COMING UP: Host Cascade Conference Championships – Eastern Oregon vs. Southern Oregon, Friday, 4 p.m.; C of I vs. Concordia, Friday, 7 p.m.; Championship Match, Saturday, 3 p.m.
LAST WEEK: vs. Southern Oregon (W 3-2), vs. Oregon Tech (W 3-0)
LIVE STATS/VIDEO: Live Video and Live Stats will be available for all CCC Tournament games this weekend. For Live Stats, go to
http://zeus.collegeofidaho.edu/athlete/livestats/xlive.htm, with Live Video available at
http://www.yoteathletics.com/sports/2012/8/14/live_video.aspx?&tab=2.
7-TIME CHAMPS: With their come-from-behind victory over Southern Oregon on Friday night, the Lady Yotes secured their seventh-straight CCC regular-season championship – a conference record. The C of I won outright titles in 2006, 2008, 2011, and 2012, while sharing the crown with Southern Oregon in 2007, 2009, and 2010.
YOTES HOST CCC TOURNAMENT: By virtue of winning the regular season CCC title, The C of I has earned the host berth for the 2012 CCC Tournament, Friday and Saturday in the J.A. Albertson Activities Center. It marks the fifth time that the Lady Yotes have hosted the tournament, The C of I hosted the CCC Tournament at the conclusion of the 2006, 2008, 2009, and 2011 seasons.
TOURNAMENT INFORMATION: There will be one session per day at the tourney, with ticket prices set at $7.00 for adults, $5.00 for seniors, and children ages 5-17. Only NAIA passes will be accepted. The semifinal winners from Friday will meet for the championship on Saturday afternoon and the league's lone automatic berth to the NAIA National Championships.
WHAT'S AT STAKE: For the fifth-straight year, the winner of the CCC Tournament will receive an automatic berth to the NAIA Championships. A total of 36 teams will advance to the National Tournament, with 27 teams receiving a bid through their affiliated conference, eight teams receiving an at-large berth based on the final national poll, and one host berth. The Top-11 seeded teams (plus the host institution) will automatically move to the final site in Sioux City, Iowa, while the remaining 24 teams will play an Opening Round match at various campus sites on Nov. 17 to determine the remaining 12 spots to Sioux City. The eight at-large berths will be allotted to teams not securing their conference's automatic berth, selected in descending order by the NAIA Top-25 Poll released on Nov. 11.
QUALIFIERS ANNOUNCED: The 36 teams to advance to the NAIA National Championships will be released on Sunday evening, with the 12 teams advancing to the Final Site in Sioux City, Iowa, and the 12 Opening Round pairings to be released on Monday afternoon.
PAST TOURNAMENT CHAMPIONS: The C of I has won the last four of the past six CCC Tournaments (the event was not held in 2007), winning the tourney at Southern Oregon in 2005, and winning the tourney in Caldwell in 2006, 2008, and 2009. SOU claimed the titles in 2003, 2004, and in 2010 in Ashland, while winning the 2011 title in Caldwell, with Concordia dominating the league from 1999-02. The C of I and Southern have played for the league crown each of the past six seasons.
TOURNAMENT QUARTERFINALS: The CCC Tournament opened up Tuesday night with quarterfinal action – the first time since 2008 that the field had been expanded to six teams. Third-seed Southern Oregon rolled past No. 6 seed Warner Pacific in three sets (25-22, 25-4, 25-16), while fourth-seed Concordia needed four sets to defeat No. 5 seed Northwest Christian (25-19, 25-19, 23-25, 25-10).
ABOUT CONCORDIA: The Yotes open Friday against the Cavaliers (17-9), who come to Caldwell having won 8-of-9, including a four-set victory over The C of I last month. CU has a quality attack, led by the trio of Jackie Stein (3.42 k/s), Brianna Hogan (2.59 k/s, 0.59 b/s), and Melanie Miller (2.20 k/s, 1.80 d/s, 0.58 b/s), while setter Lindsey Mangan (10.50 a/s, 2.01 d/s) and libero Kelsey Kai (5.87 d/s) lead the league in assists and digs. The two teams split the regular season series, with the Yotes holding a 43-21 series edge.
ABOUT SOUTHERN OREGON/EASTERN OREGON: The C of I-CU winner will meet the winner of the Raiders-Mountaineers clash – as both Southern-Eastern meetings went to five sets, with the home team winning each time. SOU rebounded from a tough trip east last week by beating Warner Pacific on Tuesday, thanks to the play of hitters Natalie Scheller (2.73 k/s), Haley Kasler (2.64 k/s, 0.63 b/s), and Nikki Keller (1.56 k/s, 1.12 b/s) and libero Renee Yomtob (5.43 d/s). EOU is the hottest team in the loop, having won 10 in a row – including five five-set victories. Stefani Sorenson (3.09 k/s, 0.56 b/s) has been the go-to hitter of late, with blockers Casey Loper (2.75 k/s, 0.94 b/s) and Alisha Crane (2.06 k/s, 0.84 b/s) dangerous in the middle, as is libero Kaitlyn Duncan (5.58 d/s). The Yotes swept the season series with SOU, while Eastern and The C of I split the season series – each winning on their home floor.
