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BAYLOR
at
TEXAS A&M
7:00 p.m. CDT
Oct. 23, 2002
G. Rollie White Coliseum
College Station, Texas
Baylor stays on the road Wednesday, traveling to College Station, Texas, for a 7 p.m. CDT match against Texas A&M at G. Rollie White Coliseum. The Bears (8-11, 2-7) have dropped three straight, including a 3-16, 30-23, 30-19 decision last Saturday at No. 4 Nebraska. The Aggies (15-6, 4-5) have lost three of their last four matches, falling 30-21, 30-21, 32-30 last Saturday at Kansas State. Texas A&M is among teams also receiving votes in this week's Volleyball Magazine Top 20. Live stats for the match will be available online at www.AggieAthletics.com, the official website of Texas A&M Athletics.
QUICK NOTES
* Baylor and Texas A&M meet for the 45th time Wednesday with the Aggies leading the all-time series 37-7. A&M has won five straight overall, and Baylor has not won at College Station since Nov. 11, 1992.
* In eight matches without OH Stevie Nicholas, Baylor has averaged 1.26 service aces per game. Prior to Nicholas' injury, the Bears were averaging 2.38 service aces per game.
* Since moving to the outside hitter position Sept. 26, junior Tisha Schwartz has averaged 5.56 kills, 2.67 digs and 0.56 blocks per game.
* Junior OH Tisha Schwartz has established herself as one of top scoring threats in the Big 12. Schwartz averages 4.43 kills per game, second in the conference behind only Stevie Nicholas. Schwartz is also tied with Texas' Mira Topic for second with 5.19 points per game, again trailing only Nicholas.
* Baylor has tallied at least one service ace in 52 consecutive matches and at least two service aces in 21 straight matches.
HEAD COACH BRIAN HOSFELD
Baylor is in its seventh season under the direction of head coach Brian Hosfeld. During his tenure, the Bears have compiled a 116-100 (.537) overall record and a 51-78 (.395) mark in the rugged Big 12 Conference. Hosfeld is credited with putting Baylor volleyball on the map. After losing seasons in 14 of 18 seasons prior to Hosfeld's arrival, Baylor has finished above .500 in four of the last six seasons. Baylor has made two NCAA Tournament appearances in that time, advancing to the second round before losing to eventual national champion Penn State in 1999. Owner of the highest winning percentage of the program's seven head coaches, Hosfeld has amassed the most wins, both overall and in conference play, of any coach in school history.
HOSFELD vs. TEXAS A&M
Head coach Brian Hosfeld is 3-9 against Texas A&M; he is the only Baylor coach to ever defeat the Aggies more than twice. All three Baylor wins against A&M under Hosfeld have come in Waco, including a four-game victory in his first season, 1996, that was the program's first-ever triumph over a top 10 team (the Aggies were ranked 10th at that time). Despite A&M holding a six-match edge during Hosfeld's tenure, nearly all the matches have been close; the games tally stands at 32-13 in favor of the Aggies with 16 games being decided by three points or less.
LAST TIME OUT - No. 4 NEBRASKA 3, BAYLOR 0
LINCOLN, Neb. - No. 4 Nebraska hit .472 as a team and forced Baylor attackers into 21 errors as the Bears dropped a 30-16, 30-23, 30-19 decision to the Huskers last Saturday. Tisha Schwartz led all players with 16 kills; however, she was the only Bear to reach double figures in kills. Kelly Spriggs added six kills, and Laura Daniela Lloreda had five. Stella Odion matched her career best for digs, leading all players with 11. Nebraska's offense was nearly unstoppable in the opener. The Huskers hit above .600 most of the way and finished at .500, scoring 21 kills with only three errors in 36 swings. Meanwhile, the Bears hit .067 in game one with just seven kills and five errors in 30 attempts. Baylor got half its points off Nebraska errors as the Huskers committed five service errors along with the three miss-swings. Baylor rebounded with a stronger showing in game two, leading much of the early part of the game. The teams played side-out volleyball for the first 13 points before a Schwartz kill put the Bears up 8-6. Nebraska fought back for a 10-9 advantage only to see the Bears score three straight. Baylor pushed its lead to 15-12 before the Huskers put together one of their patented runs, scoring 10 of the next 11 points and building a 22-16 lead. The Bears hit .257 in game two (15-6-35), but the Huskers remained hot, hitting .476 (23-3-42). The 23 kills by Nebraska are the most allowed in a game this season by Baylor. With Nebraska leading 14-9 in game three, the Bears put together a 5-1 run to cut the lead to 15-14. The Huskers called a timeout and then went on an 11-3 run. That put Nebraska up 26-17, and the Bears could never get any closer.
THE TEXAS A&M SERIES
This is the 45th meeting between the two schools with Texas A&M leading the all-time series 37-7. The Aggies have won the last five meetings, sweeping the season series each of the last two years and winning a five-game match three years ago at College Station. It has been 10 years since Baylor won in College Station. A 3-1 triumph in 1992 is the only time the Bears have ever been victorious at A&M. The Aggies do have the distinction of being the first top 10 team to lose to Baylor. The Bears posted a 15-12, 15-10, 13-15, 15-13 victory at home Nov. 9, 1996 over then-No. 10 Texas A&M. Since the beginning of Big 12 volleyball, the Aggies lead the series 9-3.
