Colorado State Volleyball Release
The Rams take on UNLV Thursday in Las Vegas.
Sept. 28, 2004
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Series History: UNLV
The Rams have won the last 11 meetings against UNLV and have only
dropped four games during that stretch, owning a 16-2 advantage in the
all-time series. The Rams are 6-2 in Las Vegas and have won the last
four matches there.
Series History: San Diego State
The closest series in the Mountain West Conference, the Rams and Aztecs
are knotted at 14-14 all-time. The Rams won all three meetings last
season, including two five-game thrillers in San Diego. Colorado State
has also won 11 of the last 12 meetings between the two squads and are
now 6-8 all-time in San Diego.
Hitting The Road:
Colorado State makes only its second road trip of the
season as it travels to UNLV and San Diego State for Mountain West
Conference action this weekend. The Rams will face UNLV (7-4, 1-0) on
Thursday evening and will play at San Diego State (0-12, 0-1) on Saturday.
Lobo Sweep:
Winning its 10th consecutive match and second in as many
nights, the ninth-ranked Rams defeated New Mexico in three-games, 30-15,
30-25, 30-21 to improve to 10-1 on the season and 2-0 in Mountain West
Conference play. Senior middle blocker Bri Frech led the Rams with 13
kills, while junior right-side hitter Dre Downs and senior outside
hitter Becky Sarauer each added 10 kills. Frech also led all players
with 12 digs and she also had a team-high four blocks. Junior outside
hitter Casey Bauer led all players with three aces.
Opening Win:
Playing the entire active roster, Colorado State began the
2004 Mountain West Conference season with a 3-0 sweep over Air Force,
winning 30-17, 30-13, 30-21 in front of 1,226 fans in Moby Arena. Senior
middle blocker Katie Jo Shirley-Cahoon led all players with 11 kills,
while junior outside hitter Tess Rogers added nine. Dre Downs led the
team with a .667 hitting percentage (4-0-6) and was one five players to
hit over .400 for the match. Bri Frech led the Rams with seven digs and
six blocks and Rogers led all players with three aces. Rogers also
tallied a career-high six blocks on the evening.
Clean Sweep:
In the first edition of the Mountain West Conference
statistics, the Rams hold the top four and five of the top six spots in
hitting percentage in conference only matches. Redshirt freshman Tonya
Mokelki leads the league with a .667 hitting efficiency, while Katie Jo
Shirley-Cahoon is second at .562, Dre Downs is third at .520 and Bri
Frech is fourth at .429. Becky Sarauer ranks sixth on the chart at .400.
Another Milestone:
Head coach Tom Hilbert hit yet another coaching
milestone over the weekend. Hilbert has now coached 100 conference
matches at Colorado State and posts a 90-10 record against league foes,
including a 66-6 (.917) mark in Mountain West Conference play.
Streaky:
CSU's 20-match conference winning streak is the longest in
Mountain West history. The second-longest streak also belongs to the
Rams, as the team won 14 straight in 2000-01. BYU has won 10 straight
matches twice, while Utah has won eight straight once. The 20 straight
wins against conference foes is the longest in school history. During
1984-85, when the Rams were in the High Country Athletic Conference,
they posted 19 straight victories.
Strength In Numbers:
Six players on the Colorado State roster are
averaging over 2.5 kills per game this season and the team is averaging
16.95 per game to lead the Mountain West Conference, while its opponents
are averaging just 13.26 kills per game -- a difference of 3.69 a
contest. Individually, Tess Rogers leads the way with 3.56 per game,
while Katie Jo Shirley-Cahoon averages 3.26, Dre Downs averages 2.85,
Bri Frech is at 2.82, Casey Bauer is at 2.79 and Becky Sarauer is at
2.77. All six players are also hitting over .200 on the season and the
team is hitting .285 compared to .157 for the opposition.
Block Party:
Colorado State, through 11 matches, has tallied 118 blocks,
compared to just 94 for its opponents and the Rams are averaging 3.11
blocks per game. Both Bri Frech (1.53) and Katie Jo Shirley-Cahoon
(1.16) are averaging over one block per game, while Dre Downs (0.94) and
Tess Rogers (0.88) are close to one block a contest. The 3.11 blocks per
game average is tied for fourth on the CSU single-season charts.
Triple Grand Watch:
Three Rams are closing in on 1,000 career kills.
