University of Northern Colorado Athletics
Thursday, November 10
Greeley, Colo.
6 p.m. MT
University of Northern Colorado
vs
Idaho State
Photo by: Jam David
First-place Bears set for final home dates, Senior Day on Saturday
11/8/2022 9:48:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
GREELEY, Colo.—Riding a seven-match winning streak, the Northern Colorado volleyball team prepares for its final home dates of the season with matchups against Idaho State and Weber State.
The Bears will face the Vandals on Thursday, Nov. 10 before a 2021 Big Sky Championship rematch against the Wildcats on Saturday, Nov. 12. Opening serve is set for 6 p.m. (MT) inside the Bank of Colorado arena.
SENIOR DAY
Senior Day festivities will take place prior to Saturday's match with five players being honored in their final home match of their careers. UNC's five seniors are: Mimi Dunda. Makenzie Harris, Rachel Hickman, Kailey Jo Ince, and Kelsie Milkowski.
TICKETS
Tickets for all regular-season volleyball matches are available via the UNC Athletics app, online at UNCBears.com/tickets or by calling (970) 351-4849. Tickets can also be purchased in person by visiting the Ticket Office in Campus Commons from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
ABOUT IDAHO STATE (13-12, 5-7 BIG SKY)
The Vandals open the week in the No. 7 spot in the Big Sky standings. ISU is ranked No. 5 in the Big Sky in defense by holding its opponents to a .193 hit rate but are last out of 10 teams with a .180 average on offense. Sadie Bluth leads the team with 3.04 kills per set, good for No. 8 in the league. Emrie Satuala is the Big Sky's No. 2 block artist at 1.17 blocks per set. UNC has won six straight matches against Idaho State. The Vandals last defeated the Bears on Nov. 3, 2018, with a 3-1 win in Greeley.
ABOUT WEBER STATE (15-8, 9-3 BIG SKY)
Co-champions with UNC from a year ago, Weber State has compiled a perfect 14-0 record at home but has gone only 6-7 while playing outside of Ogden. The teams split their regular-season matchups last season with WSU winning 3-0 in Utah and UNC defeating the Wildcats 3-2 in Colorado. The Bears went on to a 3-2 win against WSU in the 2021 Big Sky Championship match. WSU has the league's No. 1 defense by allowing just .161 hitting percentage. Not far behind, its offense is No. 3 with a .213 conversion rate. The Wildcats have the Big Sky's No. 1 ranked player in hitting percentage (Brielle Rueckert, .380) and blocks (Saana Katoa, 1.22 bps)
LAST TIME OUT
Avenging its most recent loss on Oct. 8 in Flagstaff, UNC swept Northern Arizona, 3-0, at home on Nov. 5. The Bears hit .303 against the Lumberjacks while holding NAU to a .181 rate. Syd Cole recorded 46 assists in the contest to finish two assists shy of UNC's NCAA DI record for a 3-set match.
HOME SLATE
With an 9-2 record inside the Bank of Colorado Arena, the Bears will look to continue their winning ways at home with two remaining home contests. The Bears close out the home slate with Weber State on Nov. 12 for Senior Night.
OCTOBER TREATS
After a 4-7 record in September, the Bears have been nearly unbeatable since the calendar turned. The Bears went 7-1 in the month of October with four sweeps.
BIG SKY'S TOP OFFENSE
Northern Colorado leads the Big Sky in several offensive categories, including: attack percentage (.274), kills per set, (14.10) assists per set (13.22). Individually, junior setter Syd Cole holds the top average in the conference with 11.37 assists per set.
GETTING DEFENSIVE
The Bears have moved up to No. 3 in the Big Sky by allowing a .186 attack rate. The UNC defense has held its opponents to .200 or less in each of its last six matches. In 11 conference games, the best an opponent has posted vs. UNC has been a .218 hit rate by NAU on Oct. 8.
REIGNING CHAMPS
Northern Colorado enters the 2022 season as the reigning Big Sky regular season and tournament champions. The Bears secured their sixth tournament title in program history in a thrilling five-set match against the Weber State Wildcats in Ogden, Utah. The victory also punched their ticket to the NCAA Tournament where they faced Washington State.
2022 BIG SKY PRESEASON POLL
After picking up six of 10 first-place votes, Northern Colorado was picked to repeat as champions in 2022 by the Big Sky Coaches. The Bears received 78 points in the poll while Weber State (70 points) and Portland State (66 points) rounded out the top three. Weber State collected the two remaining first-place picks.
