BRIGHAM YOUNG COUGARS
(22-4, 13-2 WCC)
 
Day: Thursday
Date: Nov. 21, 2019
Place: Provo, Utah. 
Time: 7:00 P.M.
Facility: Smith Fieldhouse
Video: portlandpilots.com
Stats: portlandpilots.com
 
POR vs. BYU
Overall Series: 1-16
H: 1-7 • A: 0-8 • N: 0-0
Last: BYU 3, @POR 0 (09.28.19)

SAN DIEGO TOREROS
(21-5, 14-1 WCC)
 
Day: Saturday
Date: Nov. 23, 2019
Place: San Diego, Calif. 
Time: 12:00 P.M.
Facility: Craig Pavilion
Video: portlandpilots.com
Stats: portlandpilots.com
 
POR vs. USD
Overall Series: 9-56
H: 6-26 • A: 3-23 • N: 0-0
Last: USD 3, @POR 0 (09.26.19)

GONZAGA BULLDOGS
(10-17, 4-11 WCC)
 
  Day: Monday
  Date: Nov. 25, 2019
  Place: Spokane, Wash.
  Time: 6:00 PM
  Facility: Charlotte Y. Martin Centre
  Video: PortlandPilots.com
  Stats: PortlandPilots.com
 
POR vs. GONZ
Overall Series: 24-48
H: 13-20 •  A: 11-24  •  N: 0-0
Last: @POR 3, GON 0 10.26.19
 
THIS WEEK
• The Pilots travel for a trio of matches, their last three of the season. They will finish the season against BYU, San Diego and Gonzaga.
• Portland will play the Cougars at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 21st, the Toreros at noon on Nov. 23rd, and then wrap up their season against the Bulldogs at 6:00 PM on Nov. 25th. 
• Stats and Video for both matches can be found at portlandpilots.com
 
LAST WEEK
• The Pilots hosted their last home matches of 2019, playing Santa Clara & San Francisco. They fell in three sets to the Broncos, and then fell in four to the Dons.
• Senior Shayla Hoeft led the Pilots in kills with 24, and threw in five total blocks. Junior Liz Reich had 20 kills, while junior Carey Williams had 43 digs.
 
ABOUT THE PILOTS
• Portland's ability to serve up aces has made a tremendous impact: their aces per set (1.76) ranks 15th in the country and first in the West Coast Conference, while their total service aces (172) puts them 37th in the NCAA, good for second in the WCC.
• The Pilots ability to strike from behind the line has been a combined effort, with five different players obtaining 25 or more service aces.
• Junior Kellie Hughes has made significant strides this season, ranking first within the WCC in assists (945) & second in aces per set (9.64).
• In the WCC, the Pilots are first in aces per set and are second in team service aces & digs per set (15.40). Individually, junior Carey Williams has led the way defensively, ranking 1st in the conference in digs per set (4.89) and 2nd in total digs (479).
• Three Pilots earned All-Tournament honors at the Springhill Suites Invitational, including MVP Senior Shayla Hoeft (40 kills, four blocks), Hughes (93 assists) and freshman Grace Zilbert (seven aces, 13 digs).
• For their efforts in the Portland North Marriott Invite, Hoeft and Williams were nominated to the All-Tournament Team. Hoeft had 43 kills, while Williams had 59 digs and 12 assists.
• The Pilots returned nine letterwinners from the 2018 season, including 2018 All-WCC Honorable Mention senior Katie Barker.
• The program welcomed three true freshmen to The Bluff this summer, as well two transfers from the University of Boise State and Seton Hall University, respectively.
• Sophomore transfers Jessie Brigham & Claire Forrest bring experience to the squad: Brigham led the BSU Broncos in digs in 2018 with 356, while Forrest notched two matches with 10 kills as a Pirate, including a career-high 11 kills against VCU.
• Portland's freshmen class is made up of Zilbert, Noelani Helm and Jayde Harris, all three already contributing in 2019. 
 • The Pilots saw two seniors graduate last spring in Reghan Pukis and Lauren Naatz.
• Portland was picked to finish sixth in the West Coast Conference Preseason Poll, jumping two spots from the 2018 poll.
• Senior middle blocker Katie Barker seeks to improve on her coming out party as a junior: she was nominated to the 2018 All-WCC Honorable Mention squad and had 128 block assists, 143 total blocks and a .334 hitting percentage, which were 1st, 2nd and 5th most in single season history for the Pilots, respectively.
 
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
• Brigham Young (22-4, WCC 13-2) has continued their annual success, but have fallen each time they've faced San Diego, placing them second in the WCC.
• The Cougars rank first in the WCC in opp. hitting percentage with 16.2%, with junior's Heather Gneiting & Kennedy Eschenberg dominating the net with a combined 232 total blocks.
• San Diego (21-5, WCC 14-1) have claimed first place in the WCC standings thanks to two five-set thrillers going the Toreros way against the Cougars.
• USD's efficient attack ranks 13th in the country in hitting percentage (27.8%) and 24th in kills per set (13.99). Senior Megan Jacobsen has played a huge part in their attack, placing 17th in the NCAA and first in the WCC in hitting percentage (40.3%) and providing 244 kills.
• Gonzaga (10-17, WCC 4-11) has been on a roll since starting conference play with nine straight losses: they've gone 4-1 in their past five matches, including a victory over the LMU Lions who are third in the WCC standings.
• The Zags streak of success has been led by senior Sarah Pennar's 69 kills over their 4-1 mark, making it 265 kills on the season for the Bulldog.