(MATCH NOTES - PDF)

OPENING SERVE: Dixie State (18-7/13-4 RMAC) Dixie State wraps up the 2019 regular season on Friday night, Nov. 15, as the Trailblazers head up I-15 to Salt Lake City to face in-state rival Westminster College (5-20/2-15 RMAC). First serve is slated for 6 p.m., inside the Behnken Field House. Live stats and streaming video links for Friday's match can be found HERE.

DIXIE STATE VS. THIS WEEK'S OPPONENT: Dixie State owns a 4-2 series lead on the Griffins and has won four-straight in the series overall, including a straight-set sweep the last time the two teams met in Salt Lake City last season (10/2/18). In fact, all six results in the series have been three-set sweeps, which includes a 3-0 DSU win last month inside the DSU SAC (10/8).

COACHING STAFF: 2018 RMAC Co-Head Coach of the Year Robyn Felder (Eastern Washington, 2002; 135-83 overall record) is in her eighth season at the helm of the Dixie State women's volleyball program. Last season, Felder led the Trailblazers to a NCAA era school-record tying 22 wins (22-6) and to a share of the RMAC regular season title (16-2) in the program's debut season in the league.
    A two-time Pacific West Conference Coach of the Year (2013/2015) honoree, Felder led the Trailblazers to their first-ever Pacific West Conference title and the program's third-straight NCAA West Regional appearance in 2015. The season before that, she led DSU to its most successful season in the program's Division II era as the Trailblazers played to a 22-9 overall record, which marked the first time Dixie State had reached the 20-win plateau in the program's NCAA-era. That season also saw her squad reach the 2014 NCAA West Regional final (Sweet 16).
    Felder is joined on the DSU sideline by third-year assistant coaches David Richards (BYU, 1983) and former DSU standout Makenzi Murphey (Dixie State, 2018). In addition, Whitnee Tupe (fifth season, Dixie State, 2007) returns to Felder's staff after a three-year stint as an assistant at Snow College, and Camilla Hafoka (Oregon State, 2010) is in her first season on the Trailblazers' staff.

WEEK IN REVIEW: Dixie State came away with a road split in its final regular season road trip to the state of Colorado as members of the RMAC last weekend. DSU opened the trip with a tough straight-set loss at conference leader No. 9 Regis this past Friday night, before rebounding for a 3-1 victory at Colorado Christian on Saturday.

AND DOWN THE STRETCH WE COME: Dixie State enters Friday's regular season finale alone in third place in the RMAC standings at 13-4, 1.5 games back of second place MSU Denver (14-2), which closes its season with two conference games at Chadron State this Thursday and Friday.
    A DSU win at Westminster on Friday would clinch the No. 3 seed in the upcoming conference tournament, while the Blazers could still tie for second place in the RMAC standings with a win coupled with two MSUD losses at Chadron. However the Roadrunners do hold the head-to-head tie-break for the second seed in the upcoming conference tourney.
    Regis has already locked up the conference regular season title and the top-overall seed in next week's tournament. Meanwhile Colorado School of Mines (12-5) and Colorado Mesa (12-5) both have clinched a tourney spot and begin the final week tied for fourth, followed in sixth by CSU-Pueblo (10-7), which has also sewn up a postseason berth.
    Three teams are still alive for the final two RMAC tourney spots, including Black Hills State (9-8), Chadron State (8-8) and UCCS (8-9).
    The top-eight teams will advance on to the 2019 RMAC Tournament, which begins with quarterfinal action at the home sites of the top-four seeds on Tuesday, Nov. 19. The semifinals and championship match will be held at the top-remaining seed on Nov. 22-23, with the winner earning the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA South Central Regionals.

NATIONAL/REGIONAL RANKINGS: Dixie State slipped down to No. 9 in the second official NCAA Division II women's volleyball South Central regional rankings released on Wednesday. DSU is one of five RMAC teams in the rankings overall (Regis #1, Mines #3, MSUD #8, CMU #10).