2021 REVIEW
The Bears compiled an overall record of 24-7 in 2021 with non-conference wins over Northwestern, Colorado State, and San Jose State. Buoyed by a six-match winning streak to end the regular season, UNC went on to post a 13-3 record in Big Sky play to share the crown with Weber State.
The Bears will face the Vandals on Thursday, Nov. 10 before a 2021 Big Sky Championship rematch against the Wildcats on Saturday, Nov. 12. Opening serve is set for 6 p.m. (MT) inside the Bank of Colorado arena.
SENIOR DAY
Senior Day festivities will take place prior to Saturday's match with five players being honored in their final home match of their careers. UNC's five seniors are: Mimi Dunda. Makenzie Harris, Rachel Hickman, Kailey Jo Ince, and Kelsie Milkowski.
TICKETS
Tickets for all regular-season volleyball matches are available via the UNC Athletics app, online at UNCBears.com/tickets or by calling (970) 351-4849. Tickets can also be purchased in person by visiting the Ticket Office in Campus Commons from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
ABOUT IDAHO STATE (13-12, 5-7 BIG SKY)
The Vandals open the week in the No. 7 spot in the Big Sky standings. ISU is ranked No. 5 in the Big Sky in defense by holding its opponents to a .193 hit rate but are last out of 10 teams with a .180 average on offense. Sadie Bluth leads the team with 3.04 kills per set, good for No. 8 in the league. Emrie Satuala is the Big Sky's No. 2 block artist at 1.17 blocks per set. UNC has won six straight matches against Idaho State. The Vandals last defeated the Bears on Nov. 3, 2018, with a 3-1 win in Greeley.
ABOUT WEBER STATE (15-8, 9-3 BIG SKY)
Co-champions with UNC from a year ago, Weber State has compiled a perfect 14-0 record at home but has gone only 6-7 while playing outside of Ogden. The teams split their regular-season matchups last season with WSU winning 3-0 in Utah and UNC defeating the Wildcats 3-2 in Colorado. The Bears went on to a 3-2 win against WSU in the 2021 Big Sky Championship match. WSU has the league's No. 1 defense by allowing just .161 hitting percentage. Not far behind, its offense is No. 3 with a .213 conversion rate. The Wildcats have the Big Sky's No. 1 ranked player in hitting percentage (Brielle Rueckert, .380) and blocks (Saana Katoa, 1.22 bps)
LAST TIME OUT
Avenging its most recent loss on Oct. 8 in Flagstaff, UNC swept Northern Arizona, 3-0, at home on Nov. 5. The Bears hit .303 against the Lumberjacks while holding NAU to a .181 rate. Syd Cole recorded 46 assists in the contest to finish two assists shy of UNC's NCAA DI record for a 3-set match.
HOME SLATE
With an 9-2 record inside the Bank of Colorado Arena, the Bears will look to continue their winning ways at home with two remaining home contests. The Bears close out the home slate with Weber State on Nov. 12 for Senior Night.
OCTOBER TREATS
After a 4-7 record in September, the Bears have been nearly unbeatable since the calendar turned. The Bears went 7-1 in the month of October with four sweeps.
BIG SKY'S TOP OFFENSE
Northern Colorado leads the Big Sky in several offensive categories, including: attack percentage (.274), kills per set, (14.10) assists per set (13.22). Individually, junior setter Syd Cole holds the top average in the conference with 11.37 assists per set.
GETTING DEFENSIVE
The Bears have moved up to No. 3 in the Big Sky by allowing a .186 attack rate. The UNC defense has held its opponents to .200 or less in each of its last six matches. In 11 conference games, the best an opponent has posted vs. UNC has been a .218 hit rate by NAU on Oct. 8.
REIGNING CHAMPS
Northern Colorado enters the 2022 season as the reigning Big Sky regular season and tournament champions. The Bears secured their sixth tournament title in program history in a thrilling five-set match against the Weber State Wildcats in Ogden, Utah. The victory also punched their ticket to the NCAA Tournament where they faced Washington State.
2022 BIG SKY PRESEASON POLL
After picking up six of 10 first-place votes, Northern Colorado was picked to repeat as champions in 2022 by the Big Sky Coaches. The Bears received 78 points in the poll while Weber State (70 points) and Portland State (66 points) rounded out the top three. Weber State collected the two remaining first-place picks.
2021 REVIEW
The Bears compiled an overall record of 24-7 in 2021 with non-conference wins over Northwestern, Colorado State, and San Jose State. Buoyed by a six-match winning streak to end the regular season, UNC went on to post a 13-3 record in Big Sky play to share the crown with Weber State.
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