EL PASO – UTEP Volleyball (17-8, 9-5 Conference USA) welcomes Chicago State for a Tuesday night non-conference matchup on Halloween inside Memorial Gym. First serve is set for 6 p.m. MT.
TICKETS
For the matches in Memorial Gym, tickets start at $8 and can be purchased through the Eisenberg Family Ticket Office by calling (915) 747-UTEP, emailing tickets@utep.edu, visiting www.UTEPMiners.com/Tickets or in person at 201 Glory Road (Brumbelow Building, UTEP campus) Monday thru Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Season tickets are also still on sale. Group tickets are also available for $5 (minimum of 10 tickets).
SCHEDULE
Tuesday, Oct. 31
Match 26 vs. Chicago State – 6pm | Stream: ESPN+ | Live Stats | Promo: Halloween, Trick-or-Treat
Fans are encouraged to arrive early before first serve to trick-or-treat in the concourse with a variety of UTEP student-athletes.
Match 26 vs. Chicago State – 6pm | Stream: ESPN+ | Live Stats | Promo: Halloween, Trick-or-Treat
Fans are encouraged to arrive early before first serve to trick-or-treat in the concourse with a variety of UTEP student-athletes.
HITTING WITH CONSISTENCY
UTEP is hitting .278 paced by eight Miners who are killing it at or above the mark. Danika Washington (.422) leads the team among players with at least 150 kills. The UTEP offense sits 17th in the nation in hitting percentage.
BLOCK PARTY
The Miners registered a season-high 18 blocks in the 3-1 win against San Francisco on Aug. 31. UTEP posted at least 10 blocks on 16 occasions – most recently stuffing 10 blocks in each sweep over LA Tech. Kaya Weaver (180) leads the charge among players with at least 65 blocks. Nationally, UTEP is 4th in team total blocks (244) and 22nd in blocks per set (2.60).
BALANCED ATTACK
UTEP showed a balanced attack versus MTSU with four Miners blasting home at least 2.0 kills per set. Torrance Lovesee (26 kills, 3.71/set) led the charge with Alianza Darley, Sakira LaCour, and Danika Washington getting after it as well.
IN THE CUSA SPOTLIGHT
- Danika Washington was tabbed Defensive Player of the Week (Sep. 11) after picking up 17 blocks at the Bobcat Invitational, averaging 1.42 blocks per set. Washington totaled 35.5 points that included 27 kills with a .489 hitting percentage and was named to the Bobcat Invitational All-Tournament Team.
- Kalia Kohler was named Freshman of the Week (Sep. 11) after she averaged 5.54 assists per set through 13 sets leading the Miners to wins over Ohio and William & Mary. In a 6-2 system, she registered 20 or more assists in each match while she helped the UTEP defense to a .241 hitting clip. Kohler also racked up four aces, two kills and 20 digs on the weekend.
- Kohler earned her second CUSA Freshman of the Week award (Oct. 2) after her performance was influential in the Miner's success with a pair of sweeps over Jacksonville State. She led UTEP with a total of 29 assists (5.80/set) across the weekend and combined with Mattie Gantt for over 55 percent of assists in a 6-2 system. Kohler produced a .448 hitting clip and racked up one kill, three service aces and two digs in six sets.
- Gantt and Kohler split the Setter of the Week honor (Oct. 9) as they combined for 82 percent of the team's assists in a 6-2 system. Gantt averaged 5.08 assists per set while Kohler averaged 5.87 in a 3-1 week for the Miners. Gantt recorded 61 total assists including 20 in their win over FIU on Sunday while Kohler collected 88 total assists as she reached a new career-high with 30 in a five-set loss to New Mexico State.
- Kaya Weaver was named Defensive Player of the Week (Oct. 9) as she played a major role in helping the Miners go 3-1 over the week, posting a team-high 24 blocks and 32 kills in 15 sets. The sophomore middle blocker averaged 1.56 blocks per set in their split with New Mexico State and 1.67 blocks per set in the back-to-back sweeps over FIU. In total, Weaver collected a team-high 47.5 points, three assists, three aces and three digs.