There have only been 13 Rams in school history to eclipse the one grand
mark and surprisingly, this could be the second time three players have
done it in the same year (1997 - Rainie Rogers, Janie Penfield and Judy
Rexroth). Becky Sarauer currently ranks 16th on the career charts with
938 kills, while Tess Rogers is 17th with 921 kills and Katie Jo
Shirley-Cahoon is 18th with 880 kills.
Most Common:
Colorado State has been ranked 165 weeks since the AVCA
poll began in 1982 (of 307 possible weeks), ranking as high as third in
2000 and spending at least one week at every spot from 3 to 25. The Rams
have spent the most time, 13 weeks, ranked number 10, 11 and 12. The
least common ranking is 23, where the Rams have spent just one week.
Best In The Mountain West:
The Rams lead the Mountain West in hitting
percentage (.285), assists per game (15.71) and kills per game (16.95).
The Rams are also second in blocks with 3.11 and third in digs (14.39).
Individually, Katie Jo Shirley-Cahoon leads the league in hitting
percentage at .410, while Melissa Courtney leads in assists at 13.42.
Bri Frech is third in blocks per game at 1.53 and Dre Downs is third in
hitting percentage at .377, while Tess Rogers ranks fourth in kills per
game at 3.56. In conference matches only, The Rams lead in hitting
percentage (.361), opponent hitting percentage (.061) and aces (2.67)
and are second in assists (14.67), kills (16.83) and blocks (3.00).
Individually, the Rams rank one through four in hitting percentage
(Tonya Mokelki, Cahoon, Downs and Frech, respectively) and Casey Bauer
leads in aces (1.00).
On Opening Night:
Colorado State has now won 10 consecutive conference
openers, dating back to a 1994 loss at Wyoming. All-time the Rams are
20-8 in conference season openers and are 19-9 in conference home
openers. The Rams have also won their last eight home conference
openers, dating back to a five-game loss to Fresno State in 1996.
A Little Help From Your Friends:
The University of Pacific held a
fund-raiser for the Janna Klussmann Memorial Fund in its match against
UC Irvine on Saturday evening. The Tigers raised $2,595 for the fund,
which goes to assistant coach Andy Klussmann's children. Janna was
killed and Andy was seriously injured in a car accident back in June.
Hitting The Mark:
Bri Frech notched her 300th career dig and 200th
career block over the weekend and now has 316 digs and 203 blocks with
the Rams.
In The Numbers:
Colorado State is a perfect 10-0 this season when
leading the opponent in kills. They are also 10-0 when recording a
higher hitting percentage than the opponent and holding opponents to
.250 or below in hitting percentage.
Moby Madness:
The Rams rank 10th in attendance in the nation. The Rams
are averaging 1,801 fans per match, trailing Hawai'i (6,766), Nebraska
(4,132), Wisconsin (3,814), Penn State (2,594), Florida (2,039),
Minnesota (2,026), Illinois (1,924), Illinois State (1903) and Pacific
(1,866). Colorado State has ranked among the top 25 in attendance the
last five years and in all but one year since the statistic began being
tracked in 1986.
Among The Best:
In the most recent NCAA Statistics (through matches on
9/19), Melissa Courtney ranks 14th in assists per game, averaging 13.50.
As a team, the Rams rank fifth in assists (15.91), 19th in blocks
(3.13), 23rd in hitting percentage (.274) and 12th in kills per game
(16.97).
Early Starts:
Colorado State has won its last 50 matches when winning
the first two games of a match. The Rams are 126-1 since the beginning
of the 1999 season, losing only in the Mountain West Championship to
Utah in 2001. In 2004, the Rams are 9-0 when winning the first two
games, while in 2003 they were 23-0, 17-0 in 2002, 25-1 in 2001, 28-0 in
2000 and 24-0 in 1999.
Closing In:
Several Rams are approaching career milestones. Katie Jo
Shirley-Cahoon needs 20 kills for the 900th of her career. Casey Bauer
is 18 kills shy of her 300th. Dre Downs needs 34 more kills for her
700th career kill. Kristen Karlik needs eight digs to hit 300 and
Katherine Whitney is three shy of her 400th.
Leading The Way:
Since the inception of the Mountain West Conference in
1999, the Rams have the best composite record in the league at 153-28
(.845). The Rams have won 28 more matches than Utah which posts a 125-45
(.735) record. In conference play, the Rams are 66-6 (.917) in MWC
action, while Utah is second at 54-17 (.761). Colorado State has more
wins at home in the last five years (36), than four teams in the
conference have overall victories.
