Sept. 20, 2004

COMING UP: The University of Portland volleyball team travels to Pullman, Wash. on Tuesday, Sept. 21, to take on the Washington State Cougars at 7:00 p.m.

A QUICK LOOK AT PORTLAND: Last weekend, Portland won its first tournament championship of the 2004 season with a 3-0 sweep of Utah Valley State College at the Nike Portland Invitational. The Pilots are currently 8-3 (.727) on the season after going undefeated (4-0) in tournament play last week.

UP senior Michelle Oakland was named the Nike Portland Invitational Tournament MVP, while fellow Pilot and setter Sheena Surplus garnered all-tourney honors.

Previously, Surplus turned heads, becoming a member of the 2004 Holiday Inn Classic all-tourney team, while fellow teammate Liz Lord garnered Pittsburgh Invitational all-tourney honors.

So far this season, Portland has placed third in two tournaments (Pittsburgh Invitational and 10th annual Holiday Inn Classic, hosted by Montana State) and first in its own Nike Portland Invitational.

Possible starters for the Pilots in the match-up with Washington State are: Monique Kettler (Jr., MB), Sheena Surplus (Jr., S), Kelly Whitehouse (Fr., OH), Murphy McClenahan (So., L), Michelle Oakland (Sr., MB), Liz Lord (Jr., MB) and Nicole Thometz (Fr., OH).

The Pilots return five starters, 10 letterwinners and add five newcomers to this year's roster. Last year, the Pilots finished the West Coast Conference regular-season in seventh place. Portland ended its season with an 11-18 (.379) overall record and a 1-13 (.071) conference mark.

The 2004 season marks the 25th year of Pilot volleyball on the Bluff. During that time, Pilot volleyball has seen six different coaches, been a member of the NAIA and the NCAA, and honored one All-American (NAIA) and several all-WCC selections.

Head coach Doug Sparks is just the sixth head coach in school history. Currently, Sparks has a 46-78 (.371) career overall record and a 9-47 (.161) career WCC record. He has the third-best winning percentage in school history and the third-best win percentage since volleyball became an NCAA Division I sport in 1986. He recorded his 40th career victory with a 3-0 (30-23, 30-20, 30-22) sweep of Dartmouth on Saturday, Sept. 10 at the 10th annual Holiday Inn Classic in Bozeman, Mont.

Portland returns one player selected to the 2003 all-West Coast Conference Volleyball Team. Sara Vercruyssen, for a second-consecutive year, was named an honorable mention all-WCC pick. Monique Kettler was named to the 2003 West Coast Conference Fall All-Academic team. Kettler and Sheena Surplus were named to the 2003 Magnolia Tournament all-tourney team. Two members of the Pilot squad were named to the 2003 Nike Portland Preview all-tourney team; Vercruyssen was an all-tourney selection, while teammate Michelle Oakland was the tournament MVP. Oakland was also named the 2003 Boise State Invitational Tournament MVP.

In a vote of the league's eight head coaches, the Pilots are picked to finish in seventh-place in this year's WCC race. Portland looks to rebound from a year ago with strong returning starters and 10 returning letterwinners. The Pilots are led by all-WCC performer Sara Vercruyssen and senior middle blocker Michelle Oakland. PILOTS ON THE INTERNET: The University of Portland women's volleyball team will have live stats via the internet for all home matches. Check out the Pilot matches at: http://www.portlandpilots.com/livestats/wvball/xlive.htm.

QUOTING SPARKS: "I think tomorrow night is really important for us to now gain some national recognition. I think we're hovering just below the radar and if we can get a win tomorrow night, people will have to take some notice. I think we need to go in there and play with the confidence we played with last weekend and hopefully we'll get the result." SERIES SHORTS: Washington State leads the all-time series with Portland, 3-0. In their last meeting on Sept. 5, 1992, Portland lost to the Cougars, 3-1 (15-9, 5-15, 15-4, 16-14) in Pullman, Wash. The Pilots are 0-1 at home, 0-1 away and 0-1 at a neutral site vs. Washington State.