- Washington earned her second Defensive Player of the Week honor (Oct. 23) and was a dominating force for UTEP as she picked up 11 blocks in back-to-back sweeps over Louisiana Tech, averaging 1.83 blocks per set. To go along with her strong defensive performance, she also added 15 kills and hit .565 to register 20.5 points for the Miners.
- Kohler earned her third Freshman of the Week honor (Oct. 23) as she put on a big performance averaging 6.00 assists per set in a 6-2 system in a pair of sweeps over Louisiana Tech at home. She led the Miners with a total of 36 assists over the weekend and helped the offense to a .344 hitting percentage. Kohler also recorded three aces and eight digs.
MINER RANKINGS
In Conference USA, UTEP is ranked in the top three in nine categories:
1. Team Total Blocks (244, 4th NCAA)
1. Team Service Aces (178, 10th NCAA)
1. Blocks per Set (2.60, 22nd NCAA)
2. Aces per Set (1.89, 18th NCAA)
2. Team Assists (1,109, 52nd NCAA)
2. Team Kills (1,194, 54th NCAA)
3. Hitting Percentage (0.278, 17th NCAA)
3. Match W-L Pctg. (0.680, 78th NCAA)
3. Opp Hitting Percentage (0.203, 147th NCAA)
UTEP has four players ranked in the top 10 in four categories in the conference:
1. Team Total Blocks (244, 4th NCAA)
1. Team Service Aces (178, 10th NCAA)
1. Blocks per Set (2.60, 22nd NCAA)
2. Aces per Set (1.89, 18th NCAA)
2. Team Assists (1,109, 52nd NCAA)
2. Team Kills (1,194, 54th NCAA)
3. Hitting Percentage (0.278, 17th NCAA)
3. Match W-L Pctg. (0.680, 78th NCAA)
3. Opp Hitting Percentage (0.203, 147th NCAA)
UTEP has four players ranked in the top 10 in four categories in the conference:
Statistic |
Player |
CUSA Rank |
Value |
|
Blocks per Set
|
2
3
|
1.19*
1.12
|
|
|
Total Service Aces
|
6
|
31
|
|
|
Total Blocks
|
2
3
|
108**
93*
|
|
|
Total Digs
|
4
|
293
|
** NCAA Top 30
* NCAA Top 100
* NCAA Top 100
THE OPPONENT
Chicago State
- Chicago St. is entering the weekend at 11-5. The team is ranked in the top 50 nationally in three team statistics – No. 33 opponent hitting percentage (0.166), No. 43. Assists per set (12.53) and No. 50 kills per set (13.36).
- The Cougars are hitting .178 as a team, and four players have at least 100 kills. Yanlis Feliz easily leads the way with 345 kills (4.37/set). Jaclyn Inclan (413) and Yunju Lee (365) direct the offense with a combined 4.72 assists per set. Andrea Calderon paces the squad with 326 digs (4.02/set).
- Four players rank in the top 100 nationally.
- Patrycja Lagida: 16th – aces per set (0.54), 50th – points per set (4.44), 65th – attacks per set (10.37), 68th – kills per set (3.73)
- Yanlis Feliz: 18th – kills per set (4.38), 25th – points per set (4.81), 42nd – attacks per set (10.79)
- Wiktoria Zagummy: 14th – assists per set (10.66)
- Berenice Almeyda: 89th – hitting percentage (0.352)
- Head Coach Tony Trifonov boasts a career record of 414-258, including his 21 seasons with Florida A&M. Trifonov has a 36-40 record in his four seasons at the helm in Chicago.
- Tuesday will be the first meeting between the Miners and the Cougars.
Give a gift to UTEP Women's Volleyball by donating to the Point Miners Club.
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