Pac-12 Rewind: A Look at the League Heading into Conference Action

  0 Jil Price Igara | September 19th, 2018 | College - Women's Indoor, News, Pac 12

When you think of the Pac-12 this season, one word comes to mind. Competitive.

The conference leads the nation with 8 nationally ranked teams and 1 on the cusp of the Top 25. 2nd-ranked Stanford leads the way, followed by 10th-ranked USC, 14th-ranked Washington, 15th-ranked UCLA, 16th-ranked Oregon, 21st-ranked Washington State, 24th-ranked Oregon State, 25th-ranked Utah and RV Colorado.

The Cardinal were selected preseason favorite by VolleyMob followed by USC, but truly predicting how this ultra-competitive league will shake out is nearly impossible.

Standings

Teams Conference Overall
Arizona 0-0 11-1
Washington State 0-0 9-1
Stanford 0-0 8-1
Oregon State 0-0 10-2
Washington 0-0 8-2
Arizona State 0-0 9-3
California 0-0 8-3
Colorado 0-0 8-3
USC 0-0 8-3
Utah 0-0 8-3
UCLA 0-0 5-2
Oregon 0-0 7-3

VolleyMob Rankings

  • #2 Stanford
  • #10 USC
  • #14 Washington
  • #15 UCLA
  • #16 Oregon
  • #21 Washington State
  • #24 Oregon State
  • #25 Utah
  • RV Colorado

Week 1 Schedule

Date Matchup Location Time
Wednesday, Sept. 19 #25 Utah at RV Colorado Boulder, Colo. 9 p.m.
#2 Stanford at California Berkeley, Calif. 11 p.m.
#15 UCLA at #10 USC Los Angeles, Calif. 11 p.m.
Thursday, Sept. 20 #24 Oregon State at #16 Oregon Eugene, Ore. 9 p.m.
Arizona State at Arizona Tucson, Ariz. 10 p.m.
#21 Washington State at #14 Washington Seattle, Wash. 11 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 21 #15 UCLA at #25 Utah Salt Lake City, Utah 9 p.m.
Sunday, Sept. 23 Arizona at #2 Stanford Stanford, Calif. 3 p.m.
#10 USC at RV Colorado Boulder, Colo. 3 p.m.
#21 Washington State at #16 Oregon Eugene, Ore. 3 p.m.
Arizona State at California Berkeley, Calif. 5 p.m.
#14 Washington at #24 Oregon State Corvallis, Ore. 5 p.m.

Breakdown

Arizona: The Wildcats, chosen to finish 10th in the Pac-12 this year, are off to their best start since 2014.

  • Arizona has cruised to an 11-1 non-conference record, its best start to a season since opening 2014 with a 14-1 mark. The Wildcats finished that year with an NCAA second round appearance.
  • The Wildcats have yet to face a ranked foe this year, though, and will find out where they really stand during the Pac-12 section of the season.
  • Key Players:
    • Kendra Dahlke leads Arizona offensively, registering 216 kills (5.40). The next most productive offensive threat is Paige Whipple, who has 105 kills on the season (2.84).
    • Julia Patterson distributes 11.47 assists per set, while Devyn Cross averages 1.17 blocks per set.

Arizona State: The Sun Devils are one win from equaling last year’s win total (10) under newly appointed head coach Sanja Tomasevic.

  • Arizona State, which was picked to finish 11th in the Pac-12 this year, begins the conference slate with a 9-3 mark.
  • The Sun Devils have yet to face a ranked opponent and will have their work cut out for them in the Pac-12, as Arizona State went 0-20 last season in conference play.
  • Key Players:
    • Ivana Jeremic has compiled 156 kills this season, averaging 3.80 kills per set.
    • Courtney Leffel leads the defense with 190 digs for a 4.32 digs per set average.

California: After being slotted to finish last in the Pac-12, the Golden Bears are off to a strong start with an 8-3 record.

  • California will have its hands full in Pac-12 action, as it has yet to face a ranked opponent this season.
  • The Golden Bears won just 13 matches, 4 in conference play, last year.
  • Key Players:
    • Mima Kirkovic leads the team in kills (131, 3.20 per set) and digs (158, 3.85 per set).
    • Preslie Anderson is hitting at a .404 clip with 80 kills.

