MATCHES 26 & 27
San José State (10-15, 5-9) at New Mexico (8-18, 3-11)
Johnson Center, Albuquerque, N.M.
Thursday, November 14
7:00 p.m. MT/6:00 p.m. PT
Live Stats - https://admin.golobos.com/sidearmstats/wvball/summary
Live video -https://watchstadium.com/live/san-jose-state-at-new-mexico-2/
San José State (10-15, 5-9) at UNLV (15-10, 11-3)
Cox Pavilion, Las Vegas, Nev.
Saturday, November 16
5:00 p.m. PT
Live stats - https://unlvrebels.com/sidearmstats/wvball/summary
Live video - https://youtu.be/C-nzsmf5Gu8
FINAL ROAD MATCHES FOR 2019: San José State takes to the road for the final time this 2019 volleyball season, playing at New Mexico Thursday night and at UNLV late Saturday afternoon. The Lobos are 10th in the Mountain West standings, while UNLV is third in the MW.
San José State is looking to extend its three-match winning streak after winning twice last week, coming from behind to win 3-2 against Nevada last Tuesday night and a 3-0 sweep at Air Force last Thursday night. The team is tied for seventh with Air Force at 5-9 in the conference standings.
LIVE VIDEO: Thursday night's match will be broadcast on the Mountain West Network this week. Fans can access the stream on the Spartan website at www.sjsuspartans.com/watch and select "Mountain West Network."
ABOUT NEW MEXICO: The Lobos enter Thursday night's match with an 8-18 overall record and 3-11 MW mark. The team defeated Utah State, 3-1, but fell to Boise State, 3-0, last week. Head coach Jon Newman-Gonchar is in his first season at the helm of the program.
New Mexico Leaders
Hit % .208 Tai Bierria
Kills 311, 3.08 ps Lauren Twitty
Assists 569, 5.87 ps Jaclyn Inclan
Aces 25, 0.25 ps Tai Bierria
Digs 368, 3.64 ps Alena Moldan
Blocks 97, 1.11 ps Rachel Murphy
Series Record - New Mexico leads 16-7.
First Meeting - L, 2-0, September 26, 1981, San Jose, Calif.
Last Meeting - W, 3-1, October 19, 2019,, Spartan Gym
Last SJSU Win - 3-1, October 19, 2019, Spartan Gym
Current Streak - W2
Last 10 meetings - 4-6
Record in Albuquerque vs. Lobos: 2-7, last win in Albuquerque (3-1) was on October 10, 1998. Have lost last seven matches played there.
2019 meeting: The Spartans overcame losing the first set to the Lobos to win the next three sets and the match. Fernanda Vido led the team with 15 kills and 12 digs.
ABOUT UNLV: The Rebels begin the week with a 15-10 overall record and 11-3 MW mark. The team currently sits third in the conference standings and hosts Nevada Thursday night. UNLV has a two-match winning streak after victories at Boise State (3-2) and at Utah State (3-1) last week. Head coach Dawn Sullivan is in her second year at the helm of the program. UNLV Leaders
Hit % .312 Kate Brennan
Kills 297, 2.78 ps Shelby Capllonch
Assists 638, 5.96 ps Antonette Rolda
Aces 53, 0.65 ps Mariene Hayden
Digs 335, 3.13 ps Shelby Capllonch
Blocks 89, 0.83 ps Kate Brennan
Series Record - UNLV leads 11-7.
First Meeting - W, 3-1, October 11, 1996, The Event Center
Last Meeting - L, 3-1, October 17, 2019, Spartan Gym
Last SJSU Win - 3-1, November 4, 2017, Cox Pavilion
Current Streak - L3
Last 10 meetings - 1-9
Record in Las Vegas vs. UNLV: 6-4, last win in Vegas in 2017
2019 meeting: The Spartans hit just .049 as UNLV won 3-0 inside Spartan Gym. Haylee Nelson led the SJSU with eight kills, while Makayla Lewis and Fernanda Vido each had six kills.
HEAD COACH JOLENE SHEPARDSON: San José State head coach Jolene Shepardson is in her sixth season at the helm of the program and ninth as a head coach. She has a 72-101 record in six seasons at SJSU, and a 115-148 coaching record in nine seasons. Her 50th SJSU win was a 3-2 win over Pacific on September 8, 2018.
