Trailblazers take on Chicago State in first conference road contest

2021 DIXIE STATE VOLLEYBALL
(2-8, 1-1 WAC)

MATCH 11 - AT CHICAGO STATE
Saturday, Oct. 2 - 1 p.m. Central Time (Noon MT)
Jacoby Dickens Center | Chicago, Illinois

After a brief three-match homestand, Dixie State volleyball is back on the road this week for the first of three consecutive matches on the road.

The Trailblazers make their first-ever trip to The Windy City on Saturday to take on Chicago State at 1 p.m. Central Time (12 p.m. MT) inside Jacoby Dickens Center in Chicago, Illinois.

The match will be streamed live on ESPN+, and live stat information can be found at DixieStateAthletics.com.

ALL-TIME IN ROAD CONFERENCE OPENERS: After opening Western Athletic Conference play last week, Dixie State's match at Chicago State will mark its first conference road game of the season. Since 2007, the Trailblazers are 9-5 all-time in road conference openers.

ALL-TIME IN CONFERENCE PLAY: In their 15 seasons (2007-2021) of NCAA conference membership, the Trailblazers have posted a 156-90 (.634) record in conference play, including a 66-54 (.550) mark on the road. Since joining the WAC in 2020, DSU has posted a 9-9 (.500) record in conference play with a 2-6 (.250) mark on the road.

ALL-TIME VS. CHICAGO STATE: Saturday's match marks the third meeting between Dixie State and Chicago State. The Trailblazers built a 2-0 series lead during the Spring 2021 season with two consecutive 3-0 sweeps over the Cougars in St. George in March. Eight players on the current DSU active roster saw action in the two-game series, with Whittnee Nihipali tallying a team-best 25 kills (4.17 k/s). Jordyn Nelson posted 53 assists (8.83 a/s), while Kate Hardy led defensively with six total blocks.

KNOW YOUR FOE: Chicago State enters the weekend with a 9-5 overall record and a 1-1 mark in WAC play. The Cougars opened conference play last week with a 3-0 sweep at Seattle University before being swept at California Baptist. CSU will host Utah Valley on Thursday before Saturday's matchup against Dixie State. Redshirt sophomore outside hitter Yanlis Feliz accounts for over 35 percent of the CSU offensive attack. Feliz leads the WAC and ranks eighth nationally with 236 kills (4.82 k/s). Defensively, redshirt freshman libero Andrea Calderon leads the Cougars with 191 digs, while redshirt sophomore middle blocker Mesalina Severino ranks fifth in the WAC with a team-high 47 total blocks.

ON THE ROAD: The Trailblazers have recorded an 87-83 (.512) record in true-road matches during its NCAA era, and have logged a winning record on the road nine times (2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019). Additionally, DSU has posted a 34-47 (.420) record in neutral-site matches.

WEEK IN REVIEW:Dixie State opened WAC play with a split of its two matches inside the Burns Arena. The Trailblazers claimed a 3-0 sweep of Grand Canyon on Thursday and won the first set against New Mexico State on Saturday. However, the Aggies responded by winning the next three sets to grab a 3-1 win in the match.

A NEW ERA: For the first time since 2012, the Trailblazers opened the season with a new head coach. After two seasons serving as an assistant coach, Camilla Hafoka begins her first season as the new head coach of the Dixie State Volleyball program.

During her time on the Trailblazer sidelines, Coach Hafoka helped lead Dixie State to a 29-16 overall record. In her first season as an assistant coach, Dixie State played to a 20-8 overall record in the program's final year of NCAA Division II competition.This past spring, Hafoka helped guide DSU to a 9-8 overall mark in its debut NCAA Division I season, which included an 8-8 mark (t-4th) in its first season in the Western Athletic Conference.

Whitnee Tupe returns for her eighth season as a DSU assistant coach, while Julia Smith (Texas A&M, 2002) joins the staff after coaching last season at Snow College. Former DSU player To'a Faleao also joins the staff as a volunteer assistant coach, and Riley Lyman (BYU, 2020) will serve as Director of Volleyball Operations to round out the staff.

LET'S RUN IT BACK: After posting a 9-8 overall record in its first season as an NCAA Division I member, Dixie State is ready to pick up where it left off in year two.

The Trailblazers return 13 players from the Spring 2021 season, including five starters. Senior outside hitter Megan Treanor (First Team All-WAC, 171 kills, 168 assists, 127 digs, 34 blocks, 25 service aces) headlines the returners and was named to the Preseason All-WAC team.