RV Colorado: The Buffaloes are on the cusp of entering the Top 25 with an 8-3 record so far.

  • Colorado is streaking into conference play, downing 5-straight opponents: Oklahoma, Indiana State, Portland State, Oklahoma and North Carolina.
  • The Buffaloes, who were selected to finish 6th in the Pac-12 preseason poll, are looking to build upon last year’s Sweet 16 finish.
  • Key Players:

#16 Oregon: The Ducks have challenged themselves with 4 matches against Top 5 programs, which will prepare them well for the Pac-12 season.

  • Oregon, which was selected to finish 4th in the preseason, have played their way to a 7-3 record.
  • The Ducks’ only losses came to Texas (3-1), Nebraska (3-0) and Penn State (3-0).
  • Key Players:

#24 Oregon State: Fresh into the rankings this week, 24th-ranked Oregon State bring a 5-match win streak into conference play.

  • The Beavers have earned ranked wins over Iowa State (3-2) and San Diego (3-2) in the pre-conference slate.
  • Oregon State will be challenged right away with a Pac-12-opener against 16th-ranked Oregon and a second matchup against 14th-ranked Washington.
  • Key Players:
    • Maddie Goings (3.36 kills per set) and Amy Underdown (3.32 kills per set) pace the offense for the Beavers.
    • Gracey Massey logs an average of 4.70 digs per set to anchor the back line.

#2 Stanford: After a challenging pre-conference slate, the defending Pac-12 champion is living up to all the hype.

  • The preseason favorite Cardinal have compiled an 8-1 mark in non-conference play, knocking off Penn State (3-0), Minnesota (3-1) and Texas twice (3-0, 3-1) along the way.
  • Stanford’s lone loss came to now top-ranked BYU. All that experience will help the Cardinal as they go through the Pac-12 gauntlet.
  • Key Players:
    • Kathryn Plummer, reigning national player of the year, accounts for 29 percent (131 of 454 kills) of Stanford’s offensive output.
    • Jenna Gray guides the offense, averaging 12.32 assists per set, while Tami Alade is averaging 1.63 blocks per set to lead the defense.

#15 UCLA: The Bruins have faced a difficult schedule to prepare for the grueling Pac-12 season and have risen to 15th nationally.

  • UCLA is 5-2 on the young season, securing wins over Baylor (3-2) and San Diego (3-2). Its only losses came to Cal Poly, both in 4 sets.
  • The Bruins, which made it to the Sweet 16 last year before bowing out to national runner-up Florida, were slotted to finish 3rd in Pac-12 preseason projections.
  • Key Players:

#10 USC: The Trojans emerge from a difficult non-conference slate on a 3-match win streak and are prepared to face the tough Pac-12 schedule.

  • USC, which was chosen to finish runner-up to defending champion Stanford, has compiled an 8-3 mark.
  • The Trojans have registered wins against Kentucky (3-1), Northern Iowa (3-0), Creighton (3-2), Florida (3-1) and San Diego (3-0). Two of their 3 losses came to nationally ranked opponents in BYU and Marquette.
  • Key Players:
    • Brooke Botkin (186, 4.43 per set) and Khalia Lanier (172, 4.10 per set) share the bulk of the offensive load for USC.
    • Raquel Lazaro leads the offense, with 471 assists (11.21 per set) on the season.

#25 Utah: The Utes received votes in the preseason and worked their way into the rankings with a 5-1 start. They have remained in the Top 25 with an 8-3 non-conference record.

  • Utah has challenged itself, facing two ranked foes, including BYU (L, 3-0) and Iowa State (W, 3-0).
  • The Utes were chosen to finish 8th in the standings and are looking to improve upon last year’s Sweet 16 result.
  • Key Players:
    • Dani Drews (160 kills, 3.90 per set) and Lauga Gauta (148 kills, 3.61 per set) lead the team offensively.
    • Grace Phoebe leads the blocking attack, averaging 1.23 per set.

#14 Washington: The Huskies have built a strong resume with 8 wins in the non-conference slate against tough opponents.

