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BENGAL OVERVIEW
Idaho State volleyball (22-7, 16-4 BSC) finished second in the Big Sky regular season, earning the No. 2 seed at the 2012 Big Sky Conference Championship. The Bengals have earned a bye to the semifinal and will face the lowest remaining seed from Friday's quarterfinal matches. No. 6 Montana State faces No. 3 Northern Arizona in the first match at 9 a.m. and No. 4 Northern Colorado takes on No. 5 North Dakota in the second quarterfinal at 11 a.m. ISU tentatively plays the first semifinal game at 4:30 p.m. Friday. If ISU advances, the team plays the winner of the second semifinal Saturday at 7 p.m. for the tournament title.
ABOUT IDAHO STATE
The Bengals are 22-7 overall and 16-4 in conference play on the season after falling to Eastern Washington and Portland State last weekend. Redshirt freshman outside hitter
Tressa Lyman leads the Bengals in kills, averaging 3.11 per set. Junior setter Lori Mendenhall leads the assist effort with 1200 assists and leads the conference with 11.33 assists per set. Redshirt senior
Jaclyn Hone-Hawkins leads ISU in blocks with 115 this season while redshirt sophomore Kylee Searle leads in digs with 3.42 per set. Senior
Breanne Van Every leads ISU in service aces with 32.
As a team, the Bengals are leading the conference in assists (12.95), kills (13.83) and second in hitting percentage (.244).
Nationally, the Bengals are ranked 53rd in assists per set, 38th in win-loss percentage, 55th in kills per set, 48th in hitting percentage, 74th in aces per set and 63rd in blocks per set. Mendenhall is 22nd in the nation individually in assists per set.
BIG SKY TOURNAMENT TITLE ON THE LINE
Idaho State is looking for its fourth conference tournament title and its second as a member of the Big Sky Conference. Idaho State won conference tournament titles as part of the MWAC in 1986 and 1987. ISU's only Big Sky Conference Tournament crown came in 1990. If ISU wins this year's tournament title, the team will make its fourth trip to the NCAA Tournament.
BENGALS IN THE POSTSEASON
ISU has secured the No. 2 seed in the 2012 Banner Health North Colorado Medical Center Big Sky Volleyball Championship in Greeley, Colo. This is ISU's ninth conference tournament appearance as ISU has made it to postseason play in 1990, 1991, 1994, 1995, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2010. ISU's last appearance was in 2010 where the Bengals fell in the semifinals to Northern Colorado in a 3-2 decision.
LAST WEEK IN BENGAL VOLLEYBALL
Last week, Idaho State went 0-2 on the road with losses to Eastern Washington and Portland State, earning a second-place finish in Big Sky play. Against EWU, ISU played without its starting setter, Lori Mendenhall, as the Bengals fell to the Eagles 3-1. Senior outside hitter
Breanne Van Every led the Bengals with a double-double of 16 kills and 17 digs. Mendenhall was back in action Saturday against a Portland State team that had not lost a single Big Sky contest at home at the Stott Center. PSU kept its home conference record intact as the Vikings downed ISU 3-1, earning the regular season title. Van Every led ISU again with another double-double coming from 16 kills and 14 digs.
A SEASON FOR THE RECORD BOOKS
With a 10-0 home record, the Bengals recorded their first undefeated home campaign since 1987 when head coach Jim Cherniss led the Bengals to a 15-0 record at home. It is just the second time ISU has had an undefeated home season. With 22 total wins, this season is tied for fifth for the most single-season wins in program history. If the team wins two more, this season will be third for most wins in a season with 24. The winningest season was recorded in 1987 when Jim Cherniss led ISU to a 31-5 finish. ISU Head Coach
Chad Teichert currently has 44 career Big Sky wins and two away from tying Jon Potter's record of 46 which he will more than likely meet next season.
HONE-HAWKINS CLOSING IN ON CAREER 1,000s
Redshirt senior
Jaclyn Hone-Hawkins has broken the 1,000-point barrier as she has now tallied 1,144.5 points throughout her career. Against Weber State she recorded her 1,000th career dig and now has a grand total to 1,033. She currently has 955 total kills, 45 away from 1,000. To become a member of the triple crown club, a player needs 1,000 points, 1,000 digs and 1,000 kills.
BENGAL STANDOUT: LORI MENDENHALL
So far this season, junior setter Lori Mendenhall has been named Big Sky Player of the Week twice (9/17 and 9/10). After leading ISU to a Kesier Classic title, she was also named tournament MVP. Against NAU (9/14), Mendenhall recorded a career-high 62 assists on her way to a double-double with 12 digs. So far this season she has recorded 1200 total assists as well as 94 kills, 22 service aces, 276 digs and 45 blocks.
