PORTALES, N.M. — The Eastern New Mexico volleyball team will be traveling to San Marcos, Calif. to play four matches against Saint Martin’s, Azusa Pacific, Bentley and Cal State San Marcos at the 2019 Cougar Classic Friday and Saturday.
The Hounds begin the tournament with Saint Martin’s on Friday at 10 a.m. and take on Azusa Pacific at 5 p.m. later that day. On Saturday, Eastern takes the floor against Bentley at 2 p.m. and wraps-up the West Coast road trip with host CSU San Marcos at 7 p.m.
2019 PRESEASON STORY LINES
The Hounds return a deep and talented roster, headlined by junior outside hitter Jasmine Gannon. The Clovis, N.M. product shined in her first season playing on the outside, recording a team-best 384 kills and scored 424 points. The All-LSC performer became just the second Greyhound in the last 10 seasons to record more than 400 points in a single season, joining Laura Frye who did it twice in 2016 and 2017.
Eastern will also look forward to the return of outside and opposite side hitter Sara Tuioti-Mariner, who missed half of the 2018 season due to injury. The senior from Corona, Calif. recorded a blistering 122 kills through the first 11 matches of the season. Tuioti-Mariner tallied double-digit kills in all but two matches, including a career-high 20 kills on a .409 attack percentage against Lubbock Christian.
LAST SEASON
The Greyhounds qualified for the Lone Star Conference Tournament for the sixth consecutive year after going 7-13 in conference play last season.
Outside hitter Jasmine Gannon took home All-Lone Star Conference First Team honors after finishing second in the league with 384 kills on a 3.31 kills per set ratio. Gannon was also an LSC All-Academic Team recipient along with teammate Jennifer Martinez. Senior libero Alba Ontiveros tied Hayley Couch’s single season record of 537 digs for the eighth-most in a single season in program history. Senior setter Kaitlyn Kluna also found herself in the ENMU record books after closing out her Greyhounds career with 1,730 assists, setting the sixth-most career assists in program history.
SCOUTING THE SAINTS
Head coach John Killingbeck is entering his fourth season at the helm of the Saints volleyball program. Killingbeck has accumulated a 19-59 overall record during his first three seasons, including an 8-52 mark in conference play. The Saints struggled against conference opponents going 2-18 in GNAC action, following a 2-4 record against non-conference competition. The St. Martin’s attack will be headlined by senior right side and outside hitter Ililani Kamaka, who finished third on the team with 213 kills at 2.57 kills per set. The Saints are also returning their starting setter Alyssa Bartlett, who recorded 732 assists at 7.71 assists per set as a freshman. SMU also returns its top blocker at the net in Annika Briggs, who recorded 47 blocks a season ago.
SCOUTING THE APU COUGARS
Head coach Chris Keife is entering his 16th season with the Cougars. Last season, Keife guided APU to the program’s first ever PacWest Championship after the squad finished the season with a 20-2 mark in conference play. In his illustrious coaching career, Keife has compiled a 340-161 (.678) record, which includes a 182-102 (.640) record in PacWest play. The reigning PacWest champions return a talented roster from a season ago that includes D2CCA All-West Region First Team middle blocker Julianne Miller. The senior recorded 122 total blocks while also finishing second on the team with 297 kills. The Cougars also return their top attacker in Katarina Radisic. The sophomore outside hitter tallied 299 kills, averaging 2.79 kills per set.
SCOUTING THE FALCONS
The Falcons are led by head coach Joey Pacis. In his sixth season at BU, the Falcons went 78-67 and 47-23 in NE10 play. In his first year with Bentley, Pacis was named the NE10 Coach of the Year after leading the Falcons to a share of the NE10 regular season championship. Pacis has been a head coach at the NCAA Division II level for 14 seasons, compiling a 195-183 mark between his stints at Merrimack and Bentley. Bentley brings back its top all-around player from a season ago in middle blocker Rachel Bruno. The senior led the team with 255 kills at a 2.58 kills per set ratio as well as finishing as the Falcons top blocker with 83 total blocks.
SCOUTING THE CSUSM COUGARS
After being named the first coach in the program’s history, the Cougars are led by head coach Andrea Leonard. Entering her ninth season at the helm, Leonard has accumulated a 160-105 (.603) record and a 252-231 (.522) mark in her 14-year coaching career that includes a six-year stop at Boston College. The Cougars return All-CCAA Second Team honoree Maddy Newcombe. The senior outside hitter and middle blocker led the team with 249 kills, averaging 2.68 kills per set. CSUSM is also returning starting libero Grecia Cordero-Barr, who led the squad with 339 digs at a 4.40 digs per set ratio.
HISTORY WITH THE OPPONENTS
The Greyhounds will be playing Saint Martin’s, Azusa Pacific, Bentley and Cal State San Marcos for the first time in program history.
