No. 23 Utah Volleyball Opens 2017 Campaign at Bluegrass Battle

Friday, August 25

Lexington, KY

11:00 AM

University of Utah

Cincinnati

No. 23 Utah Volleyball Opens 2017 Campaign at Bluegrass Battle

8/22/2017 10:18 AM | Volleyball

Complete Match Notes (PDF)

Utes will face three teams this opening weekend

MATCH 1 \| #23 UTAH (0-0) vs. CINCINNATI (0-0)
DATE/TIME	Friday, Aug. 25 \| 11 a.m. MT
LOCATION	Memorial Coliseum \| Lexington, Ky.
LIVE STATS	www.UKathletics.com
SERIES/STREAK	Utah leads 1-0 \| Utah, Won 1
LAST MATCH	Utah 3, Cincy 2 \| 08/29/2009

MATCH 2 \| #23 UTAH (0-0) at #14 KENTUCKY (0-0)
DATE	Friday, Aug. 25 \| 7 p.m. MT
LOCATION	Memorial Coliseum \| Lexington, Ky.
TV	SEC Network / WatchESPN
LIVE STATS	www.UKathletics.com
SERIES/STREAK	First Meeting
LAST MATCH	First Meeting

MATCH 3 \| #23 UTAH (0-0) vs. ARKANSAS STATE (0-0)
DATE	Saturday, Aug. 26 \| 3 p.m. MT
LOCATION	Memorial Coliseum \| Lexington, Ky.
LIVE STATS	wwwl.UKathletics.com
SERIES/STREAK	Utah leads 1-0 \| Utah, Won 1
LAST MATCH	Utah 3, ASU 0 \| 08/26/2006

FIVE THINGS TO KNOW
• Utah went 20-12 overall, finished in a tie for fifth-place in the Pac-12 and made its 13th NCAA Volleyball Championship appearance in 2016.
• Utah won 20 matches in a single season for the third time in the last four years and for the 16th time under head coach Beth Launiere.
•Junior outside hitter Adora Anae and junior middle blocker Tawnee Luafalemana were both named to the All-Pac-12 Team. Anae took home first team honors, while Luafalemana was an honorable mention selection.
• Anae, who broke her own school record for kills in a single-season (592), became the ninth different Utah player to earn AVCA All-American honors overall and the first player to be honored since 2013.
• Utah welcomes back seven letterwinners from a season ago, while introducing eight newcomers (7 - high school, 1 - junior college transfer).

FIRST SERVE
The 2017 Utah Utes get the season underway this weekend, competing in the Bluegrass Battle at Memorial Coliseum in Lexington, Ky. The No. 23-ranked Utes will open the season against Cincinnati this Friday, Aug. 25. Utah will follow with matches against No. 14-ranked Kentucky (Aug. 25) and Arkansas State (Aug. 26).

SERIES HISTORY
Utah heads into the weekend with a combined 2-0 record against its first three opponents of the 2017 campaign. The Utes are 1-0 against both Cincinnati and Arkansas State. This will be the first-ever meeting between Utah and Kentucky.

Utah's only meeting against the Bearcats came back in 2009 when the Utes handed Cincy a 3-2 defeat in Salt Lake City. The Utes' only meeting against the Red Wolves came back in 2006. Utah downed ASU in straight sets at the Aquafina Invitational in Gainesville, Fla.

Utah is 16-6 all-time when facing opponents from the American Athletic Conference (Cincinnati's conference affiliate); 7-18 all-time against SEC squads; and 8-8 all-time against foes from the Sun Belt Conference.

COVERING THE UTES
Friday's match against Kentucky will be televised live on the SEC Networks, with Courtney Lyle calling the action and Jenny Hazelwood providing color commentary for the contest.

Fans can also follow Friday's action against UK on-line by logging onto WatchESPN.com or watching via smart phones and tablets using the Watch ESPN App, which can be downloaded at the Apple Store, Google Play Store or Amazon Apps Store.

Live stats will be provided for all three contests this week, with links found at www.UKathletics.com.

