CHENEY, Wash. -- The Eastern Washington University volleyball team returns to Reese Court this week for a pair of Big Sky Conference matches against Weber State and Idaho. The Eagles battle the Wildcats on Thursday (Oct. 27) at 6 p.m. PT, before challenging the Vandals on Friday (Oct. 28) at 7 p.m. PT.
Eastern enters this week of play in third place in the Big Sky North Division with a 5-5 record through 10 league matches. EWU returns to Reese Court looking to get back on track after going 1-3 on a season-long Big Sky road trip, which ended last Saturday with a straight-set loss at Sacramento State. Overall, the Eagles remain at one game over the .500-mark at 10-9.
For Weber State, they currently stand in fifth place in the Big Sky South Division with a 4-6 mark. The Wildcats have dropped three-straight matches, but still boast a 13-6 overall record. Idaho is also in fifth place in the North Division at 2-8. The Vandals have dropped five-straight matches, as they are 7-15 on the season.
Thursday's match against Weber State will also be the Eastern's 'Dig Deep for Pink' game.
Last Time Out
The Eastern Washington University volleyball team could not end their four-match Big Sky Conference road trip on a high note, as the Eagles loss at Sacramento State 3-0 (17-25, 20-25, 20-25) on Saturday, Oct. 22.
EWU got a pair of double-doubles from senior Sophie Miller and sophomore Ka'iulani Ahuna, as the duo continued their recent string of double-doubles on Saturday night. Miller handed out a team-best 25 assists, while adding 11 digs, to pick up her third-straight double-double. For Ahuna, she landed a team-best 10 kills, and matched Miller in the dig category, to earn her second double-double of the road trip and her ninth overall on the year.
RPI Update
The Eagles remain in the Top 200 of the NCAA Division I RPI, as they are ranked 193 out of 334 NCAA Division I schools. Northern Arizona, who Eastern knocked off in four sets back on Oct. 6, leads the Big Sky with a 104 RPI.
All-Time Series
Weber State: Eastern holds a 42-30 advantage in the all-time series against the Wildcats. The Eagles have won each of the last four matches against WSU, and they've done it in dominating fashion, Eastern has only dropped one set to Weber State over that span.
Idaho: Saturday's contest against the Vandals will be a rematch of the epic five-set thriller that these two teams played just two weeks ago to the date in Moscow. The Eagles were victorious on that day, as they collected their first win at Idaho since 2005. Despite that victory, the Vandals still hold a 32-20 advantage in the all-time series.
Conference Stat Rankings
Eastern still remains one of the top defensive teams in the Big Sky, as they rank second in opponent hitting percentage by holding teams to a .159 clip. EWU ranks sixth in the conference in digs-per-set at 16.16, while they are ninth in blocks-per-set at 1.87.
Senior Sophie Miller ranks third in aces-per-set at 0.31, while she is also 10th in assists-per-set at 8.01. A pair of Hawaiian natives also break into the Top 10 in the conference rankings, as sophomore Ka'iulani Ahuna is 10th in kills-per-set (2.98), while redshirt sophomore Ashlee Vaoifi is 10th in digs-per-set (3.92).
Good to Be Home
The Eagles will be looking to extend its winning ways at Reese Court with a pair of home matches. Eastern has won each of the last two matches played as Reese, as they knocked off Northern Arizona and Southern Utah back on Oct. 6 and Oct. 8, respectively.
Keep The Double-Doubles Coming
Senior setter Sophie Miller has been picking up double-doubles at a rapid place of late, as the Federal Way, Washington native has earned seven double-doubles over her last eight matches. Miller enters this week of play on a three-match double-double streak, after she picked up 25 assists and 11 digs in a straight-set loss at Sacramento State last Saturday.
The Streak Continues
Sophomore Ka'iulani Ahuna picked up 11 digs in last Saturday's defeat at Sacramento State to push her current double-digit dig streak to eight matches. The Hawaiian native has averaged 13.4 digs-per-match during the streak, which has pushed her season dig total to 180. Ahuna has also picked up six double-doubles during the streak, pushing her total to a team-best eight on the year.
Knowing Your Opponent: Weber State
The Wildcats have gotten off to a rough start in Big Sky play, as they are 4-6 through 10 league games. All six losses for Weber State this season have come against conference schools, as they entered the Big Sky portion of its schedule a perfect 9-0.
WSU is tied for second in the Big Sky in hitting percentage with a .222 clip. The Wildcats are led by senior Megan Thompson, who is fourth in the league in hitting percentage at .350. Junior Amanda Varley leads Weber State in kills, as her 3.38 kills-per-set average is fifth-best in the Big Sky.
The Wildcats have been just as impressive in their defensive stats as their offensive ones, as they rank third in the Big Sky in opponent hitting percentage at .170. Weber State is the top blocking team in the conference at 3.15 blocks-per-set, a mark that is the fourth-highest in all of NCAA Division I. Thompson leads the conference, and is second nationally, in blocks-per-set at 1.73.
Knowing Your Opponent: Idaho
It's not been that long since these two teams have locked up. Eastern picked up a thrilling five-set victory over the Vandals in Moscow back on Oct. 15 to earn its first win at Idaho since 2005. That loss is placed right in the middle of Idaho's current five-match losing streak, as they enter this week at 2-8 in the conference and 7-15 overall.
The Vandals are hitting .191 as a team, a mark that is eighth-best in the conference. Junior Torrin Crawford leads the team with her .308 hitting percentage, while sophomore Sarah Sharp's 2.99 kills-per-set average not only leads the team, but is the ninth-best mark in the conference in that category.
Defensively, teams are hitting .217 against UI, which is puts them at ninth in the conference. The Vandals are averaging 14.64 digs per set, led by senior Terra Varney's 4.59 dig-per-set average, which is the fourth-best in the Big Sky.
For more information on the Eastern Washington volleyball team, follow @EWUVolleyball on Twitter or like EWU Volleyball on Facebook.
