(MATCH NOTES - PDF)

OPENING SERVE: Dixie State (17-6/12-3 RMAC) heads out on its final road swing of the 2019 regular season, which begins on Friday night at current RMAC leader No. 9 Regis (20-3/14-1 RMAC) in a battle between two of the top-three teams in the conference standings inside the Regis Field House in Denver beginning at 7 p.m.
    DSU will then make the short drive over to Lakewood to face Colorado Christian (9-14/5-10 RMAC) on Saturday night in the CCU Events Center at 7 p.m. Live stats and streaming video links for both matches can be found HERE.

DIXIE STATE VS. THIS WEEK'S OPPONENTS: Dixie State is 1-0 against both Regis and CCU all-time, with the two wins against both opponents coming at home last season in RMAC play. DSU posted a thrilling five-set victory over the Rangers (10/27/18), which followed a Blazers sweep of the Cougars (10/26/18) in straight sets the night before.

COACHING STAFF: 2018 RMAC Co-Head Coach of the Year Robyn Felder (Eastern Washington, 2002; 134-82 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 pushed its winning streak to five-straight and closed the home portion of the 2019 schedule with two more victories last weekend inside the DSU SAC. The Trailblazers hit a season-high .410 in a three-set sweep of New Mexico Highlands this past Friday night, then slugged past CSU-Pueblo on Senior Night Saturday, 3-1. That victory clinched an RMAC tournament berth for the Trailblazers, who finished their conference home slate with a perfect 9-0 mark.

THINGS ARE TIGHTENING UP IN RMAC RACE: Dixie State enters the penultimate weekend of the 2019 regular season in sole possession of third place in the RMAC standings at 12-3, one-half game behind second place MSU Denver (12-2) and two games back of Regis (14-1). DSU owns a slim one game lead on fourth-place Colorado Mesa (11-4) and is two games clear of fifth-place Colorado School of Mines (10-5). Black Hills State follows in sixth place at 9-6, while CSU-Pueblo and UCCS are tied for seventh at 8-7, and Chadron State is still alive for a conference postseason tourney berth in ninth at 7-7.
    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 debuted at No. 8 in the first official NCAA Division II women's volleyball South Central regional rankings released on Wednesday. DSU is one of four RMAC teams in the rankings overall (Regis #1, Mines #4, MSUD #7).

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).

400 AND COUNTING: Senior MB Lauren Gammell made more history in DSU's sweep of NMHU on Friday night as she recorded her 400th-career total block in the second set, and that number now stands at 405, which is nearly 120 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 fifth-nationally at 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 (117).  
    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 369, 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 last Saturday's four-set win over CSU-P, 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 20 double-doubles in 43 career matches at DSU.

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 last Saturday. 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 12.0 kills with 10.0 digs, 2.3 aces and 2.7 blocks in RMAC play, and has tallied at least seven kills in all 15 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 is averaging a team-high 3.21 kps this season, 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 3rd-nationally in aces per set (0.59 aps), and she is t-fifth in DSU program history in total aces (73). In addition, Faleao needs only five more aces (42) to break the DSU single season record of 46 set by Anna Bullard in 2008.

READY, SET, GO: Junior setter Jordyn Nelson enter this weekend's road trip needing just eight more assists to become the fourth player in the program's NCAA era to reach the 1,700 assist plateau. Nelson now has 1,692 career dimes and needs an even 100 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 on Saturday, and she has posted double-doubles (assists/digs) in seven of her last 11 outings overall. While she has steadily climbed up the assist list, the junior also moved into fifth place on DSU's career digs list (607) in the CSU-P win.

TEAM NOTES: Freshman libero Mykenna Nelson has led the Trailblazer defense in digs in 21 of 23 matches this season, including a career-high 27 digs vs. UCCS (10/11), and a match-high 16 digs vs. CSU-P last Saturday ... the freshman is currently sixth in the RMAC in digs/set at 4.68 dps (#9 on DSU's season list), and she needs two more digs for 400 on the season (398, #10 on DSU's single season list) ... junior OH Sydney Johnson is averaging 6.8 kills during RMAC play, including a career-high 18 kills at Adams State (10/4), and 11 more kills vs. CMU (10/26).
    As a team DSU is hitting .218, while the Trailblazer defense is second in the RMAC (behind Regis at .139) with a .141 OH% (national team rankings N/A this week) through 23 matches this season, including holding WCU to an opponent-season low -.065 attack percentage (10/25) ... DSU is averaging 12.87 kills and 15.98 digs a set, and leads the RMAC in blocks per set 2.54 bps average (national team rankings N/A this week) ... Dixie State also leads the RMAC in total blocks (215.5 - national team rankings N/A this week).
    Dixie State hit a season-high .410 in the NMHU win last Friday, which marked the first time since September of last year 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 also 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 wraps up the 2019 regular season next Friday night, Nov. 15, as the Trailblazers head up I-15 to Salt Lake City to face in-state rival Westminster College. First serve is slated for 6 p.m., inside the Behnken Field House.