Oct. 28, 2008

Game Notes and Stats in PDF Format

(San Francisco) - UP NEXT FOR THE DONS: USF will open the second half of West Coast Conference action this weekend as it travels to Gonzaga and Portland. Thursday, the Dons will face the Bulldogs at 7 p.m. before facing the Pilots Saturday at Noon. Earlier in the season, USF defeated both GU and UP at War Memorial Gym. San Francisco defeated Portland 3-0 on October 2 before downing Gonzaga 3-1 on October 4.

LAST WEEK FOR THE DONS: San Francisco wrapped up the first half of the WCC season with strong victories over visiting Loyola Marymount and No. 15 Pepperdine. Thursday, the Dons swept the Lions 3-0 before earning a historic 3-1 win over the Waves on Saturday. The win Saturday marked the second time in program history USF has defeated Pepperdine, it also snapped a 29-match losing streak to the Waves which dated back to 1993.

DONS EARN PROGRAM HIGH RANKING: For the first time in five years, the USF Volleyball team is nationally ranked. The Dons are ranked a program-high 22nd in the AVCA Division I Coaches Top-25 Poll that was released on Monday. The last time, and only time in program history, that the Dons were cracked the national polls was on September 29, 2003 when San Francisco was listed at 24th. The Dons are one of five West Coast Conference programs to earn a top-25 rank or receive votes in the poll. Joining USF in the polls is San Diego ranked 15th, Pepperdine ranked 19th, Santa Clara ranked 24th, and Saint Mary's, which is receiving votes. The WCC is only one of four conferences to have five or more teams ranked or receiving votes in this week's poll. The other conferences are the Pacific-10 with eight, the Big X with six and the Big XII with five.

Sarah Mandala NAMED WCC PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Sophomore opposite hitter Sarah Mandala has been named the West Coast Conference Player of the Week. Mandala led the Dons to a 2-0 weekend as San Francisco continued its strong run through WCC action with a perfect 7-0 record. Overall on the week, Mandala recorded a team-high 32 kills, averaging 4.57 per set, on .490 hitting. She recorded four assists, two service aces, eight digs (1.14 per set) and eight blocks (1.14 per set). The weekly honor is third of the sophomore's careeras she was named the WCC Player of the Week twice last season, earning the honor on October 8 and October 29.

BABIN, GOMBOS RANK NATIONALLY IN TOP-10 HITTING PERCENTAGE: Senior middle blockers Carly Babin and Alix Gombos both rank in the NCAA Division I top-10 in hitting percentage. Gombos is ranked seventh with a .421 average, while Babin checks in at ninth with a .413 clip. This week marks the third straight week that the pair of Dons has been ranked in the top-10 or -20. USF is lone school with two members of its roster listed in the top-10. Penn State's Christa Harmotto leads the nation with a .511 average.

DONS KNOCK OFF THIRD RANKED TEAM IN AS MANY WEEKS: The victory over No. 15 Pepperdine marked the third time in as many weeks that USF has defeated a ranked opponent. On Oct. 11, USF downed then-No. 15 San Diego 3-1 at War Memorial Gym. The following week, on Oct. 18, the Dons earned a 3-1 victory over then-No. 20 Santa Clara at the Leavey Center in Santa Clara. Saturday, USF defeated Pepperdine 3-1 to mark the third ranked team this season to fall at the hands of the Dons. In addition, San Francisco also defeated Saint Mary's in Moraga, 3-2, on Oct. 16. At the time, the Gaels were receiving votes in the national polls. The three wins over ranked foes marks a program first, as prior to this season USF had never defeated more than two ranked teams in a single campaign. In 2003, the years of USF's lone NCAA Tournament appearance, the Dons defeated two ranked teams - then-No. 19 Washington State and then-No. 21 San Diego.

DONS REMAIN PERFECT IN WEST COAST CONFERENCE PLAY: San Francisco's 7-0 conference start sets the school record for start to the league season. During the 1987 season, USF opened conference play with a 5-0 record before finishing the conference season with a program-best 9-5 mark. In addition to winning all seven league contests this season; USF has won nine straight WCC contests, including victories over Gonzaga and Portland to close out the season a year ago.

SAN FRANCISCO MATCHES WIN TOTAL FROM A YEAR AGO: Thanks to the victory over Pepperdine Saturday, USF matched its win total from a year ago. The Dons currently stand at 17-4 overall, 7-0 WCC this season, while a year ago they finished with a 17-13 overall, 6-8 WCC mark. The 17 victories mark the fourth best in school history, while the school record is 23 wins. USF won 17 matches in the 1985 and 2007 seasons, 18 in the 2005 campaign and 23 in the 2006 and 2003 seasons. The 2003 campaign marked the first and only time, in San Francisco history that the Dons were selected to partake in the NCAA Tournament.

