Women's Volleyball 11/29/2021 12:00:00 PM

Women's Volleyball Notes -- Week 14

WEEK 14
The historic season for the OUAZ women's volleyball team will continue on Tuesday when the Spirit make their first appearance at the NAIA National Championship Final Site. As the No. 3 seed in Pool H, OUAZ will play both of its matches on Tuesday, starting against Corban at 11:30 a.m. (AZ). The Spirit will then face Bellevue at 6 p.m. (AZ).

All 24 teams that remain will play two pool play matches at the Tyson Events Center in Sioux City, Iowa, on Tuesday and Wednesday. The winner of each pool advance to single-elimination bracket play starting on Thursday.

OUAZ enters pool play with a 26-2 record and riding a program-record 14-match winning streak. The Spirit went 17-1 in GSAC play to win the program's first-ever conference title. They recorded a 10-1 record in matches played away from home and have won six straight outside Faith Arena.

OUAZ has never faced Corban in the Spirit's five-year history.

The Spirit defeated Bellevue in five sets at Faith Arena during the OUAZ Invitational in September. That is the only previous meeting between the two programs.

HOW TO FOLLOW
Every pool play match will be broadcast live on the NAIA Network, which is available at OUAZSpirit.com/naiawvball. The NAIA Network is also available on all Amazon Fire, Android TV, Apple TV, Roku devices.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS
OUAZ moved up three spots to No. 16 in the final edition of the 2021 NAIA Women's Volleyball Coaches Top 25 Poll released on November 10. The team was awarded 301 points from the voters to climb to its highest ranking in program history.

The current winning streak of 14 straight matches is the longest in program history. The previous record was nine consecutive wins that they established earlier this season. Along with setting the program record for longest winning streak, the 26 wins overall is also a new program record. The previous record was 17 set during the 2018 season.

OUAZ has seen a wealth of success in matches that go the distance, recording an 8-1 record in matches that end in five sets. They are 12-1 in five-set matches over the past two seasons while winning 13 of the last 14 matches to go to a deciding set.

The Spirit is also 3-0 this season when they lose the first two sets of a match. They first rallied for a win after losing the first two sets to then-No. 12 Bellevue on September 10. OUAZ completed the comeback again at The Master's on October 30 and at San Diego Christian on November 12. Entering the season, the Spirit had a 2-38 record when trailing a match 2-0.

At 12.84 kills per set, OUAZ currently leads the GSAC and ranks 33rd in the NAIA. The Spirit has recorded more kills than its opponents in 25 matches this year. They have also had a higher percentage in 24 matches while hitting .204 overall to lead the conference.

The Spirit also leads the GSAC and is ranked 27th in the NAIA by averaging 2.01 service aces per set. The team is third in the conference, with an average of 17.65 digs per set, which is 37th nationally. Add in the 1.70 blocks per set, and OUAZ holds the opposition to .113 hitting.

Kate Pestova has tallied 472 kills on the season, and she leads the conference in both total kills and at 4.29 kills per set. Her kills per set average are ninth in the NAIA heading into the final site.

Pestova has reached double figures in kills 27 times this season and in 43 of the 44 matches she has played at OUAZ.
Pestova became the OUAZ career leader in kills in the win at Westmont on October 29, and her total is currently at 718. She has also set the single-season record this year.
She has recorded 13 double-doubles and has two matches this season – and three in her OUAZ career – with 20-plus kills and 20-plus digs.

Cristal Carrizoza was named the GSAC Player of the Year after running the OUAZ offense to its highest averages in program history.

She leads the GSAC with 1,1104 total assists and averages 10.04 assists per set – 25th in the NAIA.
Carrizoza is the only player in program history to surpass 1,000 career assists, and she enters Sioux City with 1,453 at OUAZ. She also became the single-season program leader in the win over Life Pacific on November 6.
Carrizoza has been an added weapon at the service line, where her 69 aces are the most in the NAIA this season, and she is 11th by posting 0.63 aces per set.
She holds the OUAZ career record with 104 career aces, and this season's 68 aces are the single-season record.

Valentina Trovato leads the Spirit with 473 digs – third-most in the GSAC – averaging 4.31 digs per set.

That average ranks third in the conference.
Trovato has reached double figures in digs 22 times this season and 34 times in her OUAZ career.
She enters the final site with the single season dig record and her 816 career digs are 38 shy of the OUAZ career record of 854.

Avie Butsko is hitting a team-best .259 to place second in the conference.

Butsko has been in double figures in kills ten times this season and 27 times at OUAZ.
She currently ranks 16th in the conference with 219 kills and fourth with 78 blocks.

Chelsea Taylor has recorded 90 blocks to rank second in the GSAC in the category. She has tallied at least three blocks in a match 18 times this season.

Her 0.88 blocks per set ranks fourth in the conference.
Taylor set the program record for blocks in a single season against Life Pacific on November 6.

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Players Mentioned

#14 Avie Butsko: MB; 5' 11"; Senior

#17 Cristal Carrizoza: S; 5' 9"; Junior

#13 Kate Pestova: OH; 5' 10"; Senior

#18 Chelsea Taylor: MB/OPP; 5' 11"; Senior

#2 Valentina Trovato: L; 5' 6"; Senior

Players Mentioned

#14 Avie Butsko
: 5' 11"; Senior
: MB

#17 Cristal Carrizoza
: 5' 9"; Junior
: S

#13 Kate Pestova
: 5' 10"; Senior
: OH

#18 Chelsea Taylor
: 5' 11"; Senior
: MB/OPP

#2 Valentina Trovato
: 5' 6"; Senior
: L