UVU/BYU Challenge
Sept. 16-17, 2016  |  Orem, Utah  |  UCCU Center

Utah Valley vs. UNLV
Friday, Sept. 16  |  4 p.m. MT
Live Video  |  Live Stats  |  UVU Notes  |  UNLV Notes

Utah Valley vs. CSUN
Saturday, Sept. 17  |  5 p.m. MT
Live Stats  |  UVU Notes  |  CSUN Notes
 

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UTAH VALLEY TO HOST UNLV FRIDAY, CSUN SATURDAY
OREM, Utah – The Utah Valley University volleyball team will close a three-match homestand this weekend when it hosts UNLV on Friday and CSUN on Saturday. Both contests will be part of the UVU/BYU Challenge and also Utah Valley's Homecoming Week.
 
Friday's match against the Rebels of the Mountain West Conference will begin at 4 p.m., while Saturday's finale against the Matadors of the Big West will take place at 5 p.m. Both matches will be played in the UCCU Center due to ongoing renovations to UVU's PE Building. UNLV and CSUN will also face BYU as well as each other in Provo at the Smith Fieldhouse during the tournament.
 
The Wolverines will enter the weekend with a 4-7 record after falling to rival Utah State in four sets at home on Tuesday (24-26, 25-6, 16-25, 20-25). Despite dropping the match, UVU put up one of its most dominant sets in program history as it earned a 25-6 second-set victory in the match. The 25-6 score ties for the second largest margin of victory over an opponent in Utah Valley volleyball history. After taking the second set by 19 points, the Wolverines' momentum fell flat as the Aggies went on to bounce back and take the final two games to put the match away.
 
Junior middle blocker Madison Dennison paced the Wolverines against the Aggies by recording her first career double-double with 12 kills and 10 blocks. Freshman right side Izzie Hinton was next for UVU with 10 kills, a match-high .556 attack percentage and five blocks, while junior middle blocker Brighton Taylor too added five blocks of her own and junior setter Sierra Starley chipped in a team-high 36 assists.
 
Dennison leads the Wolverines on the season with 92 kills, a .252 hitting percentage and a 1.51 blocks per set average. Her 1.51 blocks average is good enough lead the WAC and rank her 31st in the nation in that category. As a team, Utah Valley also leads the WAC in blocks with a 2.94 per set average and ranks 24th nationally. Junior outside hitter Lexi Thompson paces the Wolverines in kills per set with a 2.67 average, while Starley leads UVU is assists with a 7.92 clip.
 
ABOUT THE OPPOSITION
UNLV, who is currently receiving votes for the top 25 poll, will come to Orem with unblemished 9-0 record on the season. The Rebels hold wins over UT Arlington (twice), Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, CSUN, Hofstra, Sacramento State, Albany, UC Santa Barbara and WAC favorite New Mexico State. UNLV was picked to finish fifth in the Mountain West this season after going 16-14 overall and 9-9 in league play a year ago.
 
Bree Hammel leads the Rebel offense on the season with a 4.06 kills per set average while Elsa DeScamps tops the team in hitting percentage and blocks with respective .391 1.31 averages.
 
Friday afternoon's contest will mark the third all-time meeting between the Wolverines and Rebels and the first in Orem. UNLV holds a 2-0 series lead after defeating UVU in Las Vegas in both 2012 (3-1) and 2004 (3-2).
 
CSUN (Cal State Northridge) will come to Utah County this weekend with a 3-6 record after dropping a trio of matches to Wyoming, Eastern Washington and Samford at the UniWyo Invitational in Laramie, Wyoming, last week. The Matadors hold their three wins over Sacramento State, Hofstra and Rhode Island on the season. CSUN was picked to finish seventh in the Big West this year after going 8-20 overall in 2015 and posting a 7-9 conference record.
 
Julie Haake paces the Matadors on the season with a 3.49 kills per set average and is second on the team in hitting with a .241 clip. Rachel Diaz leads the way in hitting with a .349 average while Melissa Eaglin top the team at the net with a 0.83 blocks per set average.
 
Saturday's contest will mark the third all-time meeting on the court between the Wolverines and the Matadors. CSUN will enter play with a 2-0 series lead after defeating UVU at a neutral site tournament in both 2012 (3-1) and 2006 (3-0). 
 
UP NEXT FOR UVU
The Wolverines will hit the road to begin their 2016 Western Athletic Conference slate at UT Rio Grande Valley and New Mexico State next weekend. UVU will first face UTRGV in Edinburg, Texas, on Sept. 22 before closing the trip at preseason favorite NM State on Sept. 24 in Las Cruces, New Mexico.