UTAH VALLEY vs. CHICAGO STATE
Thursday, Sept. 20  |  6 p.m. MT
Lockhart Arena   |  Orem, Utah
WAC Digital Network  |  Live Stats  |  Tickets  |  UVU Notes  |  CSU Notes

UTAH VALLEY vs. UMKC
Saturday, Sept. 22  |  1 p.m. MT
Lockhart Arena   |  Orem, Utah
WAC Digital Network  |  Live Stats  |  Tickets  |  UVU Notes  |  UMKC Notes
 

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UTAH VALLEY OPENS WAC PLAY, HOSTS CHICAGO STATE & UMKC
OREM, Utah – After tying for its best start in program history, the Utah Valley University women's volleyball team will open its sixth season of WAC competition this week by hosting Chicago State and UMKC at Lockhart Arena. 
 
UVU will officially kick-off its 2018 WAC slate by hosting the Chicago State Cougars on Thursday at 6 p.m., before closing the week against the Kansas City Kangaroos on Saturday at 1 p.m. Both matches will be streamed live on the WAC Digital Network and live stats will also be available for the conference contests by visiting UVUStats.com.
 
The Wolverines, who have tied for their best start in program history at the NCAA Division I level through 13 matches with an 8-5 overall record, will enter Thursday's conference opener having won six of their last eight matches. UVU currently sits in fifth place in the tightly contested WAC standings, but just a half a game back of third place that UMKC and UT Rio Grande Valley are tied for with identical 9-5 records. The defending champion New Mexico State Aggies lead the league with a 10-3 record, while new NCAA Division I and WAC member California Baptist is in second at 9-3. This season marks the fifth time in program history that UVU has compiled an 8-5 record through 13 matches, as it previously achieved the feat in 2011, 2010, 2009 and 2007. 
 
Despite winning six of their last eight matches, UVU dropped a pair of contests to in-state opponents last week. The Wolverines first fell in a five-set battle to Weber State in Orem on Sept. 11 (25-22, 25-20, 25-17, 31-29, 5-15), before closing the week with a tightly contested 3-1 defeat to No. 24 Utah in Salt Lake City on Sept. 14 (17-15, 25-19, 16-25, 21-25). Prior to the two setbacks, Utah Valley had won six straight matches that included wins over NC State, Long Beach State, Utah State, Appalachian State, Campbell and Arkansas-Pine Bluff. 
 
In UVU's last contest at the Pac-12 Utes last Friday, the Wolverines took the second set by a score of 25-19 to make things interesting and tie the contest at 1-1. Utah then bounced back, however, to pull out the third and fourth sets to take UVU's non-conference finale in four sets. Freshman Kazna Tarawhiti and sophomore Kristen Allred paced the Wolverines in the contest with 16 and 15 respective kills, while junior Jasmine Niutupuivaha led the way at the net with a match-high seven blocks and fellow junior Madi Wardle tallied her third double-double of the year with 16 assists and 10 digs. 
 
The freshman Tarawhiti leads the Wolverines and WAC offensively on the season with 202 total kills and a 4.04 kills per set average. The preseason All-WAC selection Allred is right behind her as she ranks second in the league in total kills (181) and fourth in kills per set average (3.55). Niutupuivaha also comes in at fourth in the WAC in both blocks and hitting with a 1.04 blocks per set clip and a .331 attack percentage. As a team, UVU leads the league in blocks with a 2.30 blocks per set average. 
 
The Wolverines were picked to finish fourth in the WAC this season after tying for third a year ago with a 9-5 conference mark. 
 
ABOUT THE OPPOSITION
Chicago State will come to town with a 6-9 record on the season after dropping a trio of matches at the Stetson Invitational last weekend. CSU holds wins on the season over Big Ten foe Rutgers, Delaware, Savannah State, UIC, Georgia State and Northern Illinois. The Cougars, who went 10-21 overall and 1-13 in WAC play a season ago, were picked to finish ninth in the league this season.
 
Provo native and Timpview High School graduate Lauryn Dela Cruz paces the Cougars and ranks second in the WAC with a 3.86 kills per set average. Beatriz Palmieri is next with a 2.88 kills per set clip, while Summer Farris leads the squad at the net with a 0.98 blocks per set average. 
 
Thursday's contest will mark the 23rd all-time meeting between the Wolverines and Cougars. UVU will enter play holding to a perfect 22-0 series record and an unblemished 10-0 mark in Orem after defeating CSU at home, 3-1, in the regular-season finale last November. 
 
The Kangaroos will enter the week a half-game ahead of UVU in the conference standings with a 9-5 overall record, but will first face Grand Canyon on Thursday in Phoenix before coming to Orem for Saturday's contest. The 9-5 record is UMKC's best non-conference clip since 2014. Kansas City won two of three at the Billikin Invitational in St. Louis last weekend and holds wins over South Dakota State, Western Michigan, UTEP, Arkansas State, SIU Edwardsville, Southeast Missouri State, Providence, Saint Louis and Murray State on the season. UMKC was picked to finish fifth in the WAC this season after going 9-19 overall and 5-9 in league play in 2017. 
 
Alicia Harrington is a two-time all-tournament team honoree on the season for the Roos and leads the squad with a 3.15 kills per set clip. Tyrecia Lukes is right behind her with a 3.11 kills per set clip, while Emma Dyer fronts the team at the net with a 1.00 blocks per set average. 
 
Saturday's matinee will mark the 12th all-time meeting between the Wolverines and Roos. UVU will enter play holding to an 8-3 series advantage and having won five of the last six meetings, which includes a perfect 5-0 mark in Orem. 
 
ATOA'S JUST TWO WINS SHY OF 400
After going 6-2 over his last eight matches, head Utah Valley volleyball coach Sam Atoa will enter the weekend just two wins shy of recording his 400th career victory. Atoa, who is currently in his 20th season as UVU's head coach, will enter the week with a 398-226 career record (.638 winning percentage). Atoa, who earned WAC Coach of the Year honors in 2016, holds a 260-195 mark during his 16 seasons of coaching UVU at the NCAA Division I level, as well as a 138-31 clip during his four seasons of coaching the Wolverines during the school's NJCAA era.
 
UP NEXT FOR UVU
This week's matches will mark the start of a three-match homestand for UVU. The Wolverines will conclude the homestand by hosting California Baptist on Thursday, Sept. 27 at 11 a.m. for an Elementary School contest. Following the match, UVU will then open a three-match road trip at CSU Bakersfield on Saturday, Sept. 29.