USF CONTINUES TO ROLL AT HOME: With a sweep over Loyola Marymount and Pepperdine this weekend, USF continues to be a threat when playing in the friendly confines of War Memorial Gym. Through the opening nine weeks of the season, the Dons have amassed a school-best 12-1 record on the Hilltop. The lone loss at home this season was a 3-2 battle to Miami on Saturday, Sept. 13 as part of the 2008 Asics/Coca-Cola Invitational. In the past four years, San Francisco has posted a 39-16 record when playing at home, including going 7-3 during the 2006 campaign.

DONS GOING STREAKING: USF extended its winning streak to 10 matches thanks to a 3-1 victory over then-No. 15 Pepperdine at War Memorial Gym. After dropping a 3-0 decision to nationally ranked California on September 20, the Dons have strung together victories over Central Connecticut State, Penn, Seattle, Portland, Gonzaga, San Diego, Saint Mary's, Santa Clara, Loyola Marymount and Pepperdine. The longest win streak in San Francisco history was 15-0 stretch to open the 2003 season en route to qualifying for the first NCAA Tournament berth in program history.

Gilad Doron ENTERS SECOND SEASON IN THE GREEN AND GOLD: After guiding USF to its program record third straight winning season, Gilad Doron enters his second season on the Hilltop. Doron was named as head coach March 14, 2007. Before arriving on the Hilltop, Doron spent three years as the head coach at Villanova (2004-06), guiding the Wildcats to back-to-back winning seasons in the Big East. Doron is assisted on the bench by former US National Team setter Dan Fisher, who enters his second season on the Hilltop and his first as the associate head coach and Sam Hastings, who also enters her second year at USF after playing for Doron at Villanova.

Carly Babin CONTINUES TO ADD TO STELLAR CAREER: Senior middle blocker Carly Babin continues to add to a stellar career resume and is looking for a strong finish in her final season in the Green and Gold. Babin is currently ranked among West Coast Conference leaders in attack percentage (second/.413), blocks (first/1.12), kills (ninth/2.95) and points (ninth/3.78). After just recording 17 total blocks as a freshman, Babin enters the tenth week of 2008 with 369, good for sole possession of fourth place on the career charts and her 56 solo stuffs rate 10th. Babin moved past KeLicia Shorts (2002-05) and Laura Tinetti (1997-2000) with 10 total blocks during the eighth week of the season. The Las Vegas native enjoyed one of the most prolific blocking seasons in USF history as a sophomore in 2006, ranking second in single-season stuffs with 160.

Alix Gombos ATTACKS WITH AUTHORITY: After an impressive junior season in which she was awarded All-WCC Honorable Mention accolades, senior middle blocker Alix Gombos continues to shine in her final season on the Hilltop. The Oregonian currently is second the Dons with 77 blocks, 10 solo, averaging 1.01 a game, while hitting at a league-leading .421 clip with 181 kills (2.40), ranking her seventh in NCAA Division I.

Haley Carroll PACES WCC IN TWO CATEGORIES - SECOND IN USF CAREER DIGS: Junior libero Haley Carroll followed up an outstanding freshman season with an even better sophomore campaign and captured 2007 West Coast Conference Defender of the Year honors. It was the first major individual conference award ever presented to a Don. Carroll led the league in digs (4.97) and was even better in WCC contests (5.64). The Gilroy, CA native is the first player in program history to twice surpass 500 digs in a single season and is on track to do so once again with 375 in 21 matches. Carroll enters the tenth week of the 2008 season ranked second on the USF career digs chart with 1,419 and earlier this season passed Dons Hall-of-Famer and Legend of the Hilltop Melanie Kaiser (1988-91), who tallied 1,236. In addition to leading the WCC with 37 service aces (0.46), Carroll also leads the WCC in digs with 375 (4.69).

Sarah Mandala GETS IT DONE: Sophomore opposite hitter Sarah Mandala turned in the most prolific offensive season by a freshman in school history, ranking second in kills (3.40) and capturing West Coast Conference Honorable Mention selection after averaging a team-high 3.53 kills on .267 hitting during league matches. Mandala currently leads the Dons offensively, averaging 3.54 kills (283) on .281 hitting. The native of San Dimas has also added 19 assists, 14 service aces, 97 digs and 66 blocks for USF this season. For her efforts against Loyola Marymount and Pepperdine, Mandala was named this week's West Coast Player of the Week.

FRESHMEN MAKING AN IMMEDIATE IMPACT: San Francisco's roster this year features four freshmen Erin Bragg (redshirt), Chelsey Lowe, Leinani Keanini, and Erin Kilroy. Bragg leads the pack of newcomers, boasting 69 kills with 34 blocks - three solo, 20 digs and three service aces. Lowe is also making a statement with 12 assists, eight service aces and 91 digs. Keanini has earned 18 kills, 52 digs, seven service aces and three blocks, while in one appearance, Kilroy recorded a dig.