THE TEXAS A&M AGGIES
Texas A&M (12-6) is in its 10th season under the direction of head coach Laurie Corbelli. She is 327-187 in 17 years as a collegiate head coach with a 227-81 mark at A&M.
A&M Notes: The Aggies are among teams also receiving votes for the Volleyball Magazine Top 20. ... Texas A&M started the season 9-1 with only a 3-1 loss at then-No. 16 Wisconsin. Since then, the Aggies are 3-5, all coming in Big 12 play. However, A&M has stayed strong at home, going 9-1 at G. Rollie White Coliseum. The only home loss for the Aggies was a 3-1 decision to then-No. 5 Nebraska. ... Texas A&M hits .237 as a team, fifth in the Big 12, while holding opponents to a .177 mark, also fifth in the conference. The Aggies are fifth in kills (15.64 per game), tied for seventh in blocks (2.36), fifth in service aces (1.81) and fourth in digs (15.80). ... Junior MB Tara Pulaski leads the Aggies with a .324 attacking percentage. She averages 2.48 kills and 0.99 blocks per game. Sophomore OH/MB Melissa Munsch and freshman OH Laura Jones lead the Aggies in kills with 3.70 and 3.65 per game, respectively. Munsch and Jones are also two of the top servers in the Big 12. Munsch is fifth in the conference standings with 0.49 service aces per game, while Jones is sixth at 0.48. Munsch also ranks fifth in the Big 12 with 3.22 digs per game. ... Junior OH Beth Skypala was a high school teammate of Baylor's Tisha Schwartz while at Amarillo [Texas] HS.
LAST MEETING - No. 14 TEXAS A&M 3, BAYLOR 0 (NOV. 3, 2001)
WACO, Texas - Stevie Nicholas established a Baylor three-game match record with 26 kills and hit .327, and Tisha Schwartz had 16 kills and hit .323, but it was not enough as the Bears fell to No. 14 Texas A&M 33-31, 33-31, 30-26. It was an evenly contested match, despite only going three games. Baylor hit .200 on the night, while Texas A&M swung at a .202 clip. The Bears out-dug the Aggies 69-66, but A&M had 12 blocks to Baylor's seven. The Aggies also held Baylor to a season-low one service ace, that coming from Nicholas. In game one, Baylor out-hit A&M .208 to .143; however, the Aggies collected seven of their blocks in the first game, propelling them to victory. Baylor's attacking percentage rose to .241 in the second game, but the Aggies hit the ball better, as well, at .263. Game three was just as close as the first two, but the Bears did not attack the ball nearly as well, hitting just .143 as a team. The Aggies led the entire way, but Baylor never trailed by more than four points. Down 24-20, the Bears scored three straight points to pull within one. That was as close as Baylor would get, though, as the Aggies scored six of the next nine points for the victory.
BEARS' SERVICE GAME SLUMPS MINUS NICHOLAS
In eight matches without OH Stevie Nicholas, Baylor has averaged 1.26 service aces per game. Prior to Nicholas' injury, the Bears were averaging 2.38 service aces per game. Nicholas is still listed as the conference leader in aces with 0.95 per game, nearly twice as many as second-place Shen Danru of Missouri (0.53). Junior OH/MB Tisha Schwartz leads the Bears with seven service aces over the last eight matches. Three other Bears have six service aces each.
SCHWARTZ WARMING TO THE OUTSIDE
Since moving to the outside hitter position Sept. 26, junior Tisha Schwartz has become one of the top scoring threats in the Big 12 Conference. In that time, she has averaged 5.53 kills per game, even better than Stevie Nicholas' 5.56 per-game average. Schwartz has also averaged 2.67 digs and 0.56 blocks per game in eight matches on the outside wtih 166.0 points.
BAYLOR IN THE BIG 12 STATISTICAL RANKINGS
Baylor finds itself in unusual territory statistically this season - not among the league leaders in kills and digs per game. The Bears have finished third or better in kills per game and fifth or better in digs per game in the Big 12 Conference in each of the past three seasons. According to the Oct. 17 statistical rankings, Baylor is eighth in kills per game (15.00) and in digs per game (14.10). The Bears are third in the conference with 1.93 service aces per game. However, Baylor ranks seventh in attacking percentage (.218), eighth in assists (13.52), ninth in blocks (2.08) and 11th in opponents' attacking percentage (.255).
SCHWARTZ NOW TOP BIG 12 OFFENSIVE THREAT
Junior OH Tisha Schwartz has essentially become the top scoring threat in the Big 12 Conference as she trails on teammate Stevie Nicholas, who is out for the season with a torn medial-meniscus, in both kills per game. According to the Oct. 21 rankings, Schwartz is second in kills (4.43 per game). She is also tied with Texas' Mira Topic for second in the league in points per game at 5.19, trailing only Nicholas (6.81). ... Schwartz leads all players with 5.00 kills and 5.48 points per game in Big 12 matches.