LAST SEASON IN THE RMAC: After joining the RMAC in 2018, the 2019 season will mark the second and final season the Trailblazers will be a competing member of the conference. In 2020, Dixie State will begin its transition to NCAA Division I status and will become a new member of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC).

415 AND COUNTING: Senior MB Lauren Gammell made more history in DSU's sweep of NMHU on Nov. 1, as she recorded her 400th-career total block in the second set, and that number now stands at 415, which is nearly 130 total blocks clear of second place Morgan Hill, who had 287 blocks in her four-year career (2008-11).
    The senior earned her second RMAC Defensive Player of the Week award of the season on Oct. 28, after her record-breaking performance in DSU's Homecoming Weekend sweep. Gammell just missed a double-double to begin the homestand with match-highs of 11 kills (.625 H%) and eight block assists in DSU's four-set win over Western Colorado (10/25).
    Then in the showdown vs. CMU (10/26), Gammell broke two school single-match records for total blocks (13) and block assists (12) and had eight kills (.353 H%) in the 3-1 triumph. After opening the match with consecutive blocks (one solo), she was part of six total blocks in DSU's match-clinching 14-2 run in the deciding fourth set.
    Gammell, who was also named RMAC Defensive Player of the Week back on Oct. 7, bested her previous total blocks record of 11, which she tied earlier this season in a win at Fort Lewis (10/5). Her 13 total blocks also marked the third time in two seasons of RMAC play that she collected at least 11 blocks against CMU.
    Gammell currently leads the RMAC and is fourth-nationally at the NCAA Division II level in blocks per set (1.38 bps), and she is the RMAC leader and ranked 11th in Division II in total blocks (127). She has led or co-led the team in blocking in 23 of 25 matches this season, including a match-high seven block assists in the CCU win last Saturday, and she also registered two solo blocks at Regis, her 37th and 38th (#3 all-time in DSU history) of her career.
    In addition, the senior now owns six program blocking records as she DSU's single season and career record holder for both block assists (148 - 2018 and 375, respectively) and in season total blocks (162 - 2018). 

MESSING AROUND AND GETTING TRIPLE-DOUBLES: Junior RS/S Megan Treanor posted her third (and the program's third) triple-double of the season and career in regular season home finale win over CSU-P (11/2), going for 13 kills, 25 assists and 12 digs. That performance came on the heels of her leading DSU with nine kills and a career-high four aces a night earlier in the NMHU win.
    Treanor was named RMAC Offensive Player of the Week (10/14) after the Blazers' home sweep UCCS (10/11) and Mines (10/12) after she averaged a triple-double in the two wins. She began the weekend with a match-high 13 kills, 17 assists, nine digs and five total blocks in the four-set win vs. UCCS, then recorded her second career triple-double with a co-team high 17 kills, 17 assists and a career-best 13 digs in the five-set win over Mines.
    Treanor posted DSU's first triple-double in the program's NCAA era earlier this year in a four-set win vs. Southwestern Oklahoma State (14K/18A/11D) back on Sept. 13. In addition, Treanor has recorded 21 double-doubles in 48 career matches at DSU, including a 16-kill/11-assist night with nine digs at CCU last Saturday. The junior is currently second on the club in kills (226), kps (2.90) and assists (318).