Darcy Carroll MOVING ON UP CAREER ASSISTS CHART: Senior setter Darcy Carroll enjoyed the finest season of her career last season, ranking fifth among West Coast Conference leaders in assists (11.01), the sixth-best single season tally in program history. Last year the Dons offense hit at a .228 rate, the third best mark in program history, with Carroll doing the lion's share of setting. Carroll enters week eight of her final season on the Hilltop ranked sixth in career assists with 2,765. Molly McEnery (1994-96) currently sits in the fifth spot with 2,928. A 2005 West Coast Conference Freshman Team selection, Carroll dished out a career-high 71 assists against No. 14 Cal Poly (9/14/07). So far this season, Carroll averages 8.51 assists per game while primarily running a 6-2 offense.

Addie Webster VERSATILE FOR USF: Senior outside hitter Addie Webster made solid contributions for the Dons in her first season on the Hilltop; ranking fourth on the team in kills (2.58) and was third in digs (2.59). A transfer from Eastern Washington, Webster captured Big Sky Newcomer of the Year honors in 2005 and turned in a team-high seven double-double matches for the Dons. Webster recorded 13 kills on .306 hitting to go along with 16 digs against Fresno State (8/25) and turned in 12 kills and 17 digs against Cal State Northridge (8/25). With her ninth kill against Cal State Fullerton (9/19) Webster reached 1,000 career kills. Webster notched 669 kills with the Eagles. Entering the tenth week of 2008, Webster averages 2.35 kills and 2.72 digs per game. Two weeks ago, Webster led all Dons with 26 kills and 31 digs, including posting her team-leading fourth double-double of the season thanks to a 19 kill, 19 dig performance at Saint Mary's.

BABIN NAMED WCC PLAYER OF THE WEEK: USF senior opposite middle blocker Carly Babin continues to post a stellar season and has earned one more accolade to add to her list of accomplishments, as she was named the West Coast Conference Player of the Week on October 14. The native of Las Vegas, Nev. earned the honor after leading the Dons past San Diego on October 12 with a .826 hitting percentage. Her average marked the third best in San Francisco single-match history, and the best average for a Don in four games. This week, the Dons' Sarah Mandala was named the WCC Player of the Week.

USF AGAINST 2007 NCAA TOURNAMENT TEAMS: This season, USF will play against seven teams that participated in the 2007 NCAA Tournament. Included in the seven opponents is last week's foe, Pepperdine. Heading into week ten of the season, the Dons have posted a 5-2 record against 2007 Tournament participants. A year ago, USF posted a 3-8 overall record against NCAA postseason qualifiers.

TAKING THE FIFTH: USF is 3-1 in five-set matches this season, taking a 3-2 victory against Missouri State (8/29), falling to Miami (9/13), posting a 3-2 come-from-behind victory over Penn and posted a come-from behind 3-2 victory over Saint Mary's last Thursday. The Dons have posted an impressive 19-11 record in matches going the distance since the start of the 2003 season. The Dons posted a 2-3 record in five sets in 2007. San Francisco's streak of nine consecutive five-game match wins came to an end in the 2006 regular season finale against Portland State in the Banker's Classic. The Dons posted its ninth straight five set decision with a thriller at Long Island (9/22) at the 2006 LIU Blackbird Invitational. The Dons turned in an impressive 6-0 record in five-game matches in 2005 after going 0-4 during the 2004 campaign. Since 2003, the Dons are 14-7 in matches going the distance. USF was 5-2 in five sets during its "Season of Firsts", with its only two setbacks coming against No. 13 Loyola Marymount and No. 5 Pepperdine.

TOURNAMENTS IN REVIEW: This season, the Dons competed in four tournaments - the Long Beach Tournament, 2008 Asics/Powerade Challenge, the 2008 Asics/Coca-Cola Invitational, and the Cal State Fullerton Tournament. San Fransico earned the title of the Asics/Powerade Challenge, after posting victories over UC Santa Barbara (3-1), Texas-Arlington (3-0) and Utah State (3-0). During the event, Carly Babin was named the MVP, while Alix Gombos and Sarah Mandala earned all-tournament honors. USF finished as runner-up in the other three tournaments, including going 2-1 at the Asics/Coca-Cola Inivitational and the Cal State Fullerton Tournament. Mandala earned all-tournament honors during all three runner-up finishes, while Haley Carroll was also recognized at the Asics/Coca-Cola Invitational and Darcy Carroll earned accolades at the Cal State Fullerton tournament.