  • Washington, which was projected to finish 5th in the Pac-12, is 8-2 on the season entering conference play.
  • The Huskies’ lone losses came to two teams who are still undefeated, Illinois (3-1) and Pittsburgh (3-0).
  • Key Players:
    • Kara Bajema averages a team-high 3.67 kills per set, while Avie Niece leads the way with a .400 attack percentage.
    • Ella May Powell has dished out an average of 10.36 assists per set this season.

#21 Washington State: The Cougars opened the season with 9 wins in a row before stubbing their toes in 5 sets against East Tennessee State.

  • Washington State faced nationally ranked Northern Iowa twice early in the season and registered a pair of wins in 4 sets.
  • The 25th-ranked Cougars will see how they stack up with the league’s best as it starts the Pac-12 slate with matchups against 14th-ranked Washington and 16th-ranked Oregon.
  • Key Players:
    • Taylor Mims paces the Cougars offensively with 147 kills (3.97 kills per set). She owns a .296 attack percentage, while also averaging 2.19 digs per set.
    • Ella Lajos averages 1.3 blocks and 2.27 kills per set, while hitting .318.

Statistically Speaking

RK
1 Arizona 12 43 644 14.98 231 1586 .260 579 13.47 49 1.14 666 15.49 24 160 104 2.42 797.0 18.5
2 Arizona State 12 44 564 12.82 220 1530 .225 528 12.00 61 1.39 725 16.48 40 119 100 2.26 724.5 16.5
3 California 11 41 561 13.68 213 1423 .245 525 12.80 57 1.39 620 15.12 21 132 87 2.12 705.0 17.2
4 Colorado 11 39 528 13.54 202 1272 .256 487 12.49 39 1.00 543 13.92 18 159 98 2.50 664.5 17.0
5 Oregon 10 34 504 14.82 164 1280 .266 477 14.03 61 1.79 557 16.38 10 135 78 2.28 642.5 18.9
6 Oregon State 12 47 602 12.81 271 1752 .189 572 12.17 61 1.30 723 15.38 23 252 149 3.17 812.0 17.3
7 Stanford 9 31 454 14.65 139 1026 .307 427 13.77 41 1.32 384 12.39 9 178 98 3.16 593.0 19.1
8 UCLA 7 30 371 12.37 136 1085 .217 363 12.10 31 1.03 526 17.53 27 106 80 2.67 482.0 16.1
9 USC 11 42 582 13.86 184 1545 .258 540 12.86 68 1.62 667 15.88 7 155 85 2.01 734.5 17.5
10 Utah 11 43 611 14.21 207 1464 .276 574 13.35 68 1.58 606 14.09 10 160 90 2.09 769.0 17.9
11 Washington 10 36 475 13.19 191 1212 .234 446 12.39 65 1.81 470 13.06 18 135 86 2.38 625.5 17.4
12 Washington State 10 37 498 13.46 149 1220 .286 458 12.38 59 1.59 507 13.70 10 185 103 2.77 659.5 17.8

Individual Stats

Kills

RK
1 K Dahlke Arizona 11 40 216 5.40 65 530 .285 6 0.15 3 0.07 123 3.08 3 9 12 0.30 226.5 5.7
2 B Botkin USC 11 42 186 4.43 62 478 .259 2 0.05 8 0.19 109 2.60 0 17 17 0.40 202.5 4.8
3 K Lanier USC 11 42 172 4.10 57 485 .237 4 0.10 15 0.36 103 2.45 0 13 13 0.31 193.5 4.6
4 D Drews Utah 11 41 160 3.90 63 392 .247 3 0.07 21 0.51 113 2.76 1 18 19 0.46 191.0 4.7
5 M Goings Oregon State 12 47 158 3.36 79 465 .170 3 0.06 7 0.15 115 2.45 6 20 26 0.55 181.0 3.9
6 I Jeremic Arizona State 11 41 156 3.80 52 414 .251 6 0.15 6 0.15 117 2.85 6 18 24 0.59 177.0 4.3
6 A Underdown Oregon State 12 47 156 3.32 64 451 .204 5 0.11 14 0.30 126 2.68 3 26 29 0.62 186.0 4.0
8 L Gauta Utah 11 41 148 3.61 53 352 .270 7 0.17 8 0.20 94 2.29 0 10 10 0.24 161.0 3.9
9 T Mims Washington State 10 37 147 3.97 37 372 .296 6 0.16 10 0.27 81 2.19 5 17 22 0.59 170.5 4.6
10 A Smith Colorado 11 39 146 3.74 59 379 .230 8 0.21 8 0.21 97 2.49 5 20 25 0.64 169.0 4.3