UTES PICKED TO FINISH FOURTH IN PAC-12
Utah earned its highest preseason finish since joining the Pac-12 back in 2012, coming in at No. 4 in the 2017 preseason coaches' poll. The Utes garnered one first-place vote in the poll for a total of 88 points. Washington was picked to win the league, while Stanford and Oregon followed to round out the top-three.

ANAE NAMED TO PAC-12 ALL-PRESEASON TEAM
Adora Anae was named to the All-Pac-12 Preseason Team for a second straight season. Anae, who enters her senior season with the Utes, was an All-Pac-12 First Team selection following the 2016 season. She led the league in kills (592), kills-per-set (4.70) and points-per-set (5.22).

RECAPPING THE 2016 SEASON
UTES PICKED TO FINISH EIGHTH ... TAKE FIFTH-PLACE INSTEAD
The Utah volleyball team was picked to finish eighth in the 2016 Pac-12 Volleyball Preseason Coaches' Poll, the league office announced back on Aug. 17, 2016. When the regular-season ended back on Nov. 25, the Utes had registered 11 conference wins and finished in fifth-place.

20/20 VISION
Utah collected 20 total wins on the season, giving head coach Beth Launiere at least 20 victories in a single-season for the 16th time in 27 seasons. The Utes totaled 11 Pac-12 victories, posting an 11-9 record in conference play overall. The 11 wins are the most in school history since joining the Pac-12 in 2011 and it also marked the first winning record in Pac-12 play.

UTAH REGISTERS ALL-TIME WIN NO. 750
With its victory over California on Nov. 4, 2016, Utah earned its 750th all-time win in program history. The Utes, who won its very first match back on Oct. 17, 1975, picked up the program's 750th win in its 1,363rd match played. Head coach Beth Launiere, who has 521 career wins at Utah, has accounted for nearly 70 percent of those victories (.691).

STAYING ALIVE AND WINNING IN FIVE
Utah went 7-5 overall in matches that went a full five sets in 2016. Utah ended the 2015 campaign with just a 3-4 record in matches that went five sets long.

Utah is 75-57 all-time in five-set matches in the 27 seasons that head coach Beth Launiere has been at the helm of the program. The seven five-set victories are the most under Launiere.

ANAE AND LUAFALEMANA GARNER PAC-12 AWARDS
Junior outside hitter Adora Anae and junior middle blocker Tawnee Luafalemana were both named to the 2016 All-Pac-12 Volleyball Team. Anae was tabbed a first team selection for a second-consecutive year, while Luafalemana earned honorable mention accolades.

Anae became the second Utah player to earn back-to-back All-Pac-12 Conference honors, but is the first player to earn consecutive First Team All-Pac-12 accolades. Anae is the first Ute to earn consecutive first team honors in any conference affiliation since Karolina Bartkowiak was tabbed a First Team All-Mountain West Conference selection in 2009 and 2010.

This is Anae's second All-Pac-12 Team honor and third overall conference postseason selection after being named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team in 2014.

Following the regular-season, Anae led the Pac-12 in total kills (571), kills per set (4.68), total points (634.5) and points per set (5.20). Her 634.5 points scored, at the time, was more than 100 points than the next closest competitor.

Luafalemana made an immediate impact, both offensively and defensively, for the Utes in 2016. Luafalemana registered 252 kills (2.03/set) while hitting a team-best .330 on the season. She also led the squad with 14 solo blocks and 113 assisted blocks for a total of 127 blocks on the year.

ANAE TABBED AVCA ALL-REGION SELECTION
Utah junior outside hitter Adora Anae was named to the AVCA All-Pacific South Region Team, the American Volleyball Coaches Association announced back on Dec. 6, 2016.

Anae was one of 14 student-athletes comprising the All-South Pacific Team, while six players were tabbed honorable mention selections. She is the first Utah player to garner AVCA all-region honors since 2014 (Bailey Bateman, HM) and the first, first-team selection since 2013 (Shelby Dalton).

ANAE COMPLETES POST-SEASON HARDWARE WITH ALL-AMERICA HONOR
Utah junior outside hitter Adora Anae was named an AVCA Second Team All-American selection, the American Volleyball Coaches Association announced back on Dec. 14, 2016.