TWO PLAYERS W/27 KILLS>UTAH STATE TOTAL KILLS: In the Spartans sweep of Utah State on November 2, two Spartan players recorded 27 kills in the match. While that may not seem significant, the Aggies only recorded 10 kills as a team. Haylee Nelson led everyone with 16 kills, while Makayla Lewis added 11kills. Two Utah State players had three kills, while two others had two.
SMEVOG NEARING TOP-10 DIG NUMBERS: With four matches remaining this season, Sarah Smevog begins the week with 403 digs this season. She is just 22 digs away from entering the San José State single-season top-10 dig list. Yavianliz Rosado is in 10th place with 425 digs in 2014, while Jessie Shull holds the school record with 676 digs in 2006.
NELSON HONORED BY THE MOUNTAIN WEST: Sophomore Haylee Nelson has been named the Mountain West Volleyball Offensive Player of the Week for November 4 after her performances against Boise State and Utah State.
Nelson hit .450 on the week to lead the Spartans to a 1-1 record. She averaged 4.00 kills and 4.25 points per set. Nelson led the team with 16 kills in the win over Utah State and hit .500 for the match. She also had a service ace, four digs and a block for SJSU. Against Boise State, Nelson hit .375 with eight kills.
SCHWARZ MAKING IMPACT: Sophomore Tabea Schwarz has made a very positive impact on the floor for the Spartans over the past two matches. Against Nevada, she came off the bench and helped spark SJSU to the 3-2 win. She had 10 kills, five digs and a solo block in her three sets played.
Schwarz then started for the Spartans in the 3-0 win at Air Force on November 7. She recorded her first collegiate double-double with career highs of 12 kills and 14 digs. She added an assist, ace and block assist in the win.
COMEBACK KIDS AT IT AGAIN: The Spartans had to overcome more that one deficit in the 3-2 win at home over Nevada on November 5. The team dropped the first set to the Wolf Pack, 25-19, and were down 2-1 after the third set before winning the fourth set, 25-18, to force a deciding set.
In the fifth set, Nevada had a 12-6 lead before San José State turned the fortunes around. The two teams battled and Nevada had the lead at 14-12. The Spartans fought off two Wolf Pack match points to tie the set at 14-14. A Makayla Lewis service ace and Nevada hitting error gave SJSU the 16-14 set win and 3-2 match victory.
GRAJEDA MOVING UP SJSU CAREER BLOCKING LISTS: Senior Thaliana Grajeda continues climbing up two San José State career blocking lists. She is sixth in block assists with 315 and needs 10 over the next four matches to move into fifth place with Nandyala Gama.
Grajeda is seventh on the all-time blocking list with 343 and needs 14 blocks to move into sixth place with Cristin Rossman.
BLOCK ASSISTS TOTAL YEARS
1. Joslynn Gallop 391 1997-00
2. Melissa Myers 370 1995-98
3. Barbara Higgins 340 1984-87
4. Liz Hudson 337 2000-02
5. Nandyala Gama 325 2014-17
6. Thaliana Grajeda 315 2016-C
7. Cristin Rossman 291 1991-94
8. Stephanie Pascucci 287 1999-02
9. Colleen Burke 281 2005-08
10. Kim Hicks 279 1985-88
TOTAL BLOCKS TOTAL YEARS
1. Joslynn Gallop 456 1997-00
2. Barbara Higgins 447 1984-87
3. Melissa Myers 445 1995-98
4. Nandyala Gama 366 2014-17
5. Liz Hudson 365 2000-02
6. Cristin Rossman 357 1991-94
7. Thaliana Grajeda 343 2016-C
8. Kim Hicks 324 1985-88
9. Stephanie Pascucci 314 1999-02
10. Colleen Burke 301 2005-08
UP NEXT: The Spartans finish the 2019 season with two home matches - vs. #13 Colorado State on Thursday the 21st at 6 p.m., and against Wyoming on Saturday the 23rd at 2 p.m. The Spartan senior class will be honored prior to the match.