VB11/23/2015 10:53 PM | By: Cal Athletics
Bears Close Season At Top-10 Opponents
CAL AT NO. 6 STANFORD Wednesday, Nov. 25 | 8 p.m. Venue: Maples Pavilion Location: Stanford, Calif. TV:: Pac-12 Bay Area Live Audio: CalBears.com Live Stats: CalBears.com
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CAL AT NO. 1 USC Friday, Nov. 27 | 4 p.m. Venue: Galen Center Location: Los Angeles, Calif. TV: Pac-12 Network Live Audio: CalBears.com Live Stats: CalBears.com |
The Cal volleyball team closes out the 2015 season with a pair of stern road tests. It will mark the first time this season the Bears have had to play two top-10 opponents in the same week. The Bears played the Cardinal tough in Berkeley on Sept. 22, winning one set and losing two sets by two points each. This will mark the first meeting between Cal and USC this season. Seven of the past eight matches between the teams at the Galen Center have gone five sets, including the Bears' victory last season which was their first road win at USC in 10 years.
BEAR NECESSITIES: CAL'S TOP STORYLINES, STREAKS & TRENDS
HONORS CANDIDATE LILLIAN SCHONEWISE
Senior middle blocker Lillian Schonewise is making a serious case to repeat as an All-American. An AVCA All-American Honorable Mention last season, Schonewise has taken her game to an even higher level in 2015. She enters the week ranked fifth in the Pac-12 with a .371 hitting percentage and has the most total attacks of any player ranked in the top-10. Her 3.08 kills per set average is second among all Pac-12 middle blockers. In conference matches only, when the competition is toughest, she leads all Pac-12 middle blockers at 3.30 kills per set. Her hitting percentage in Pac-12 matches is .381, which is fourth in the conference. Schonewise also has the fourth-highest career hitting percentage all-time at Cal at .323.
KERR NEARS MORE RECORDS
With 30 digs over the weekend, junior libero Maddy Kerr upped her season total to 434, which moves her into ninth-place all-time at Cal. She surpassed the 430 digs she set as a freshman in 2013. Next up on the list is the 462 digs Kerr had last season, which is eighth all-time at Cal. Kerr is now the only player in Cal history to hold three of the top-10 single-season dig marks. Kerr also now has 1,326 career digs, which is good for fifth on Cal's all-time list. She needs 81 to move into fourth. Kerr, the daughter of Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr, currently ranks sixth in the Pac-12 with an average of 4.17 digs per set. Kerr also serves as the Bears' co-captain.
HAYNES SIGNS WITH CAL
Maddie Haynes, a 6-foot-4 outside hitter from Rocklin, Calif., signed a Financial Aid Agreement earlier this month and will enroll at Cal starting with the spring semester. Haynes was a member of the U.S. Youth National Team that won the Silver Medal at the NORCECA Girls Youth Continental Championship last year. She has also been a member of the USA Volleyball A1 High Performance Team. Haynes is the No. 83 “Senior Ace” in the country, according to PrepVolleyball.com.
JENSEN CLIMBS ASSIST CHART
With 80 assists last week, junior setter Alyssa Jensen is now seventh on Cal's all-time list with 2,286 in her career. Samantha Carter is Cal's all-time leader in assists with 5,777. Jensen currently ranks fifth in the Pac-12 at 10.00 assists per set
LLOYD NAMED TO ALL-CENTURY TEAM
Former Cal star Carli Lloyd was named to the Pac-12 All-Century Team last month. The conference is celebrating its 100th year of existence and released a 16-member team that was voted on by current coaches, former playrers and members of the media. Lloyd, one of four setters named to the team, was the 2010 AVCA National Player of the Year and a three-time AVCA All-American. She led the Bears to the NCAA Final Four as a freshman in 2007 and then guided Cal to the NCAA championship match in 2010.
ABOUT NO. 6 STANFORD
• Setter Madi Bugg leads the Pac-12 at 10.94 assists per set
• FR Hayley Hodson ranks seventh in the Pac-12 at 3.80 kiills per set
• The Cardinal has won the past seven meetings between the teams
• LAST MEETING: Stanford d. Cal, 3-1 (9-22-15)
ABOUT NO. 1 USC
• The Trojans feature National Player of the Year frontrunner Samantha Bricio
• Bricio ranks second nationally in kills (5.08/set) and leads in aces (0.75/set)
• SR Alicia Ogoms leads the Pac-12 at 1.47 blocks per set
• LAST MEETING: Cal d USC, 3-2 (11-14-15)