LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) - The defending Mountain West (MW) regular-season champion UNLV volleyball team will aim high this week as they host a pair of home matches against the upper-half of the conference standings.
 
The Rebels, who have won seven of their last eight contests, will face off against New Mexico (10-5, 2-2) first on Thursday, Oct. 5 at 6:30 pm. PT. The second of their two games this week will be versus Air Force (11-4, 3-1) on Saturday, Oct. 7, starting at 1 p.m. PT. UNLV will host two promotional nights during those contests, the match against the Lobos will be their annual "Dig For a Cure" game while the contest with the Falcons is dubbed as "Military & First Responders Day."
 
LAST WEEK: The Rebels (11-5, 3-1) took their first set of MW road games of the season to Wyoming (11-4, 0-4) and Colorado State (8-7, 2-2), emerging as victors over the Cowgirls and falling against the Rams. Wyoming had quickly gone up on UNLV 2-0 in sets early, but the Rebels punched their second reverse sweep in three games to claim the win.
 
REBEL LEADERS: UNLV currently paces the MW in a trio of statistical categories, their highest ranking among NCAA Division I programs being their team hitting percentage of 28.2-percent. The Rebels have six student-athletes ranked in the MW's top-50 for kills per set, including Isabel Martin (second; 4.29), Gabrielle Arretche-Ramos (17th; 2.61), Chloe Thomas (38th; 1.77), Madi Kelly (44th; 1.61), Dakota Quinlan (45th; 1.58) and Jordyn Freeman (50th; 1.44). Martin's 249 kills so far this season and 281 points overall have kept her near the top of both the Mountain West and DI teams, currently sitting at second in the conference and 16th nationally in both statistical categories.
 
The Rebels also hold the high spot in the league in team services aces (112) and aces per set (1.87), ranking among the nation's top-50 programs in both statistical categories as well. Freshman libero Caleigh King has been a key-contributor in UNLV's serving game, sitting second overall in both service aces (25) and aces per set (0.43) among student-athletes in the MW. King also heads the Rebels in digs this season, averaging 2.79 per set and 162 in total for 2023. Her defense in the back line combos well with UNLV's frontline defense, redshirt senior Jordyn Freeman (53) and junior Dakota Quinlan (43) taking the top-two spots on the team in blocks over the course of the season.
 
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS: 
 
New Mexico (10-5, 2-2)
The Lobos have won five of their last seven contests, their two losses during that stretch both being in league play. Last week they split their two games at home with a loss to Utah State on a 3-1 score and a win over Boise State 3-1. New Mexico's Uxue Guereca has posted double-doubles in kills and digs in four of their last six contests, including 19 kills and 17 digs in the team's performance against Boise State.
 
New Mexico has also found plenty of success in the back line defending opponents' attacks, currently ranking seventh among 332-ranked NCAA Division I programs and pacing the MW in digs per set (17.33). Angela Crosetti (245) and Guereca (178) both sit among the top-10 MW student-athletes in total digs, sitting at fifth and 10th in the standings, respectively.
 
Air Force (11-4, 3-1)
Currently sitting atop of the MW standings, the Falcons visit UNLV after splitting two five-set matches over the course of last weekend. Air Force dropped their match against Boise State in the back-and-forth battle that included extras in the fourth set, bouncing back with a big win against Utah State that featured a five-point run in the fifth set. The program holds themselves in the upper-half of the league in seven different statistical categories to kick off conference play, their high point featuring 158.5 total blocks as a team, a rate that paces that MW and ranks 12th among NCAA DI teams.
 
The Falcons hold two student-athletes in the conference's top-10 in three different stat lines, all three statistical categories consisting of both junior Mac Russ and senior Joi Harvey. The duo both remain in the league's top-5 student-athletes in hitting percentage, Russ earning points on 36.8-percent on her attacks (third) with Harvey right behind her at 36.7-percent (fourth). Air Force has thrived off the duo's good looks over the net by way of assists from Caroline Reinkensmeyer, the senior setter currently sitting at 436 assists on the season to rank within the top-10 MW competitors.
 
LIVE COVERAGE: Video stream and live stats links from UNLV's matches are available on the volleyball schedule page at UNLVRebels.com. 
 
REBEL ROSTER MAKEUP: The Rebels, who are led by first-year head coach Malia Shoji, returned 11 letterwinners from last season's team, including the 2022 MW Player of the Year and the 2023 Preseason MW Player of the Year in senior outside hitter Isabel Martin. Also returning are last season's all-conference honorees: senior outside hitter Gabrielle Arretche-Ramos and senior middle blocker Jordyn Freeman.
 
Martin also earned all-region honors last season and was named an honorable mention All-American.
 
The Rebels have also added five new players to their 2023 roster. 
 
PRESEASON FAVORITES: UNLV was named the preseason league favorite along with Utah State in a poll voted on by the conference's head coaches.
 
LAST SEASON: UNLV went 26-5 overall in 2022, including a 17-1 record in Mountain West play, and made another NCAA Tournament appearance.
 
2023 TICKETS: Tickets for UNLV volleyball may be purchased at UNLVtickets.com or by calling 702-739-3267. Single-game tickets are $6 per adult when purchased in advance of game day, $10 on game day and free for kids in high school or younger.