Anae, who was one of 42 student-athletes comprising the All-American team, became the ninth different Utah player to earn AVCA All-American honors overall and the first player to be honored since Shelby Dalton, who was named Honorable Mention in 2013. Anae is Utah's first student-athlete to be named to the first, second or third team since Lori Baird was tabbed a third team selection back in 2008. She joins Airial Salvo (2006) as the only players in school history to earn AVCA Second Team All-American honors.

Anae registered a single-season school record 592 kills, which ranked first in the Pac-12 and sixth in the nation. She is just one of 21 players in the nation to collect 500 kills or more on the season. She also racked up 4.70 kills-per-set, which ranked 10th in the nation, along with a 5.22 points-per-set average that led the Pac-12 and ranked 11th in the nation. She totaled 27 service aces, 34 assists and also collected 54 total blocks.

Anae led the Utes with 407 digs on the season, becoming the only player in school history to register 500 kills and 400 digs in the same year. Of the 10 players in the nation that boast at least a 4.70 kills-per-set average, Anae is the only one to also average 3.2 digs-per-set.

UTAH EARNS AT-LARGE BID TO NCAA VOLLEYBALL CHAMPIONSHIP
The Utah Volleyball team made its 13th NCAA Championship appearance overall after earning an at-large bid into the tournament back on Nov. 27, 2016. The Utes were matched up in the first-round against the UNLV Rebels.

TOP-25 POLL TALK
Utah earned the No. 25 ranking in the final AVCA Top-25 Coaches Poll, which was released on Dec. 19, 2016. The Utes earned a top-25 ranking for nine straight weeks and 10 weeks overall on the season. The 10 weekly rankings are the program's most in a single season since being ranked all 16 weeks back in 2006.

Utah was ranked as high as No. 16 back on Nov. 14. It was the program's highest polling since joining the Pac-12 Conference in 2011. It also marked Utah's highest ranking since coming in at No. 16 in the final AVCA poll back on Dec. 23, 2008.

#ROADWARRIORS
Utah went 10-3 in road matches this season, which sets a new mark for most road wins as a program since joining the Pac-12 Conference. The 10 victories also match the most wins for a Utah team on the road since going 10-4 in road matches back in 2008.

#ROADWARRIORS PART II
Utah tallied a school-record six wins over top-25 ranked teams on the season. The Utes defeated No. 9 BYU, No. 16 Colorado, No. 7 Stanford, No. 13 Washington State, No. 24 USC and No. 16 Oregon all on the road this season.

Prior to 2016, Utah had never earned more than two road victories over ranked opponents in the same season. The last time Utah registered a pair of wins against ranked opponents, away from home, was back in 2007 when the Utes downed No. 17 Purdue on the road and defeated No. 20 Colorado State at a neutral site.

UTES IN CONFERENCE PLAY
Utah went 11-9 in Pac-12 Conference play this season, surpassing its original high win total of nine Pac-12 wins the program recorded in both 2013 and 2014 (9-11). Utah's 11 conference wins are the most since going 11-5 back in 2010 as a member of the Mountain West Conference.

ANAE SETS SINGLE-SEASON KILLS MARK ... AGAIN
Junior Adora Anae set a new school record for most kills in a single season, surpassing the 501 kills that she set just last season. Anae obliterated her original record with 592 kills on the year. She is the first Utah player to ever record 500 or more kills in two different seasons.

Anae was the first Utah player to register back-to-back 500+ kills in a season. She is the fifth Pac-12 Conference player to do so since the Utes joined the league in 2011. She joins Arizona State's Maci Gardner (577, 2012; 506, 2013; 594, 2014), Washington's Krista Vansant (511, 2013; 565, 2014), Arizona's Madi Kingdon (508, 2013; 34, 2014) and USC's Samantha Bricio (514, 2014; 668, 2015) as the only players to post 500+ kills in consecutive seasons since the league became the Pac-12 Conference.

CLIMBING THE RANKS
In addition to the single-season kills record she set, junior Adora Anae has also found herself among the all-time greats at Utah, as she has moved into fourth-place all-time in school history for most kills in a career. Anae heads into the week with 1,373 kills.