YOTES CLINCH PLAYOFF BERTH: The Lady Yotes clinched their 14th-straight playoff appearance with a victory on Oct. 12 against Evergreen – their 12th-straight trip to the postseason under head coach Liz Mendiola. The C of I advanced to regional playoffs in 2001, 2003, and 2005-07, the NAIA National Tournament in 2000, 2005-06, and 2008-11, claiming CCC Tournament titles in 2005, 2006, 2008, and 2009.
CCC/NAIA POLLS: For the second-straight week, the Lady Yotes were ranked No. 15 in the Tachikara-NAIA Top-25 Coaches’ Poll, released by the NAIA sports information office. The C of I received 346 voter points from the 23 conference and unaffiliated group raters, distancing themselves from No. 16 Madonna this week. Concordia (Calif.) is the unanimous No. 1 team, followed by Texas-Brownsville, Columbia (Mo.), Biola (Calif.), and Hastings (Neb.). Two preseason opponents’ – No. 19 Cal State San Marcos and No. 21 Vanguard are in the Top-25, with three opponents’ – Lewis-Clark State, Southern Oregon, and Eastern Oregon all receiving votes. The final regular-season poll will be released on Sunday afternoon – which will determine the at-large berths to the NAIA National Championships.
HOME STREAK SAFE UNTIL 2013: For the seventh-straight year, the Lady Yotes recorded a perfect home record in CCC play, extending their home win streak in conference action to 71. Since 2005, the Lady Yotes have won 95-of-98 matches in the Activities Center, while posting a 186-39 all-time record in the building, including a sparkling 134-15 record under head coach
Liz Mendiola.
PORTER NAMED LIBERO OF THE WEEK: For her effort in the weekend wins over Southern Oregon and Oregon Tech,
Janel Porter (Eagle, Idaho / Rocky Mountain HS) was named CCC Libero of the Week for a second time this season. The junior recorded 25 digs, including keeping some crucial balls in play late in the win over SOU, then added 20 digs in the victory over OIT.
CURTIS RETURNS TO THE COURT: After missing the final 12 games of 2011 and the first 24 matches of 2012 rehabbing a horrific leg injury sustained against Eastern Oregon last year,
Madison Curtis (Meridian, Idaho / Mountain View HS) made a triumphant return to the court Saturday against Oregon Tech for Senior Night and did not disappoint. Curtis saw action in all three sets, recording four kills and adding a pair of blocks in the Coyote win.
LEAGUE LEADERS: As a team, the Lady Yotes lead the CCC in lowest opponents’ hitting percentage (.139) and blocks per set (2.18), ranking third in hitting percentage (.218), assists per set (11.63), kills per set (12.67), and aces per set (1.73). Individually, five C of I players rank among the CCC Top-10 – with
Torrey Hulsey (Sutter, Calif. / West Virginia U.) No. 3 in hitting percentage (.301), No. 8 in kills per set (2.80),and No. 9 in blocks per set (0.83), while
Jessica Peacock (Summertown, Australia / San Diego State U.) is No. 6 in kills per set (3.02), No. 8 in hitting percentage (.275), and No. 9 in aces per set (0.32).
Sierra Porter (Eagle, Idaho / Rocky Mountain HS) is No. 2 in assists per set (9.53),
Liz Myers (Middleton, Idaho / Middleton HS) is No. 3 in blocks per set (1.09), and Janel Porter is No. 6 in digs per set (4.93).
RECORD BOOK: Coyote middle blocker Liz Myers has cracked the Coyote career Top-10 list in blocks, ranking No. 8 all-time with 302, while setter Sierra Porter is No. 10 all-time with 790 assists. Libero Janel Porter is closing in on becoming the 11th member of the 1,000-dig club, with 938 digs in her three years with the Yotes.
