Women's Volleyball | 8/29/2018 1:23:00 PM

Match One
Gonzaga (0-2) vs. Iowa State (2-1)
Aug. 31 | 11 a.m. PT | Missoula, Mont. | Western Auxiliary Gym
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Match Two
Gonzaga (0-2) vs. No. 22 Utah (2-1)
Aug. 31 | 4 p.m. PT | Missoula, Mont. | Western Auxiliary Gym
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Match Three
Gonzaga (0-2) vs. Montana (0-3)
Sept. 1 | 12:30 p.m. PT | Missoula, Mont. | Western Auxiliary Gym
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SERIES NOTES
vs. Iowa State: This will be the first-ever meeting between Gonzaga and Iowa State. The Zags face an opponent from the Big 12 conference for only the ninth time ever. Gonzaga has lost six of the eight previous meetings against current Big 12 members, but the Bulldogs have picked up two wins over Texas Tech. The last win came on Sept. 11, 1993 in Spokane when the Bulldogs defeated the Red Raiders 3-1.
vs. No. 22 Utah: This will mark the ninth meeting all-time between the Bulldogs and the Utes, and Utah claims the edge in the series 6-2. In the last meeting, the Zags picked up a 3-2 win at Utah on Aug. 27, 2016.
vs. Montana: Saturday's match at Montana will be the 40th meeting between Gonzaga and Montana. The Griz claim the edge in the series 24-15, and in Missoula, Montana leads the series 12-9. The Bulldogs have won six of the last eight meetings including a 3-0 sweep of the Griz in the last meeting on Sept. 3, 2016.
 
SCOUTING IOWA STATE: Iowa State dropped out of the AVCA Top 25 following a 2-1 performance in its home-opening tournament Aug. 24-25 in Ames, Iowa. The Cyclones picked up wins over Ole Miss and Virginia while falling in five sets to Oregon State. ISU took a mid-week match against No. 17 Northern Iowa, and the Cyclones swept the Panthers to improve to 3-1 on the season. As a squad, Iowa State averages 13.9 kills per set hitting .282 to go along with 13.1 assists, 15.2 digs and 2.9 blocks per set. The Cyclones were led by Grace Lazard in the first tourney as the senior middle blocker finished with 35 kills for a 2.92 per set average hitting at a .485 clip. Lazard also added 1.4 blocks and 1.3 digs per set, earning her co-MVP honors. ISU also returns libero Hali Hillegas who was the Big 12 Libero of the year and AVCA Honorable Mention All-American a season ago.
 
SCOUTING No. 22 UTAH: The Utes opened the season with a 2-1 record, defeating both UC Irvine and Denver while falling in five set to visiting Saint Mary's. As a squad, Utah averaged 13.5 kills per set hitting .255 to go along with 12.5 assists and 14.0 digs per set. Senior outside hitter Lauga Gauta led the Utes as she averaged 3.7 kills hitting .270 to go along with 2.0 digs per set. Utah was picked to finish eighth in the Pac-12, and the Utes' senior middle blocker Berkeley Oblad was named Pac-12 Preseason All-Conference after she was named AVCA Honorable Mention All-America and honorable mention Pac-12 All-Conference a season ago.
 
SCOUTING MONTANA: The Griz opened the 2018 season with three-straight losses in the Fullerton/UC Riverside Classic Aug. 24-25. As a squad, Montana averaged 11.2 kills per set hitting .174 to go along with 10.8 assists and 14.4 digs per set. The Griz also add an even 2.0 blocks per set. Senior outside hitter Mykaela Hammer led Montana in the opening weekend with 2.42 kills and 1.83 digs per set. The Griz were picked to finish ninth in the Big Sky after finishing 8-21 overall in 2017 with a 3-13 mark in Big Sky play.
 
NEWCOMERS AT THE NET: Three new Zags saw their first action as Bulldogs last weekend at UCLA: Perry Ramsey, Peighton De Von and Kennedy Croft. The trio combined for 11 kills, 16 digs and 10.0 blocks in their first two matches as Zags.
 
DEFENSIVE PROWESS: In their first two matches this season, Gonzaga has demonstrated it can battle with the best defensively. The Bulldogs registered 78 digs in a four-set loss at No. 11 UCLA on Aug. 26. That number surpassed last season's four-set season-high of 77 digs, a mark they reached at Pepperdine on Nov. 4. The Zags nearly surpassed their highest blocking total from a season ago as they tallied 14.0 blocks against the Bruins on Aug. 26; their best blocking match of 2017 was against Pacific with 15.0 blocks in a five-set battle on Sept. 23.
 
KUEHN COMING IN HOT: Junior setter Jenna Kuehn is better than ever to start her 2018 campaign. In the first two matches against No. 11 UCLA, Kuehn reached new career highs in both assists (36) and digs (22), and she posted back-to-back double-doubles against the Bruins opening weekend. The Eugene, Ore. native also connected for six kills off 21 attempts with just one error to hit a solid .238 in the first two matches of the season.