Looking Good:
Colorado State has won its last 37 matches against
unranked opponents. The Rams last loss against a non-ranked team came in
the NCAA Tournament in 2002 at the hands of Washington. The last regular
season loss against an unranked opponent came at San Diego State on Nov.
2, 2002 -- a span of 38 matches.
Rams On The Air:
Every match this season will be broadcast on the
internet on Yahoo! sports. The play-by-play duties are being handled by
Chris Dittmer, while Travis Huntington does the color commentary in home
games and Heather Kennedy in road contests. Tyler Krause also helps out.
Several matches can also be heard on KCSU 90.5 FM in Fort Collins. The
next match on the radio to be broadcast will be Thursday evening at UNLV.
Tuesdays With Tom:
Join head coach Tom Hilbert, along with a player or
two, every Tuesday morning at 7:00 a.m. at the University Park. Learn
the inside scoop on the previous week, the upcoming matches and obscure
statistics and strategies.
Block Party:
Katie Jo Shirley-Cahoon has quite a string of blocks going.
The senior has had at least one block in the last 76 matches for the
Rams, dating back to the opening match of the 2002 season. Bri Frech has
tallied at least one block in 44 of the 45 matches she has played in,
with the lone exception being Minnesota. Tess Rogers has tallied at
least one block in the last 22 matches and in 32 of the last 33. Dre
Downs also has at least one block in the 10 matches she has played in
this season. Melissa Courtney has also recorded at least one block in
the last 10 matches.
Wearing Their Hearts On Their Sleeves:
This season, the Colorado State
volleyball team is wearing an emblem on all of their game attire and
practice gear. Assistant coach Andy Klussmann was injured in a car
accident in June that took the life of his wife, Janna. The emblem on
the jerseys this year is a memorial for Janna as well as support for
Andy's full recovery. The team is dedicating this season to the
Klussmanns and the heart is just one way the team is showing their
feelings and well wishes for their coach.
Scouting The Opposition: UNLV
UNLV is 7-4 overall and 1-0 in Mountain West Conference action after
sweeping San Diego State over the weekend. The Rebels and Rams have one
common opponent this season in Washington State. UNLV defeated the
Cougars twice, once in five games and once in three, while the Rams
defeated the Cougars in four games.
Junior Mariana Pencheva leads the Rebels with a .278 hitting percentage,
while freshman Maria Aladjova leads the team with 3.95 kills per game.
Freshman libero Jada Walker leads the squad with 0.50 aces and 4.47 digs
per game and sophomore Lauren Miramontes has a team best 1.09 blocks per
contest. Senior setter Nicki King is averaging 12.31 assists per game.
UNLV is hitting .192 as a team, averaging 16.10 kills, 2.00 aces, 19.15
digs and 1.99 blocks per game, while its opponents are hitting .184 with
13.35 kills, 1.08 aces, 17.50 digs and 2.59 blocks per game.
Allison Keeley is in her first season as head coach at UNLV and her
fourth season as a head coach. She sports a career record of 46-52 and
spend the past three seasons at Villanova. Keeley has never faced
Colorado State in her career.
Scouting The Opposition: San Diego State
San Diego State is 0-12 on the year and plays both Cal State Fullerton
and Wyoming before facing the Rams on Saturday. The two teams have not
faced any common opponents during the 2004 season.
Lone senior Kara Moriarty is just coming off an injury and has played in
just two matches. Freshman Lindsey Mahan leads the team with a .257
hitting percentage, while junior Melissa Stapley is getting a team best
3.32 kills per game. Junior Ashley Bowker leads the team with 1.31
blocks per game and freshman Aime Cordeiro leads the team with 3.45 digs
a game. Freshman setter Kristen Castillo leads the team with 0.34 aces
and 9.66 assists a game.
San Diego State is hitting .135 as a team with 12.51 kills, 1.39 aces,
12.12 digs and 2.52 blocks. The Aztecs' opponents are hitting .279 with
16.27 kills, 2.17 aces, 13.54 digs and 2.80 blocks a game.
Mark Warner is in his 10th year at San Diego State with a record of
157-134, which is also his career record. Warner is 11-5 against
Colorado State in his career.