GAME RECAP – C OF I 3, SOUTHERN OREGON 2: Down a set and trailing 8-1 in Set 4, C of I rallied behind a raucous crowd to stun Southern Oregon 20-25, 25-13, 18-25, 25-23, 15-13, to claim their seventh-straight CCC regular-season title, Friday night in the Activities Center. Leading two sets to one, the Raiders got three Haley Kasler kills in a seven-point push to open the period, and took a 17-11 lead on another Kasler spike. The Yotes fought back with a 9-1 run, keyed by two kills and three blocks from Jessica Peacock, to take a 20-18 lead. SOU was not done, as a Nikki Keller kill gave the visitors a 23-21 lead – but four straight Raider hitting errors, aided by a pair of blocks from Liz Myers, evened the match at two sets apiece. In the deciding period, a Keller-Natalie Scheller block gave Southern an 8-5 lead at the change-over, but the Coyotes evened the set up at 10-10 on a
Kylee Nawahine (Fruitland, Idaho / BYU-Hawaii) kill. After six side-outs, a kill by Peacock gave the host match point, with a great dig from Sierra Porter setting up a Nawahine kill to end the match. The match was see-saw early on, as SOU used a 10-2 run midway through Set 1 to grab the early lead, while the Lady Yotes evened the match up in Set 2 by sprinting to a 19-7 lead. Scheller had five kills in Set 3, as SOU used a 6-1 run late in the frame to take the 2-1 lead, but could not hold on. Peacock led the Yotes with 17 kills, 14 digs, and five blocks, with Torrey Hulsey logging 14 kills and four blocks. Myers had 13 kills and a team-high six blocks, while Porter had a career-high eight kills, 57 assists, and six digs. Janel Porter led the Yotes with 25 digs. Scheller led all players with 22 kills and five blocks for the Raiders, with Kasler recording 15 kills. Caryn Westrick had 30 assists and nine digs in the loss, with Renee Yomtob recording 21 digs.
GAME RECAP – C OF I 3, OREGON TECH 0: Torrey Hulsey had a match-high 10 kills and added four of 11 C of I aces, as the Lady Yotes closed out the regular-season with a 25-16, 25-16, 25-17 victory over Oregon Tech on Saturday night. Hulsey had three kills in an opening 14-5 run in Set 1 for the Yotes, but watched as OIT closed within 19-15 on a C of I hitting error. A kill and back-to-back service aces from Jessica Peacock jumpstarted a 6-1 push to close the frame. Playing in her first match since an injury midway through the 2011 season, Madison Curtis logged three kills in a five-point run midway through Set 2, as the Yotes took a 16-9 lead and cruised to the win. Set 3 was tight, featuring eight ties and six lead changes – with OIT taking a 10-7 lead on a Jennifer Saltenberger kill. Hulsey responded with three kills in a five-point Coyote run to take the lead. The Owls stayed close, closing within 16-15 on a Julie Pfeifer spike, but a six-point C of I run, including two Hulsey kills, helped the hosts clinch the victory. Peacock had nine kills and eight digs, with Liz Myers recording seven kills and three blocks in the victory. Sierra Porter had 30 assists and Janel Porter notched 20 digs for the Yotes. Kristen Walters led OIT with eight kills, with Kayleigh Whelchel recording 14 assists and Marie Baumann leading Tech with 18 digs.
ABOUT THE COACH: Liz Mendiola is in her 12th season head coach of the Lady Yotes. During her first 11 seasons at the helm, the Coyotes have advanced to 10 consecutive CCC tournaments, four NAIA regional tournaments, and trips to the NAIA National Championships in 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011. Last season, the squad won their sixth-straight CCC regular-season title and advanced to the NAIA Tournament Final Site in Sioux City, Iowa, advancing to the NAIA national quarterfinals – finishing the season ranked No. 7 in the NAIA Top-25 Coaches Poll. During her career, she has amassed a record of 282-96, the most wins and highest winning percentage in school history. In 2006, she led the Lady Yotes to their best season in program history, compiling a 35-4 record - earning CCC and NAIA Region I Coach of the Year honors. The Yotes won their first CCC championship in 24 years, becoming just the second school to complete the league schedule without a loss. The Coyotes also captured their second-straight CCC Tournament title, along with their second-straight NAIA Region I Tournament title, before placing ninth at the NAIA Championships – with that team setting a school-record with 22 straight wins. Her 2012 club will take a 62-match CCC home win streak into the season and have won 84 of their last 86 home matches. Mendiola was an assistant for the Coyotes on two separate occasions – from 1995-96 and from 1999-2000, before elevating to head coach. She has also coached club volleyball at Emmett High, for the Treasure Valley Volleyball Club, the Boise River Volleyball Club, and various camps in the Northwest. A native of Jerome, Mendiola graduated from The C of I in 1996 with a degree in elementary education, and taught kindergarten in Nampa before becoming head coach in 2001. A two-year member of the Coyotes, Mendiola set school records for kills per game (4.86) in 1994, and holds the school mark for kills per game in a career (4.46).
FOR MORE INFORMATION: For more on the Lady Yotes, visit the new official homepage of C of I volleyball,
http://www.yoteathletics.com/index.aspx?path=wvball&tab=1.