NICHOLAS OUT FOR REMAINDER OF SEASON
Junior all-America candidate OH Stevie Nicholas has taken the final swing of her junior season after surgical procedures Wednesday afternoon. Nicholas, who tore her medial-meniscus Sept. 18 in a match against Colorado, has missed the last five Baylor matches and is now diagnosed as "out for the remainder of the season," according to head coach Brian Hosfeld and assistant trainer Alison Krajewski. Arguably the most explosive player in the Big 12 Conference and one of the nation's elite attackers, Nicholas ends her junior season with 218 kills, 38 service aces, 113 digs, 29 blocks and 272.5 points. She started all 11 matches in which she appeared and averaged 5.45 kills, 0.95 service aces, 2.83 digs and 0.73 blocks per game. Nicholas still leads the Big 12 in kills, aces and points; she also ranks sixth nationally in aces.
NICHOLAS STILL LEADS BIG 12 IN THREE CATEGORIES
Despite being sidelined with a torn meniscus, junior OH Stevie Nicholas retains her leader position in the Big 12 Conference statistical rankings in three categories, according to the Oct. 14 rankings. Nicholas leads the conference in kills per game (5.45), service aces per game (0.95) and points per game (6.81). She has now been the conference kills leader in 37 of 38 weeks during her career. Nicholas and Tisha Schwartz are the only players in the conference to reach the 30-kill plateau this season.
MAZZARELLA NOTCHES FIRST TRIPLE-DOUBLE
With 10 kills, 37 assists and 15 digs Sept. 26 against Houston, sophomore S Jillian Mazzarella posted the first triple-double of her career. It was also the first triple-double by a Bear since Tatiana Kenon had 18 kills, 11 digs and 10 blocks Oct. 27 against Colorado. Mazzarella's 10 kills were a career-high, doubling the five she had against Arkansas-Little Rock earlier this season.
BAYLOR WINS 17TH IN-SEASON TOURNAMENT
With team titles at the Baylor Classic and at the Rhode Island Classic, Baylor has claimed the program's 16th and 17th in-season tournament titles. Eleven of those titles have come during head coach Brian Hosfeld's tenure (since 1996). The Bears have won at least one in-season tournament in six of Hosfeld's seven seasons, claiming two such titles five times.
THREE BEARS EARN URI CLASSIC HONORS
Baylor juniors OH Stevie Nicholas, MB Tisha Schwartz and OH Lisa Smith were named to the all-tournament team at the Rhode Island Classic. Nicholas was selected as MVP, marking the fifth time in her career she has been named MVP at an in-season tournament. On the weekend, Nicholas hit .316 with 5.25 kills and 2.58 service aces per game and 12 service aces. Schwartz, meanwhile, averaged 4.50 kills per game on the weekend; she also hit at a .406 clip with 11 blocks and five service aces. Smith averaged 2.50 kills and 2.36 digs per game with two double-doubles on the weekend.
FOUR BEARS EARN BAYLOR CLASSIC HONORS
Junior OH Stevie Nicholas, junior MB Tisha Schwartz, sophomore S/DS Jillian Mazzarella and freshman S Emily Huston all earned all-tournament honors at the 2002 Baylor Classic. Nicholas and Schwartz were named co-MVPs. Nicholas averaged 5.10 kills, 1.10 service aces, 3.70 digs and 0.90 blocks per game on the weekend, totaling 67.5 points. Schwartz finished the weekend with 52.0 points and per-game averages of 4.00 kills, 1.60 digs and 1.50 blocks. Huston and Mazzarella paced the Bear offense to a .249 attacking percentage and 16.60 kills per game. Huston hit .600 for the weekend (20-2-30) with 2.00 kills, 5.90 assists, 1.70 digs and 0.60 blocks per game. Mazzarella hit .345 on the weekend (12-2-29) with 1.20 kills, 7.30 assists, 3.90 digs and 0.50 blocks per game.
BAYLORBEARS.COM
Baylor's official athletic web site can be found at www.BaylorBears.com. The comprehensive site, which includes releases, photos, biographical sketches and audio broadcasts, is part of the Official Colles Sports Network. OCSN currently hosts sites for more than 100 universities, including eight Big 12 schools.
INSIDE BAYLOR SPORTS TV SHOW
Inside Baylor Sports, a half-hour look at the world of Baylor athletics, airs weekly throughout Central Texas and the region. The program, co-hosted by John Morris and Lori Scott-Fogleman, airs on KCEN-TV Channel 6, Fox Sports Net Southwest and the College Channel (Waco cable channel 18). KCEN carries the show at 10:30 p.m. Sundays, and it airs at 1 p.m. Wednesdays on FSN Southwest.
UP NEXT...
Baylor returns home for a 6 p.m. CDT match at the Ferrell Center against Iowa State. The match is part of Homecoming weekend. Baylor leads the all-time series with Iowa State 12-3. The Bears have won each of the last nine meetings, including a 34-32, 30-26, 27-30, 30-22 decision earlier this season at Ames, Iowa.
