SPOKANE, Wash. — The Gonzaga volleyball team prepares to defend home court at Martin Centre this weekend as hosts of the GU Invitational, with matchups against Seattle, Air Force and Oklahoma on the docket for the Zags' first home tourney since 2019.

BEFORE YOU GO:
Single-day tickets and season passes are available online here. Masks will be required inside the Martin Centre as per state mandate and school policy. 
Streaming for GU's matches will be available on GoZags.com via Stadium.

GONZAGA VS. SEATTLE U
SEP. 3 - 6 P.M.
GONZAGA vs. AIR FORCE
SEP. 4 - 6 P.M.
GONZAGA vs. OKLAHOMA
SEP. 5 - 2 P.M. 
SPOKANE, WASH. | MARTIN CENTRE

OTHER MATCHUPS (Streaming Unavailable)
AIR FORCE VS. SEATTLE -  SEP. 3, 11 A.M.
AIR FORCE VS. OKLAHOMA - SEP. 3, 4 P.M.
SEATTLE VS. OKLAHOMA - SEP. 4, 11 A.M.

SERIES REVIEW
vs. Seattle U
OVERALL: 3-3 | HOME: 2-1 | AWAY: 1-2 | STREAK: SU, won 1
Against Seattle, Gonzaga carries an even 3-3 overall mark, winning two of the last three matches. In the last meeting, the Redhawks stole the match in five sets back in 2019 in Spokane. 

vs. Air Force
OVERALL: 1-1 | NEUTRAL: 1-1 | STREAK: GU, won 1
Gonzaga last faced Air Force in 2019 as part of the Pentagon Invite; that season, GU swept the Falcons in three sets to cap an undefeated opening weekend. The two teams first faced in Bozeman, Mont. in 2017 as part of the Montana State Bobcat Classic, where the Zags fell in four.

vs. Oklahoma
The 2021 meeting with Oklahoma will be the first in program history; the Bulldogs carry a 2-7 overall mark against current Big 12 programs. 

NELSON AT THE HELM
Zags head coach Diane Nelson has won at least 10 games in every full-length season since taking over in 2016 and could become the first Bulldogs coach to do so five years in a row this fall. The Zags finished seventh in the WCC in the spring, but ranked second statistically amongst conference foes in blocking, digs, and kills and won four of its last five matches to close the season.

DOMINANT DEBUTS
Transfers propelled the Zags last weekend in Starkville, with McKenna Marshall (junior) and Cara McKenzie (grad) leading the way. Marshall led GU in kills on the weekend with 34, including a tournament-high 19 against Southeastern Louisiana, and McKenzie picked up 12 blocks to lead the entire tournament in that category. Fellow grand transfer Brynn Chandler dished 98 of GU's 117 total assists in Starkville, and sophomore libero Viktoriya Ivanova paced the team with 35 digs.

SPRING STANDOUTS
- Two All-WCC returners are coming off breakout years in the spring — sophomore middle Alyssa Hughes and junior outside hitter Kennedy Croft. 
- As the backbone of a middle that returns 75% of its scoring from last season, Hughes led the Bulldogs and the conference in total blocks (72.0), solo blocks (9) and block assists (63) en route to her first all-conference nod. She also ranked third in the conference in blocks per set (1.07) and solo blocks, with nine. She did all this while leading the squad and ranking fourth in the conference in hitting percentage at .328, connecting for 134 kills off 287 attempts with just 40 errors on the year. 
- Croft ranked fourth on the squad in kills (128) and third in digs per set (2.84) while ranking second in points per set at 2.94 despite an extended absence due to injury. The junior from Tumwater, Wash., finished with double-digit kills nine times on the season in the spring.

ROSTER SHAKEUP
- Along with nine returners, Gonzaga brings in seven newcomers — five of them transfers with prior collegiate playing experience — to bolster the rotation. 
- Grad transfer setter Brynn Chandler (Georgia) set career-highs in assists (357), digs (380) in the spring while leading the Bulldogs in service aces with 25. Fellow grad transfer middle Cara McKenzie from D-II Adelphi University brings another experienced four-year player looking for a breakthrough with the Zags.
- Joining them are undergrad transfers McKenna Marshall (All-WCC First Team in 2021 at San Francisco), Keau Kamake'eaina (one spring season at Idaho Southern) and Viktoriya Invanova, a two-time All-Suncoast League selection at NJCAA Florida Southwestern State with experience playing for the Bulgarian national team.