VAN EVERY NAMED SENIOR CLASS AWARD CANDIDATE
Senior outside hitter
Breanne Van Every was selected as a candidate for the 2012 Senior CLASS Award. Van Every was one of 30 candidates selected from Division I teams nationwide. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence – community, classroom, character and competition. This season Van Every has tallied 305 kills, 30 service aces, 254 digs, 47 blocks and 360 total points.
SCOUTING NO. 6 MONTANA STATE
Montana State is the No. 6 seed and plays No. 3 Northern Arizona in the first quarterfinal Friday. The Bobcats finished the regular season with a 15-13 overall and 9-11 conference record. Sarah Horton is MSU's top offensive player, averaging 4.21 kills per set. Leading in assists is Jennifer Lundquist with 10.59 per set while the defensive leader, Nicole Baker, averages 3.79 digs per set. Horton leads the conference in points with a season total of 535.5. MSU is on a one-game winning streak after defeating rival Montana in a must-win situation to earn the final position in the tournament.
Idaho State has split with Montana State this season. The Bengals lost to Montana State in Bozeman 3-2 on Sept. 28 and defeated the Bobcats at home in Pocatello 3-0 on Nov. 3. ISU leads the all-time series 34-33 and is 0-1 against MSU in tournament play.
SCOUTING NO. 5 NORTH DAKOTA
North Dakota enters the tournament as the No. 5 seed and faces Northern Colorado in the second quarterfinal Friday morning. In its first season as a Big Sky Conference member, UND finished 10-10 in Big Sky action and 15-13 overall. Lexi Robinson leads UND in kills, averaging 3.29 per set while Nikki Husfeldt is the top player in assists with 10.91 per set. Lauren Clarke leads the defensive effort with 4.29 digs per set. UND has lost two straight with losses to Northern Arizona (3-2) and Southern Utah (3-2).
Idaho State swept UND this season. The Bengals defeated UND 3-1 at ISU on Sept. 22 and defeated North Dakota in Grand Forks 3-0 on Oct. 25. Idaho State leads the all-time series 2-0.
SCOUTING NO. 4 NORTHERN COLORADO
Northern Colorado has earned the fourth seed and hosts the tournament as the Bears were the regular season champion during 2011. The Bears finished the regular season with a 21-10 overall and 14-6 conference record. Kelly Arnold leads the Bears in kills, averaging 3.49 per set while Marissa Hughes leads the assist effort with 10.67 assists per set. Tambre Haddock is NC's defensive leader, averaging 3.06 digs per set. Brianna Strong leads Northern Colorado and the conference with a .375 hitting percentage.
Idaho State swept Northern Colorado this season as ISU beat the bears at home 3-2 on Sept. 21 and again in Greeley 3-0 on Oct. 27. NC leads the series between the two squads 4-14. ISU is on a 2-0 streak against the Bears and is 0-1 against NC in tournament play.
SCOUTING NO. 3 NORTHERN ARIZONA
Northern Arizona enters the tournament as the No. 3 seed and plays No. 6 Montana State in the first quarterfinal Friday. The Lumberjacks finished the regular season with a 15-5 Big Sky record and went 23-6 overall. NAU is led by Jana Vander Ploeg who averages 3.15 kills per set. Kalee Kirby leads the Lumberjacks with 11.16 assists per set while Anna Gott leads the defensive effort with 4.95 digs per set. NAU is on a one-game losing streak after falling to Northern Colorado last week.
The Bengals have split with Northern Arizona this season. The Bengals defeated the Lumberjacks 3-1 at home on Sept. 14 and lost at NAU 3-1 on Oct. 20. ISU leads the all-time series 33-27. ISU is 2-1 against NAU at neutral sites and is 1-0 against NAU in tournament action.
NO. 1 PORTLAND STATE
No. 1 seed Portland State is 21-10 overall and 17-3 in Big Sky action. The Vikings face the highest remaining seed in the second semifinal Friday night. PSU is led offensively by Jacklyn Wheeler and Garyn Schlatter. Wheeler averages 3.81 kills while Schlatter has 10.73 assists per set. Defensively, Kasimira Clark leads the Vikings and the Big Sky Conference, averaging 5.42 digs per set. Portland State is first in the conference in service aces (1.46 per set) and digs (17.19 per set).
Idaho State split with Portland State this season as the Bengals rolled past the Vikings 3-0 in Pocatello on Oct. 12 and lost to PSU 3-1 on Nov. 17 in a match that would decide the regular season title. Portland State leads the series 30-17. The Bengals are 1-1 against Portland State in Big Sky Tournament action.
We Are Your Bengals