Attack Percentage

RK
1 S Gill Oregon 10 34 68 2.00 13 133 .414 2 0.06 0 0.00 2 0.06 2 27 29 0.85 83.5 2.5
2 P Anderson California 11 41 80 1.95 15 161 .404 3 0.07 8 0.20 32 0.78 4 33 37 0.90 108.5 2.6
3 M Beedie Arizona State 12 43 87 2.02 19 173 .393 2 0.05 10 0.23 14 0.33 8 22 30 0.70 116.0 2.7
4 J Urias Washington State 10 37 79 2.14 16 163 .387 2 0.05 7 0.19 23 0.62 0 45 45 1.22 108.5 2.9
5 P Grace Utah 11 43 85 1.98 15 182 .385 1 0.02 2 0.05 9 0.21 4 49 53 1.23 115.5 2.7
6 A Fitzmorris Stanford 9 31 93 3.00 20 191 .382 1 0.03 1 0.03 7 0.23 1 30 31 1.00 110.0 3.5
7 T Alade Stanford 8 27 59 2.19 15 117 .376 0 0.00 0 0.00 2 0.07 3 41 44 1.63 82.5 3.1
8 M Gates UCLA 7 30 70 2.33 13 159 .358 4 0.13 0 0.00 10 0.33 9 28 37 1.23 93.0 3.1
9 M Yett Utah 9 24 47 1.96 11 103 .350 1 0.04 3 0.13 29 1.21 0 12 12 0.50 56.0 2.3
10 D Cross Arizona 12 42 98 2.33 27 204 .348 8 0.19 1 0.02 20 0.48 6 43 49 1.17 126.5 3.0

Assists

RK
1 A Raskie Oregon 10 34 32 0.94 11 72 .292 420 12.35 9 0.26 84 2.47 1 16 17 0.50 50.0 1.5
2 J Gray Stanford 9 31 15 0.48 5 39 .256 382 12.32 14 0.45 40 1.29 1 22 23 0.74 41.0 1.3
3 J Patterson Arizona 12 43 30 0.70 7 64 .359 493 11.47 12 0.28 98 2.28 3 20 23 0.53 55.0 1.3
4 R Lazaro USC 11 42 6 0.14 3 33 .091 471 11.21 11 0.26 109 2.60 1 30 31 0.74 33.0 0.8
5 A Brown Washington State 10 37 20 0.54 4 50 .320 391 10.57 13 0.35 85 2.30 1 11 12 0.32 39.5 1.1
6 S Dobmeier Arizona State 6 22 5 0.23 5 18 .000 228 10.36 2 0.09 72 3.27 0 11 11 0.50 12.5 0.6
7 E Powell Washington 10 36 20 0.56 7 55 .236 373 10.36 9 0.25 77 2.14 2 17 19 0.53 39.5 1.1
8 B Choy Utah 11 43 17 0.40 10 55 .127 425 9.88 9 0.21 106 2.47 0 10 10 0.23 31.0 0.7
9 M Sheehan Oregon State 12 41 16 0.39 6 55 .182 375 9.15 12 0.29 81 1.98 1 25 26 0.63 41.5 1.0
10 D Chang UCLA 7 27 6 0.22 2 13 .308 245 9.07 3 0.11 76 2.81 4 10 14 0.52 18.0 0.7

