Complete Release

PORTLAND PILOTS (6-9, 0-2 WCC)
vs Santa Clara (5-7, 0-1 WCC) and San Francisco (10-5, 2-0 WCC)
Dates: Thursday Sept. 29 and Saturday Oct. 1
Location: Portland, Ore.
Arena: Chiles Center (4,852)
Starting Times:           
Thursday vs Santa Clara - 7:00 p.m.
Saturday vs San Francisco - 1:00 p.m
Live Stats/Audio/Video: portlandpilots.com
Pilots All-Time:           
vs Santa Clara, SC leads 43-7
vs San Francisco, USF leads 31-22

Quick Hits...
• The Pilots played two five set matches last week, losing both.
• Junior OH Ariel Usher recorded a career night with 21 kills and 16 digs but LMU defeated UP 3-2 (23-25, 25-21, 16-25, 25-22, 15-12).
• Sophomore S Monica Jordan recorded her team high fifth double-double of the year with 38 assists and 13 digs. She also added five kills.
• No. 19 Pepperdine defeated the Pilots (24-26, 24-26, 25-15, 25-14, 15-8) on Thursday as Usher (13 k, 12 d) and Jordan (35 a, 10 d) both posted double-doubles.
• Senior OH Kati Hronek and sophomore OH Autumn Wedan also posted double digit kills in each match.

Clog in the Middle? Call a Plummer
• Senior MB Marissa Plummer has already established herself as one of the best middle blockers in school history.
• She has 56 total blocks this season, 12 solo and 44 assisted.
• Plummer ranks fifth in school history with 327 total blocks after passing Dawn Eudaly (322) last weekend. She could pass Gretchen Sanders (330) this weekend.
• 268 of her career blocks are of the assisted variety, ranking her fourth in school history.
• During the Nike Portland Invitational, she tallied 37 kills, 15 blocks, and five aces to earn a spot on the All-Tournament Team.

High Five
• Redshirt-junior MB Rachel Femling has been a solid contributor again this year for the Pilots.
• She is second on the team in attacking percentage at .280, with 92 kills and 49 blocks.
• Femling earned a spot on her first career All-Tournament Team at the Golden Dome Invitational after posting 18 kills on a .289 attacking percentage with 14 blocks.
• She recorded 10 blocks (9 assisted, 1 solo) against Lipscomb for her second career 10+ block match.

Autumn Springs and the Ball Falls
• Sophomore OH Autumn Wedan has earned herself some playing time as she hammers away at the opponents’ back court.
• She averages 2.13 kills per set, posting 10+ kills in four of her last five matches.
• Wedan made her first career All-Tournament Team (31 kills and 8 digs) at the Golden Dome Invitational. 

MJ Sets the Scene
• Stepping into her first season as the Pilots’ primary setter, sophomore Monica Jordan has 546 assists so far this season.
• In addition to averaging 8.95 assists per set, Jordan has 45 kills on the season with 109 digs.
• On seven occasions, she’s posted 40+ assists in a match, including three 50+ matches.

Ariel Assault, Part III
• Now in her junior season, OH Ariel Usher continues to find open court on her attacks.
• After a slow start to the season, she’s rebounded of late, with seven double digit kill matches over the last nine.
• Usher’s home splits play out favorably for the native of Hillsboro, Ore. Through seven matches, she has per set averages of 2.92 kills, 1.95 digs, and .59 blocks.

Like a Boss-twick
• Junior OH Kate Bostwick is settling in as an offensive and defensive force this season.
• Named to the Portland Nike Invitational All-Tournament Team after recording 44 kills and 43 digs.
• Bostwick was also named to the Aztec Invitational All-Tournament Team (35 kills, 26 digs, 5 blocks), her first career All-Tournament Team.

New Kids on the Block
• Following the departure of libero Danielle Dupar, freshmen Jacqueline Rodriguez and Katie Mardesich have stepped in to fill the void with some help from junior Jessica Nguyen.
• Rodriguez leads the team with 3.10 digs per set (158 total), qualifying for the sixth highest career average in school history (minimum 50 sets).
• Mardesich, a Portland native, is close behind with an average of 2.65 digs per set (172 total).
• Nguyen has also stepped in to pace the defense, averaging 1.63 digs per set while also providing the Pilots with strong serves.

A New Look...
• For the ?rst time in more than 30 years, the West Coast Conference has a new member as Brigham Young University formally joined the WCC last summer.
• The Cougars will field a team in 11 of the Conference’s 13 sponsored sports.
• With the change in membership, the WCC launched its new brand identity with a new logo, it’s first visual change since 1995.

They don’t call it ‘GameCentral’ for nothing...
• UP is entering its second year of providing fans with ‘GameCentral’, which is a free portal via PortlandPilots.com that offers live video, live audio and live stats  all on the same page for all home matches.
• The internet broadcast will feature a three-four camera production this season with instant replays.

Moore Bloggin’ on the Bluff
• Freshman OH/S Sam Moore takes the reins of the volleyball blog this season.
• Be sure to visit PortlandPilots.com/MooreBlog all season long to get an in-depth look at the UP Volleyball Program.

More Exposure
• And don’t forget to visit the team’s facebook page for exclusive updates, photos, and information. The page can be found by searching for ‘Portland Pilots Volleyball’ on the facebook home page.

Getting to Know the Pilots
• This week’s edition of Side-Out features Kate Bostwick, a junior outside hitter from Pendleton, Ore. Click below to watch!