MATCH NOTES (PDF)

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. - With the end of the first half of the conference schedule approaching this week, the Northern Arizona volleyball team would like nothing more than to make a big statement on the road, with two of the top three teams in the conference on tap. The Lumberjacks will face Portland State on Thursday at 8 p.m. and Sacramento State on Saturday at 1 p.m. in the first of consecutive weeks away from home. Portland State and Sacramento State own a combined 11-1 record in Big Sky play so far.

"We're not overthinking the teams we are playing or what they do; we are thinking about how we can tighten up our side of the net," said head coach Ken Murphy. "We know there are significant chunks we can capture how we block and how we defend if we just focus on ourselves a little more. This week is about improvement, as always, and we have a lot of confidence that we have a breakthrough coming at some point. We're optimistic it will be soon."

NAU fell to 2-4 in the Big Sky with losses to Eastern Washington and Idaho in the Rolle Activity Center last week. The 'Jacks, 6-11 overall, have lost three straight matches since collecting their first two conference victories. Redshirt junior Kaylie Jorgenson is coming off her first career 20-20 match, posting career-highs of 21 kills and 20 digs in the five-set defeat to Idaho last Saturday. It was her team-leading 11th double-double of the season, third-most in the conference, and she is now averaging 3.52 kills per set - placing her fourth in the Big Sky. Sophomore Sydney Lema collected a pair of double-doubles last week while also serving exceptionally well. She posted seven aces in two matches to push her into first in the Big Sky with 0.44 aces per set. Lema is second on the team behind Jorgenson in kill average at 2.76. In the middle, redshirt sophomore Victoria Ewalefo was a force last week hitting .684 against Eastern Washington and Idaho and averaging 1.75 kills per set. Ewalefo now ranks second on the team in hitting percentage for the season, attacking at a .345 clip.

Fans can catch Thursday's match on Pluto TV Channel 232 with Saturday's match available on Pluto TV Channel 233. Both matches can be streamed online at pluto.tv or on the Pluto TV app.

You've Got Served: This season, NAU's service game has been short of last season's NCAA-leading effort but last weekend may have been a sign that the Lumberjacks are turning up the pressure at the line. The 'Jacks tallied a season-high 14 aces against Idaho on Oct. 7 after acing Eastern Washington seven times in three sets the previous match. The 21 combined aces in back-to-back matches were their most since totaling 22 against UC Riverside and UC Irvine on Sept. 16-17 last season. With last weekend's numbers, NAU leapt into first in the Big Sky's overall team stats with 1.44 service aces per set. The Lumberjacks rank second in conference matches with 1.59 aces per set. NAU's service surge can be attributed to sophomore Sydney Lema's performance at the line. Last weekend, she recorded seven aces, including a career-high tying four versus Eastern Washington. Lema now leads the Big Sky with 0.44 aces per set.

Recipe for Success: The Lumberjacks pride themselves on service pressure and their blocking, which then leads to their efficient offensive systems so it should be no surprise that those three elements have been key to their success early in the season. When NAU has held the advantage in service aces, it has a 5-3 record. The Lumberjacks are also 5-3 when they have outblocked their opposition. When NAU has outhit its opposition, the 'Jacks are 6-1. The win-loss splits are drastic with the Lumberjacks hitting .256 and averaging 1.95 aces and 2.19 blocks per set in wins while hitting only .196 with 1.17 aces and 1.83 blocks per set in losses.

Split Difference: When looking further at the Lumberjacks' wins and losses, the splits for several Lumberjacks individually are apparent in helping to determine team success. Both Jorgenson and freshman Heaven Harris are key to NAU's attack, averaging 4.14 and 3.05 kills per set respectively in NAU's six wins compared to 3.20 and 2.37 respectively in losses. Both of their hitting percentages are significantly higher as well with Jorgenson hitting .210 compared to .168 between wins and losses and Harris at .513 in wins compared to .314 in losses. In the back row, Lema and junior Jordan Anderson are crucial in defending in victories. Lema is averaging a dig per set more in wins (4.21) than in losses (3.15). Meanwhile Anderson's dig average is 3.17 in wins compared to 2.83 in losses. Sophomore Abby Akin is doing a lot more damage at the net and at the service line in wins. In matches NAU has won, Akin is averaging 1.29 blocks and 0.53 aces per set. Her averages drop to 0.32 aces and 0.85 blocks per set in Lumberjack defeats.

NAU Quick Hits: Ken Murphy is just two wins shy of 100 at NAU...NAU is hitting .258 in conference play, which ranks third in the Big Sky...Harris is hitting .449 in league matches and Akin is hitting .415 to rank second and fourth individually...Senior Brooke Donnelly is fifth in the conference in overall dig average at 4.34...NAU is one of two teams - with Sacramento State being the other - with three players with six or more double-doubles (Jorgenson, Lema, sophomore Abby Stomp)...Stomp ranks ninth with 7.66 assists per set for the season.

About Portland State: Portland State was predicted to finish fifth in the Big Sky Preseason Poll, but has exceeded expectations thus far this season. The Vikings are currently tied for second in the conference with a 5-1 Big Sky mark and is coming off an impressive weekend in which they defeated both Northern Colorado and North Dakota in four sets at home. Portland State is now 14-4 overall. Cailtin Bettenay paces the conference in kills both overall (4.10 per set) and in conference play (4.50 per set). Katy Wilson, Erin Clark, Mikaelyn Sych and Tasha Bojanic also lead the Big Sky in hitting percentage, assists, blocks and digs respectively for the season. Portland State leads the conference in kills with 13.83 per set as a team. In league play, the Vikings are averaging a Big Sky leading 15.10 kills per set in addition to hitting .267 - also tops in the conference.

About Sacramento State: Sacramento State was picked third prior to the season in the Big Sky Preseason Poll and has established itself as the top team in the conference three weeks into league play. The Hornets are the lone remaining undefeated Big Sky team at 6-0 in conference play after winning the battle of the unbeatens versus North Dakota last week at home in five sets. Sacramento State then improved to 15-7 overall by sweeping Northern Colorado to end the week. Shannon Boyle ranks fifth in the Big Sky with 3.45 kills per set while Mikaela Nocetti ranks 10th with 3.24 per set. Both players rank first and second in the conference in double-doubles respectively. Kennedy Kurtz runs the Hornet offense with 10.78 assists per set, which is second-best in the Big Sky. Sacramento State is averaging 15.00 kills per set through the first three weeks of the conference season while posting a team hitting percentage of .253. The Hornets rank second behind the Vikings in kills both in league play and for the entire season with an overall season average of 13.41.