October 9, 2007

VOLLEYBALL

After finishing the first half of the Frontier Conference schedule in a tie for first place, the Warriors embark on the toughest portion of their regular-season schedule with four straight road matches, including two against NAIA Top 15-ranked teams. 

LCSC opens the second half of the conference against the University of Great Falls on Friday, and then takes on Montana State University-Northern on Saturday. Both matches are set for 6 p.m. 

Great Falls was picked as a co-favorite to win the conference title, but the Argos have struggled at times and are just 3-4 in league play and 9-9 overall. Montana State-Northern is 1-5 in league play and 2-14 overall. 

LCSC swept both teams in Lewiston last month. 

Next week, the Warriors hit the road again to play Albertson College in Caldwell, and then face Westminster in Salt Lake City. Albertson and Westminster stand 1-2 in the Region rankings, even though LCSC beat Westminster in Lewiston earlier this season. 

LCSC plays six of its final eight matches on the road. 

 “This will be a real test for our team,” LCSC coach Jen Greeny says. 

LCSC has already guaranteed itself a winning regular-season record and stands 12-3 overall and 6-1 in the conference. The Warriors, who have won 10 of their last 11 matches, moved up a spot in the Region I rankings to No. 4 this week and should draw some votes in the NAIA national poll when it is released on Wednesday.

The Warriors could be back to full strength by the end of the week. Junior outside hitter Cintia Alessi continues to recover from an abdominal pull and could be back on the front row. She has been the team’s libero the past five games, but said she felt fine after jump serving in LCSC’s last match. 

Despite missing three weeks on the front row, Alessi is only three off the team lead in  kills at 124, behind only senior middle blocker Brittney Kubik’s 127 total. Julie Maciboba has 126, and Anile Clemente has 114. 

That balance shows up throughout the stats for LCSC. The Warriors have been regularly using at least 12 players in every match and usually all 14. 

Sophomore setter Lisa Davis leads the team in assists with 307 and is second on the team in service aces with 24. Maciboba has a team-high 27 aces for the Warriors, who are averaging better than eight aces per match. 

Alessi leads the team in assists with 228, while Kubik’s 1.48 blocks per game average ranks No. 24 in the NAIA, and her hitting percentage of .344 ranks No. 36. 

LCSC is averaging 14.56 kills per match, which is No. 24 in the country, and is 30th overall in assists per game at 13. 

The Warriors two remaining home matches this season take place on Oct. 26 at 7 p.m. against Rocky Mountain and on Oct. 28 at noon against Carroll College. Both matches will be played at the LCSC Activity Center. 

FRONTIER CONFERENCE STANDINGS – Lewis-Clark State 6-1 in conference, 12-3 overall; Westminster 6-1, 13-5; Montana Tech 5-2, 14-6; Rocky Mountain 5-2, 10-11; Great Falls 3-4, 9-9; Montana State-Northern 1-5, 2-13; Carroll 1-6, 7-12; Montana-Western 0-6, 0-16. 

CROSS COUNTRY

The Warrior men’s and women’s teams will be in Spokane Saturday to take part in the Bigfoot Open, which begins at 10 a.m. at Spokane Falls Community College. 

LCSC coach Mike Collins says he’s been treating this week as a training week to prepare the Warriors for their only home meet of the season, the LCSC Invitational, which is Oct. 20 at Hells Gate State Park. 

“We are working in a high intensity phase of our training, so everyone is tired right now,” Collins says. “We are training through this race this weekend in Spokane, so I’m not expecting to break any records. We’re hoping to come back the following week and run well in our home meet. That week should give us a good feel for the conference because all of the conference teams will be here.” 

The Warriors have been running well this season and both teams were off last week. The Warrior men are again the No. 1 ranked team in Region 1 this week and should remain in the NAIA Top 10 when the poll is released Wednesday. Last week, the Warriors were tied for eighth place. 

The Warrior women, as they have been all year, are the No. 3 team in the region behind Simon Fraser and University of British Columbia. Simon Fraser has been ranked No. 1 in the NAIA all season, while LCSC was ranked No. 17 in last week’s poll. 

The home meet is the final regular season meet for the Warriors. The Region I and Frontier Conference Championships will be held Nov. 3 at Olympia, Wash., and then the NAIA national meet is Nov. 17 in Kenosha, Wis.