Digs

RK
1 G Massey Oregon State 12 47 2 0.04 0 2 1.000 33 0.70 14 0.30 221 4.70 0 0 0 0.00 16.0 0.3
2 V Garrick USC 11 42 1 0.02 0 7 .143 43 1.02 13 0.31 200 4.76 0 0 0 0.00 14.0 0.3
3 C Leffel Arizona State 12 44 1 0.02 1 2 .000 39 0.89 9 0.20 190 4.32 0 0 0 0.00 10.0 0.2
4 M Mirkovic California 11 41 131 3.20 42 336 .265 7 0.17 14 0.34 158 3.85 0 12 12 0.29 151.0 3.7
5 M Martin Arizona 11 39 1 0.03 0 2 .500 42 1.08 11 0.28 153 3.92 0 0 0 0.00 12.0 0.3
6 B Nuneviller Oregon 10 34 0 0.00 2 6 -.333 10 0.29 8 0.24 151 4.44 0 0 0 0.00 8.0 0.2
7 M Hentz Stanford 9 31 0 0.00 0 1 .000 21 0.68 4 0.13 149 4.81 0 0 0 0.00 4.0 0.1
8 S McPherson Washington 10 36 0 0.00 0 1 .000 34 0.94 8 0.22 147 4.08 0 0 0 0.00 8.0 0.2
9 A Dirige Washington State 10 36 0 0.00 0 0 – 43 1.19 4 0.11 146 4.06 0 0 0 0.00 4.0 0.1
10 B Doehrmann Utah 11 41 2 0.05 0 2 1.000 43 1.05 7 0.17 143 3.49 0 0 0 0.00 9.0 0.2

Blocks

RK
1 T Alade Stanford 8 27 59 2.19 15 117 .376 0 0.00 0 0.00 2 0.07 3 41 44 1.63 82.5 3.1
2 L Schell Oregon State 12 40 71 1.77 30 181 .227 0 0.00 0 0.00 4 0.10 6 51 57 1.43 102.5 2.6
3 J Gross USC 11 42 65 1.55 20 170 .265 4 0.10 4 0.10 23 0.55 2 55 57 1.36 98.5 2.3
4 E Lajos Washington State 10 37 84 2.27 27 179 .318 2 0.05 0 0.00 6 0.16 1 47 48 1.30 108.5 2.9
5 R Stone Oregon 10 34 106 3.12 31 216 .347 2 0.06 8 0.24 32 0.94 4 40 44 1.29 138.0 4.1
6 M Gravley Oregon State 12 45 77 1.71 23 208 .260 2 0.04 0 0.00 8 0.18 4 53 57 1.27 107.5 2.4
7 C Martin Washington State 10 37 54 1.46 28 142 .183 1 0.03 0 0.00 13 0.35 2 44 46 1.24 78.0 2.1
8 H Campbell Stanford 9 30 47 1.57 20 109 .248 1 0.03 0 0.00 4 0.13 0 37 37 1.23 65.5 2.2
8 M Gates UCLA 7 30 70 2.33 13 159 .358 4 0.13 0 0.00 10 0.33 9 28 37 1.23 93.0 3.1
10 P Grace Utah 11 43 85 1.98 15 182 .385 1 0.02 2 0.05 9 0.21 4 49 53 1.23 115.5 2.7

Service Aces

RK
1 B Van Sickle Oregon 10 34 19 0.56 12 80 .087 6 0.18 18 0.53 69 2.03 0 1 1 0.03 37.5 1.1
2 D Drews Utah 11 41 160 3.90 63 392 .247 3 0.07 21 0.51 113 2.76 1 18 19 0.46 191.0 4.7
3 D Julye Washington 10 31 66 2.13 20 175 .263 2 0.06 15 0.48 30 0.97 3 21 24 0.77 94.5 3.0
4 J Gray Stanford 9 31 15 0.48 5 39 .256 382 12.32 14 0.45 40 1.29 1 22 23 0.74 41.0 1.3
5 P Tusa Washington State 9 32 6 0.19 2 28 .143 4 0.13 14 0.44 55 1.72 0 0 0 0.00 20.0 0.6
6 K Plummer Stanford 9 30 131 4.37 44 287 .303 9 0.30 12 0.40 62 2.07 2 21 23 0.77 155.5 5.2
7 K Lanier USC 11 42 172 4.10 57 485 .237 4 0.10 15 0.36 103 2.45 0 13 13 0.31 193.5 4.6
8 S Drechsel Washington 10 34 97 2.85 54 266 .162 3 0.09 12 0.35 23 0.68 2 17 19 0.56 119.5 3.5
9 A Brown Washington State 10 37 20 0.54 4 50 .320 391 10.57 13 0.35 85 2.30 1 11 12 0.32 39.5 1.1
10 P Denton Arizona State 8 20 0 0.00 0 0 – 0 0.00 7 0.35 11 0.55 0 0 0 0.00 7.0 0.3

 

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