SCOUTING WASHINGTON STATE: The Washington State volleyball team continues its 2004 campaign on Tuesday, Sept. 21 when they face the Pilots at home. The Cougars currently post a 3-8 overall record after a third-place finish at the Denver Tournament last week. Washington State opened play at the Denver Tournament with a 3-0 sweep of Radford, but then dropped their final two matches of the weekend to Syracuse and Denver. Last season, the Cougars finished with a 9-20 overall record, 5-13 in the Pac-10 (tied for seventh). Washington State returns four starters, seven letterwinners and adds three newcomers to its roster in 2004.

Brian Heffernan opens his first season as the Cougars' head coach.

Kelly Rosin leads the team, averaging 4.02 kills per game and 1.77 digs per game. Rosin currently posts a .239 hitting percentage and is third on the team in blocks per game (0.67). Jennifer Todd earned all-tournament honors last weekend at the Denver Tournament after posting an impressive stat line. She currently averages 3.74 kills per game and 1.14 blocks per game, while hitting for .277 on the season. As a team, the Cougars currently average 13.65 kills per game, 12.30 assists per game, 1.51 service aces per game, 14.02 digs per game and 2.15 blocks per game.

CELEBRATING 25 YEARS OF PILOT VOLLEYBALL: Portland's 25 year history dates back to 1979 when the Pilots went 19-25 (.432) overall and setter/hitter Maureen Clifford was named the team's MVP. Portland has come a long way since then, becoming a member of the NCAA in 1986 and a member of the West Coast Conference in 1987. The volleyball program has seen six different coaches at the net, from the days of former coach Moe O'Connor to present day's Doug Sparks. In a span of 25 years, the Portland volleyball program has compiled a 375-464 (.371) overall record.

2004 WCC STATISTICAL LEADERS: As a team, Portland is currently second in the WCC in digs (17.03), third in opponent hitting percentage (.185), hitting percentage (.246), match won-loss percentage (.727) and assists (14.37). The Pilots are fourth in kills (15.50), seventh in service aces (1.13) and eighth in blocks (1.63).

Individually, five players currently rank among the top 20 in the WCC statistical leaders. Michelle Oakland is second in hitting percentage (.405), 11th in points (3.84) and 13th in kills (3.21), while Sheena Surplus is second in assists (12.74). Sara Vercruyssen is third in kills (4.06) and points (4.34), and 11th in digs (3.22). Murphy McClenahan is fourth in digs (4.68) and Liz Lord is seventh in hitting percentage (.317).

WCC IN THE TOP 25 POLL: One West Coast Conference school is currently ranked in the Sept. 20 USA Today/ CSTV Division I Top 25 Coaches' Poll with four other schools receiving votes. Santa Clara leads the way coming in ranked 17th, while Pepperdine ranked just outside the top 25 with 100 votes, followed by San Diego with 78 votes, Saint Mary's with 70 votes and Loyola Marymount with 63 votes.

VERCRUYSSEN'S RETURN: Two-time honorable mention all-WCC selection Sara Vercruyssen (2002, 2003) returns after rehabilitating an ACL injury that happened near the end of the 2003 season. Vercruyssen's stat line provides the Pilots with the needed consistency to play in one of the top five conferences in the USA. For her career, Vercruyssen has posted 769 kills, 563 digs, 47 service aces, 88 total blocks and a .206 hitting percentage, while tallying career bests of 29 kills and 23 digs (vs. Gonzaga, 10-25-03). Vercruyssen is already off to a good start in 2004 after recording double-figure kills in all but three matches, while posting five double-doubles thus far.

SIMPLY MARVELOUS, MICHELLE: Senior Michelle Oakland went down with an ACL injury just before the WCC portion of the 2003 season began. Prior to her injury, Oakland was named the 2003 Boise State Invitational Tournament MVP, the 2003 Nike Portland Preview Tournament MVP and her impressive numbers led the WCC in several statistical categories. After a remarkable spring, Oakland is back and picking up where she left off last season.

In 2003, she posted 3.35 kills per game, 0.87 digs per game, 1.04 blocks per game and 4.14 points per game. Oakland landed double-figure kills in eight out of 13 matches played, including a career-best 19 kills and career-high six block assists vs. Bowling Green State on Aug. 30.