ACE OF BASE: Senior MB/OH To'a Faleao made the most of her "Senior Night" as she threw down a career-high 21 kills and hit .306 overall in the four-set win over CSU-P (11/2). Faleao also collected five block assists, three aces and recorded her seventh double-double of the year with 15 digs.
    In all, Faleao had quite the homestand overall as she averaged 13.0 kills (3.0 kps), 3.5 aces, 9.2 digs and nearly four blocks over the four games.
    The senior broke DSU's single-match record with seven services aces and tallied nine kills, seven digs and two block assists in the Blazers' four-set win over WCU (10/25). She then followed that up with a co-match high 15 kills (.371 H%) with two more aces, 10 digs and a season-high five total blocks against CMU (10/26).
    Faleao has averaged 11.4 kills with 10.0 digs, 2.3 aces and 2.7 blocks in RMAC play, and has tallied at least seven kills in 16 of 17 conference matches, highlighted by a then career-best 18 kills in the home win over SD Mines (9/21), and a co-team high 17 kills in the Mines win (10/12).
    Faleao leads the team in kills (242) and kps (3.10), which ranks her fifth in the RMAC and seventh currently on DSU's single-season list. She also leads the in the RMAC and ranked t-3rd nationally in aces per set (0.59 aps), and she is t-fifth in DSU program history in total aces (77). In addition, Faleao (46) needs one more ace to become DSU's new single season recorder as she enters Friday's match tied with Anna Bullard (46 - 2008) atop the season list.

READY, SET, GO: Junior setter Jordyn Nelson became the fourth player in program history to reach the 1,700 assist plateau in last Friday's match at Regis. Nelson now has 1,720 career dimes and needs 72 more to pass former DSU setter Anna Bullard (1,791, 2007-08) for third on DSU's all-time list.  
    Nelson, who tallied a career-high 50 assists in DSU's win at WCU (9/27) last month, also collected her team-leading 10th double-double of the season with 26 assists and 11 digs in the CSU-P win (11/2), and she has posted double-doubles (assists/digs) in seven of her last 13 outings overall. While she has steadily climbed up the assist list, the junior also moved into fifth place on DSU's career digs list (616).

TEAM NOTES: Freshman libero Mykenna Nelson has led the Trailblazer defense in digs in 22 of 25 matches this season, including a career-high 27 digs vs. UCCS (10/11), and a match-high 16 digs at Colorado Christian last Saturday ... the freshman is currently seventh in the RMAC in digs/set at 4.57 dps, and she recorded her 400th dig on the season (420, #10 on DSU's single season list) at Regis last Friday ... junior OH Sydney Johnson is averaging 6.4 kills during RMAC play, including a career-high 18 kills at Adams State (10/4), and 11 more kills vs. CMU (10/26) ... junior OH Sai Collins tallied seven kills and four block assists in the CCU win last Saturday ... sophomore MB Miranda Ekblad registered five block assists at Regis last Friday, which marked the fourth time this season that she either led or co-led the team in blocks.
    As a team DSU is hitting .212, while the Trailblazer defense is third in the RMAC with a .145 OH% (t-39th-nationally) through 25 matches this season, including holding WCU (10/25) to an opponent-season low -.065 attack percentage (10/25) ... DSU is averaging 12.66 kills and 15.74 digs a set, and leads the RMAC and is ranked fifth in NCAA Division II in blocks per set 2.57 bps average ... Dixie State also leads the RMAC and is t-22nd nationally in total blocks (236.5).
    Dixie State hit a season-high .410 in the NMHU win (11/1), which marked the first time since September of 2018 that the Blazers hit over .400 in a match (.430 vs. Adams State - 9/22/18) ... DSU also hit .500 in a set for just the second time this season in the opening frame vs. NMHU (.500 -  14K/2E/24A) ... For just the second time in the program's NCAA-era, a Dixie State opponent failed to record a team block in a match as the Blazers did not have an attack blocked by the Cowgirls' defense ... the only other occurrence came during the 2011 season when DSU was not blocked, coincidentally in a 3-0 win, vs. Colorado Mesa in a non-conference match (9/8/11).
    DSU limited WCU to only 20 kills (10/25), which tied an opponent season-low set last month vs. Black Hills State (9/20) ... DSU's defense has held three total opponents to a negative hitting percentage this season (BHSU -.050; Pittsburg State  -.010, 9/13), this after not achieving that feat in nearly two seasons (-.023 vs. Holy Names; 10/13/17).

UP NEXT: Dixie State will open the 2019 RMAC Tournament with a quarterfinal match this Tuesday night, Nov. 19, though the location and opponent has yet-to-be-determined.