UTAH PLAYERS EARN PAC-12 WEEKLY ACCOLADES
Junior Adora Anae, sophomore Megan Shughrou, freshman Bailey Choy and junior Tawnee Luafalemana were each tabbed Pac-12 Volleyball Players of the Week in 2016.

Anae was named the league's Offensive Player of the Week and Shughrou took home Defensive Player of the Week honors back on Sept. 19. Meanwhile, Choy was named the Freshman Player of the Week that following Monday, on Sept. 26. Luafalemana was tabbed the Defensive Player of the Week back on Oct. 10.

ANAE EARNS MEMBERSHIP INTO 1,000-KILL CLUB
Junior Adora Anae became just the 17th player in school history to earn a membership into the 1,000-kill club after collecting her 1,000th career kill at Colorado back on Sept. 21.

Anae needed 25 kills in the match against the Buffs and managed to collect a total of 27 kill on the night. Her 25th kill tied the match 16-all in the fifth set and the Utes went onto defeat the Buffs, 20-18, and take the match.

ANAE SETS NEW SCHOOL RECORD
Junior Adora Anae set a new school record for most kills in a match during the rally-scoring era (2001-present) with 31 kills against BYU back on Sept. 15. Anae broke the previous mark of 28 kills, which she set twice last season. In addition, Anae becomes just the second player in school history to become a member of the 30-kill club, joining Mailee Gee-Merrill, who holds the all-time school record with 33 kills that was set back on Oct. 27, 1984.

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
Utah totaled 1,721 assists in 2016, which ranks second-most in school history. The 1986 squad totaled a program-best 1,748 assists.

Utah closed out the 2016 campaign with a .252 hitting percentage, which ranks third-best all-time. Only the 2006 (.281) and 2003 (.258) squads tallied better hitting percentages in a single-season.

The Utes tallied 1,821 kills, which ranks seventh-most all-time. Meanwhile, Utah's 1,881 digs rank eighth-most all-time in school history.

UTAH AMONG NATIONAL RANKINGS
Utah's 1,721 total assists ranked fourth-most among teams in the nation. Only UCLA (1,745), Ohio State (1,736) and Creighton (1,722) registered more assists on the season.

The Utes ranked seventh overall in the nation with 1,821 kills on the year. Creighton led the nation with 1,868 total kills.

Junior Adora Anae ranked among the nation's top-10 players in total kills (6th, 592), points (8th, 658.0) and kills-per-set (10th, 4.70). She ranked 11th in points-per-set (5.22) and 12th overall in total attacks (1,428).

Junior Tawnee Luafalemana ranked 76th in the nation with 132 total blocks, while her .329 hitting percentage on the season ranked 109th in the nation.

UTAH INKS FOUR PLAYERS TO NLI's
Utah head volleyball coach Beth Launiere announced back on Nov. 14, the addition of four athletes that signed National Letters of Intent to play volleyball for the Utes beginning in the fall of 2017.

Joining the squad in 2017 will be Dani Barton (Sandy, Utah), Phoebe Grace (Laie, Hawaii), Kenzie Koerber (Chino Hills, Calif.) and Shannon Scully (Huntington Beach, Calif.).

In addition to the NLI's signed last fall, also joining the Utes in 2017 will be incoming freshmen Kristen Abels (Chula Vista, Calif.), Camryn Machado (Cardiff by the Sea, Calif.) and Alexa Van Komen (El Dorado Hills, Calif.). Lauga Gauta (Garden Grove, Calif.) joins the squad as the team's only junior college transfer.

Utah's incoming recruiting class was ranked No. 11 overall by PrepVolleyball.com. It is Utah's first top-30 recruiting class since 2011 (No. 20) and it matches the highest ranking ever in school history (2005).

Utah's recruiting class also ranked among the best in the Pac-12. The 2017 incoming class ranked higher than Arizona (No. 12), California (No. 15), USC (No. 16), Oregon State (No. 19), Stanford (HM), Washington (HM) and Washington State (HM).

A LOOK AHEAD
Utah remains on the road next weekend, heading to Honolulu, Hawaii, to compete in the Rainbow Wahine Classic. The Utes will take on South Dakota (Aug. 31), Western Carolina (Sept. 1) and Hawaii (Sept. 3) in the event.