
12/7/2018 5:53:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
UNLV volleyball travels to Ames to play Iowa State Saturday.
AMES, Iowa (UNLVRebels.com) – The UNLV volleyball team continues its season this weekend with a trip to Ames, Iowa, to face the Iowa State Cyclones in the semifinals of the Women's National Invitational Volleyball Championship. The Rebels and Cyclones will square off Saturday at Hilton Coliseum at 12:00 pm CT (10:00 am PT).
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UNLV and ISU are two of four teams still competing in the NIVC with Saturday's winner advancing to play either Tulane or College of Charleston, who meet Saturday night in New Orleans. The victors of the semifinal matches will tussle Tuesday, Dec. 11 for the postseason title.
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TUNE IN, WATCH & LISTEN
Live stats for Saturday'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 Cyclones.TV, and, it too, will be linked to UNLVRebels.com.
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HISTORICALLY SPEAKING
UNLV and Iowa State have met twice before with the former defeating the latter by identical 3-0 scores in 1998 and '99. Both meetings took place on Sept. 3; however, the first affair was in Fairbanks, Alaska, while the second was in Las Vegas.
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This will be the Rebels' first trip to the Hawkeye State, and second to the Central Time Zone this season. The Scarlet & Gray played in Missouri at Saint Louis' Billiken Invitational in mid-September.
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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.
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The Rebels are 4-2 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.
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THE REBELS REUNION TOUR ROLLS ON
The NIVC has turned into a reunion tour of sorts for UNLV volleyball, as it has produced multiple matchups against some familiar faces. Through three rounds, the Rebels have squared off against two former student-athletes - UC Irvine's Laura Butler (2016) and Portland's Reghan Pukis (2015) - while a third, Josie Herbst, transferred to Iowa State after suiting up alongside Butler for the 2016 campaign. Herbst and Butler were freshmen on the squad that won 24 matches, the last of which was a victory over Utah in the NCAA first round.
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Additionally, UNLV head coach Dawn Sullivan will be on the opposite side of the court from the program she helped build into perennial participant in the NCAA Tournament. Sullivan coached at ISU for 13 years as an assistant and associate head coach, and helped Christy Johnson-Lynch guide the Cyclones to 12 straight trips to the big dance.
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Moreover, Caitlin Wernentin another former Rebel (2014-16) helped Mississippi to the 2017 NIVC title.
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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 106 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.
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WHAT A DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES
UNLV's 22 wins this season are 14 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.
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With help from Thursday's win at Portland, UNLV moved into a tie with Bradley for the best turnaround in one year. Stetson and FIU were plus-13 this season.
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Additionally, UMKC, a squad the Scarlet & Gray swept in St. Louis in September, was plus-12.
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WHAT-A-MARK: WINNING PERCENTAGE
With help from three wins in the NIVC, UNLV owns a .667 winning percentage backed by a 22-11 overall record. The 2018 squad is tied with the 2006 edition (20-10/.667) for the fifth-best winning percentage in program history.
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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).
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UNLV and ISU are two of four teams still competing in the NIVC with Saturday's winner advancing to play either Tulane or College of Charleston, who meet Saturday night in New Orleans. The victors of the semifinal matches will tussle Tuesday, Dec. 11 for the postseason title.
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TUNE IN, WATCH & LISTEN
Live stats for Saturday'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 Cyclones.TV, and, it too, will be linked to UNLVRebels.com.
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HISTORICALLY SPEAKING
UNLV and Iowa State have met twice before with the former defeating the latter by identical 3-0 scores in 1998 and '99. Both meetings took place on Sept. 3; however, the first affair was in Fairbanks, Alaska, while the second was in Las Vegas.
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This will be the Rebels' first trip to the Hawkeye State, and second to the Central Time Zone this season. The Scarlet & Gray played in Missouri at Saint Louis' Billiken Invitational in mid-September.
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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.
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The Rebels are 4-2 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.
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THE REBELS REUNION TOUR ROLLS ON
The NIVC has turned into a reunion tour of sorts for UNLV volleyball, as it has produced multiple matchups against some familiar faces. Through three rounds, the Rebels have squared off against two former student-athletes - UC Irvine's Laura Butler (2016) and Portland's Reghan Pukis (2015) - while a third, Josie Herbst, transferred to Iowa State after suiting up alongside Butler for the 2016 campaign. Herbst and Butler were freshmen on the squad that won 24 matches, the last of which was a victory over Utah in the NCAA first round.
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Additionally, UNLV head coach Dawn Sullivan will be on the opposite side of the court from the program she helped build into perennial participant in the NCAA Tournament. Sullivan coached at ISU for 13 years as an assistant and associate head coach, and helped Christy Johnson-Lynch guide the Cyclones to 12 straight trips to the big dance.
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Moreover, Caitlin Wernentin another former Rebel (2014-16) helped Mississippi to the 2017 NIVC title.
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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 106 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.
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WHAT A DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES
UNLV's 22 wins this season are 14 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.
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With help from Thursday's win at Portland, UNLV moved into a tie with Bradley for the best turnaround in one year. Stetson and FIU were plus-13 this season.
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Additionally, UMKC, a squad the Scarlet & Gray swept in St. Louis in September, was plus-12.
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WHAT-A-MARK: WINNING PERCENTAGE
With help from three wins in the NIVC, UNLV owns a .667 winning percentage backed by a 22-11 overall record. The 2018 squad is tied with the 2006 edition (20-10/.667) for the fifth-best winning percentage in program history.
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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).
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Players Mentioned
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