FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (March 5, 2021) – In their final homestand of the season, the Northern Arizona volleyball team will aim to take down the Big Sky's best this weekend. The Lumberjacks welcome 10-0 Weber State to the Rolle Activity Center for matches on Sunday at 2 p.m. and Monday at 6 p.m. Both matches will be available on Pluto TV Channel 1058.
NAU is tied with Montana State for second in the conference at 8-2 with two weeks remaining in the Lumberjacks' regular season. After hosting undefeated Weber State this weekend, NAU will travel to the defending Big Sky champions, Northern Colorado, next weekend ahead of the conference tournament.
The Lumberjacks pushed their winning streak to a season-high four matches last week, defeating Southern Utah twice in Rolle. After committing their highest attack error total (28) since Oct. 7, 2017 in Sunday's four-set win, the 'Jacks responded by posting their best hitting percentage since 2017 as well in Monday's sweep of the Thunderbirds. Both senior
Heaven Harris (.625) and freshman
Lyla Hollis (.600) set new career-highs in hitting percentage on Monday, part of NAU's .407 attack percentage. The last time NAU hit .400 or better was Nov. 4, 2017, when the Lumberjacks hit .445 in a sweep over Idaho State.
Hollis earned her first career Big Sky Offensive Player of the Week award following the Southern Utah matches after averaging 3.86 kills per set and hitting a combined .339. She also recorded four aces, 26 digs and three blocks. Hollis' weekend lifted her kill average to 2.21, ranked third on the team behind sophomore
Taylor Jacobsen (4.16) and Harris (2.68).
Jacobsen, who totaled 30 kills in the two matches last weekend, is second in the conference behind Weber State's Rylin Adams in kills. She ranks 48th in the country in kill average and is attacking a high efficiency, sitting fifth in the conference with a .308 hitting percentage.
Defensively, freshman
Millie O'Ketter was solid in the first Southern Utah victory, recording the third-most digs in program history in a four-set match with 33. O'Ketter moved up to seventh with a team-leading 3.68 digs per set.
This weekend will match up the conference's top two teams statistically, with NAU and Weber State first and second respectively in the conference in hitting percentage and opponent hitting percentage. The Lumberjacks are hitting .236 and their opponents are hitting .157, slightly ahead of the Wildcats' own percentage of .232 and opponent clip of .166. The two teams are also first and second in kills and assists with Weber State holding the advantage.
Last season, Weber State took two of three matchups, including a three-set sweep in the Big Sky semifinal which ended NAU's season. The Lumberjacks are 47-33 all-time versus the Wildcats, and are 28-10 at home. NAU knocked off Weber State in four sets in Flagstaff during the 2019 season, which was the Lumberjacks' seventh home win over the Wildcats in the last eight meetings.
Weber State is the lone remaining unbeaten team in the Big Sky, riding its best start in program history and on a program record-tying 10-match winning streak. Weber State remained undefeated last weekend, picking up a pair of home victories against Sacramento State. The Wildcats rallied back from a 2-1 deficit to defeat the Hornets on Friday before winning in four sets on Saturday.
Adams is the conference's leader in kills at 4.26 per set, placing her 35th in the country while hitting .242 this season. Dani Nay is second on the team, and fourth in the Big Sky, in kills with 3.85 per set while also leading the conference with 0.59 aces per set. Sam Schiess is the Big Sky's leader in hitting percentage, attacking at a .407 clip, and is the team's leader in blocks with 42. Schiess is also averaging 2.28 kills per set.
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