Currently, Oakland is second in the WCC statistical leaders list with a .405 hitting percentage and is 11th in points (3.84) and 13th in kills (3.21). She leads the team in blocks (0.82) and was most recently named the 2004 Nike Portland Invitational MVP.

SURPLUS SETTING IT UP: For the past two seasons, Sheena Surplus has been setting up the plays and anchoring the Pilot offensive at the setter position. Surplus has already made her mark on Portland's all-time career leaders list in assists with 2,855. She is currently No. 4 all-time and will only move up with two seasons left. She ranked seventh in the WCC in assists (11.46 per game) last season and currently ranks in at No. 2 on the assist charts (12.74).

GREAT WALL OF PILOTS: Portland returns its top three blockers from last year's team in senior Michelle Oakland and juniors Monique Kettler and Liz Lord. The trio has become a formidable blocking presence, while adding versatility to the Pilots' attack. Oakland's blocking numbers were up to 1.04 per game before her injury last season, while Kettler posted 0.73 blocks per game and Lord averaged 0.66 blocks per game.

This season the trio account for 77 percent of Portland's total blocks. Oakland leads the team, averaging 0.82 blocks per game, while Kettler totals 0.79 blocks per game and Lord tallies 0.26 blocks per game.

PILOTS AT 2004 TOURNAMENTS: So far this season, the University of Portland volleyball team has placed third in two tournaments (Pittsburgh Invitational and 10th annual Holiday Inn Classic, hosted by Montana State) and first in its own Nike Portland Invitational.

Senior Michelle Oakland was named the 2004 Nike Portland Invitational Tournament MVP, while setter Sheena Surplus garnered all-tourney honors. Surplus also became a member of the 2004 Holiday Inn Classic all-tourney team, while fellow teammate Liz Lord garnered 2004 Pittsburgh Invitational all-tourney honors.

WCC PRESEASON POLL: The University of Portland women's volleyball team was picked to finish seventh in the WCC in the league's preseason poll, as selected by conference coaches. Pepperdine was chosen to claim the 2004 WCC women's volleyball title, receiving five first place votes and 60 total points. Santa Clara and Loyola Marymount shared the second spot each compiling 50 total points with Santa Clara receiving two first place votes. San Diego, who is coming off of its seventh NCAA Tournament appearance in the last eight years, was tabbed to finish fourth by the league coaches. Rounding out the poll are Saint Mary's in fifth, San Francisco in sixth and Gonzaga in eighth.

WCC RPI IN TOP 5: The WCC finished the 2003 slate with a Top 5 RPI, coming in fourth out of 32 conferences. The WCC was just behind the Pac-10, who boasts reigning national champion USC, the Big Ten and the Big 12, but was ahead of powerhouse conferences like the ACC, the Big West, the Big East and the SEC. Portland posted an RPI of 204 last season.

PILOTS AMONG CAREER CHARTS: Junior Sheena Surplus has already made her way into the Pilot career books after compiling 2,855 assists thus far. Surplus is currently fourth all-time, and with two seasons left, could become the all-time leader. The current record of 4,187 assists is held by Annie Blackburn (1993-96). Monique Kettler is currently ninth in block assists (152) and steadily approaching the career charts in total blocks (197). She needs just four more total blocks to make her way into the record books. Sara Vercruyssen is quickly approaching the career leader list in kills. Currently Vercruyssen has 769 kills and needs just 81 more to hit the mark.

ITS ALL ABOUT POINTS: The University of Portland will be tracking individual points per game in 2004. Points are awarded based on the following formula: kills + aces + solo blocks + 1/2-assist blocks.

Portland has recorded 694.0 points thus far in 2004. On the year, Michelle Oakland leads the team with 146.0 points, followed by Sara Vercruyssen with 139.0, Monique Kettler with 119.0, Liz Lord with 99.0, Kelly Whitehouse with 92.5, Nicole Thometz with 56.0, Sheena Surplus with 33.5, Murphy McClenahan with 7.0 and Dana LaGassa and with 1.0. CALIFORNIA CONNECTION: Eight out of the 15 players on Portland's 2004 squad are from California. Last season, exactly one half of the team hailed from "The Golden State" and produced over 55 percent of Portland's kills, 56 percent in digs, 64 percent in total blocks and 57 percent in points.