DSU returns three others who posted at least 100 kills in the spring, including junior outside hitter Whittnee Nihipali (149 kills), junior middle blocker Lauolive Tonga (116 kills), and freshman Kate Hardy (WAC All-Freshman team, 103 kills). Despite playing in only nine matches in the spring, senior setter Jordyn Nelson returns as DSU's spring leader in assists (249). Defensively, Hardy posted a team-high 52 blocks in the spring, while Tonga added 42.

YEAR TWO IN THE WAC: The Trailblazers enter their second season as a member of the WAC in 2021. DSU recorded an 8-8 mark in WAC play in the spring to finish in a fourth-place tie with Tarleton State.

With the addition of the four Texas schools (Abilene Christian, Lamar, Sam Houston, Stephen F. Austin) the conference standings have been split into two divisions: Southwest and West. Dixie State will play in the West Division, alongside California Baptist, Chicago State, Grand Canyon, New Mexico State, Seattle U, and Utah Valley, while the Southwest Division will feature Abilene Christian, Lamar, Sam Houston, Stephen F. Austin, Tarleton State, and UT Rio Grande Valley.

The Trailblazers were picked to finish fifth in the West Division in the recent WAC Preseason Coaches Poll. DSU will play a 14-game WAC slate with a home-and-home against each member of the West Division, while traveling to Abilene, Texas, for matches against ACU and Tarleton.

TEAM NOTES:        Dixie Stateimproved to 8-7 in conference openers in its NCAA era with its 3-0 win over Grand Canyon on Thursday.
            The Trailblazersrecorded their largest-ever Burns Arena volleyball crowd on September 18, when 631 fans attended to see Dixie State take on Southern Utah. Only three other matches in DSU's NCAA era have seen more fans in attendance, with the biggest crowd coming on Oct. 6, 2017, when 1,004 fans packed the Student Activities Center to see the Trailblazers battle Hawaii Pacific.
            Head Coach Camilla Hafoka made her debut as Dixie State head coach in August, marking the first time since 2012 the Trailblazers opened the season with a new head coach. Hafoka earned her first career win on Saturday in a 3-1 victory over SUU.
            Senior outside hitter Megan Treanor led DSU with 22 total kills last week, finishing with 11 kills in both matches. She also recorded six total blocks and two services aces in the win over Grand Canyon. Additionally, Treanor moved up to No. 4 on the All-Time DSU Total Attacks list with 2,038 career attacks.
            Senior setter Jordyn Nelson recorded her first double-double of the season on Saturday, finishing with 21 assists and 15 digs.
            Freshman outside hitter Hannah Howardadded 14 kills and 18 digs to her season tallies last week. Howard currently leads DSU with 82 total kills.
            Sophomore outside hitter Bridgett Taliaenjoyed a solid week, finishing with 15 total kills, including eight kills on Thursday to help DSU defeat Grand Canyon.
            Freshman middle blocker Kate Hardycontinued her defensive dominance, posting eight total blocks in DSU's two matches. Hardy currently leads DSU with 34 total blocks on the season.
            Sophomore libero Mykenna Nelson recorded 32 total digs last week to push her team-best total to 185 for the year. Nelson ranks third in the WAC with 4.87 digs per set.
            Senior middle blocker Lizzy Clark tallied a team-best nine total blocks to open conference play. Clark recorded six total blocks on Thursday to help DSU defeat Grand Canyon.


UP NEXT: Dixie State takes a trip to the west coast next week with matches at California Baptist on Thursday and Seattle U on Saturday.

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Players Mentioned

#9 Lizzy Clark: MB; 6' 1"; Senior

#6 Kate Hardy: MB; 6' 0"; Freshman

#1 Jordyn Nelson: S; 5' 6"; Senior

#7 Mykenna Nelson: L; 5' 8"; Sophomore

#15 Whittnee Nihipali: OH; 6' 2"; Junior

#16 Lauolive Tonga: MB; 5' 10"; Junior

#13 Megan Treanor: OH/S; 6' 1"; Senior

Players Mentioned

#9 Lizzy Clark
: 6' 1"; Senior
: MB

#6 Kate Hardy
: 6' 0"; Freshman
: MB

#1 Jordyn Nelson
: 5' 6"; Senior
: S

#7 Mykenna Nelson
: 5' 8"; Sophomore
: L

#15 Whittnee Nihipali
: 6' 2"; Junior
: OH

#16 Lauolive Tonga
: 5' 10"; Junior
: MB

#13 Megan Treanor
: 6' 1"; Senior
: OH/S