Thursday, October 10
Salt Lake City, Utah
8 PM
TCU
at
Utah
Preview: at Utah and No. 23 BYU
10/9/2024 9:25:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
No. 17 TCU begins three-match road swing in Utah
SALT LAKE CITY – No. 17 TCU volleyball begins a three-match road swing this week in Utah against the Utes on Thursday, Oct. 10, and No. 23 BYU on Saturday, Oct. 12.
TCU NOTABLES
• The Horned Frogs are coming off a 2-0 week that featured a gritty five-set win at Houston and an upset over No. 14 Baylor at home.
• At 11-3 through their first 14 games, TCU is off to its best start to a season since 2013 (11-3).
• After cracking the poll for the first time ever four weeks ago, the Frogs are climbing the rankings, up five spots to No. 17 in the AVCA/TARAFLEX Coaches' Poll this week.
• Sophomore setter Lily Nicholson ranks 10th nationally with 10.87 assists per set.
• Melanie Parra earned her fourth Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week honor of the season on Oct. 8.
• She is also the first player in Division I women's volleyball history to win back-to-back AVCA/GameChanger Player of the Week honors (Sept. 10 & 17).
• Parra leads the nation with 6.10 points per set and 5.28 kills per set.
• TCU checked at No. 9 in the initial NCAA Volleyball RPI, which measures teams based on their wins, losses and strength of schedule. The Frogs boast the top RPI in the Big 12 Conference.
SERIES HISTORY
• TCU takes on a pair of former Mountain West Conference opponents in Utah and BYU.
• Utah leads the all-time series with TCU 13-3, including a 6-1 mark in Salt Lake City. Thursday's meeting will be the first between the two teams since 2010.
• BYU holds a 14-3 edge in the all-time series with the Frogs. The Cougars swept last season's meeting in Fort Worth.
SCOUTING REPORT
In its first season in the Big 12, Utah is off to an impressive 13-2 start, including a 3-1 mark in league play. The Utes opened the season 10-1 in non-con play, with their only loss coming to No. 10 Purdue. Their only other loss came at the hands of No. 13 Arizona State last week in Tempe. Utah is one of the top attacking teams in the nation, ranking third in kills per set and fourth in assists per set while leading the Big 12 in points. Sophomore outside Kamryn Gibadlo leads the team in kills with 174 and is tenth in the Big 12 with 3.35 per set. The middle blocker duo of junior Emrie Satuala (.391) and fifth-year Allie Olsen (.391) rank sixth and seventh in the Big 12 in hitting percentage, respectively. On defense, the Utes are led by former Big South Defensive Player of the Year Claranne Fechter, who ranks eighth in digs per set and ninth in aces per set in the conference.
BYU enters the matchup ranked No. 23 in the nation with a 9-5 record. After starting the season 4-0, the Cougars lost three in a row to top 25 opponents, Georgia Tech and Oregon. Last weekend, they went 0-2 in Arizona against the Wildcats and Sun Devils, falling to 2-2 in the Big 12 standings. One of the top defensive teams in the Big 12, BYU leads the league in blocks and ranks in the top three in opponent hitting percentage, holding teams to a .168 mark. The Cougar's defense is led by middle blockers Kjersti Strong and Brielle Kemavor, who both rank in the top eight in the conference, with Kemavor ranked first in blocks and blocks per set in the Big 12. Offensively, Claire Little leads the BYU attack, ranking in the top three in points (248.5) and points per set (4.52) in the conference.
LA REINA
• Melanie Parra was named Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week on Oct. 8.
• She led the Big 12 with 5.22 kills per set and 5.83 points per set and recorded double-doubles in both contests as TCU went 2-0 against Houston and No. 14 Baylor.
• With four weekly honors through the first six weeks of the season, Parra is just two away from tying the conference's single-season record.
• Her six career weekly awards from the Big 12 are tied for the most by any Horned Frog in program history with Audrey Nalls and élan McCall.
BEAR HUNTING
• TCU volleyball picked up a key conference victory, knocking off No. 14 Baylor, 3-1.
• The Horned Frogs defended their home court thanks to the second-largest crowd in program history, as over 4,094 fans piled into Schollmaier Arena.
• TCU dominated rival Baylor for its second win over a ranked team this season.
• It also marked the fourth straight win over the Bears under head coach Jason Williams, who served on the Baylor staff for seven seasons.
For all the latest TCU volleyball news, follow the Frogs on X at @TCUVolleyball, on Instagram at @tcuvolleyball and on Facebook at TCU Volleyball.
TCU NOTABLES
• The Horned Frogs are coming off a 2-0 week that featured a gritty five-set win at Houston and an upset over No. 14 Baylor at home.
• At 11-3 through their first 14 games, TCU is off to its best start to a season since 2013 (11-3).
• After cracking the poll for the first time ever four weeks ago, the Frogs are climbing the rankings, up five spots to No. 17 in the AVCA/TARAFLEX Coaches' Poll this week.
• Sophomore setter Lily Nicholson ranks 10th nationally with 10.87 assists per set.
• Melanie Parra earned her fourth Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week honor of the season on Oct. 8.
• She is also the first player in Division I women's volleyball history to win back-to-back AVCA/GameChanger Player of the Week honors (Sept. 10 & 17).
• Parra leads the nation with 6.10 points per set and 5.28 kills per set.
• TCU checked at No. 9 in the initial NCAA Volleyball RPI, which measures teams based on their wins, losses and strength of schedule. The Frogs boast the top RPI in the Big 12 Conference.
SERIES HISTORY
• TCU takes on a pair of former Mountain West Conference opponents in Utah and BYU.
• Utah leads the all-time series with TCU 13-3, including a 6-1 mark in Salt Lake City. Thursday's meeting will be the first between the two teams since 2010.
• BYU holds a 14-3 edge in the all-time series with the Frogs. The Cougars swept last season's meeting in Fort Worth.
SCOUTING REPORT
In its first season in the Big 12, Utah is off to an impressive 13-2 start, including a 3-1 mark in league play. The Utes opened the season 10-1 in non-con play, with their only loss coming to No. 10 Purdue. Their only other loss came at the hands of No. 13 Arizona State last week in Tempe. Utah is one of the top attacking teams in the nation, ranking third in kills per set and fourth in assists per set while leading the Big 12 in points. Sophomore outside Kamryn Gibadlo leads the team in kills with 174 and is tenth in the Big 12 with 3.35 per set. The middle blocker duo of junior Emrie Satuala (.391) and fifth-year Allie Olsen (.391) rank sixth and seventh in the Big 12 in hitting percentage, respectively. On defense, the Utes are led by former Big South Defensive Player of the Year Claranne Fechter, who ranks eighth in digs per set and ninth in aces per set in the conference.
BYU enters the matchup ranked No. 23 in the nation with a 9-5 record. After starting the season 4-0, the Cougars lost three in a row to top 25 opponents, Georgia Tech and Oregon. Last weekend, they went 0-2 in Arizona against the Wildcats and Sun Devils, falling to 2-2 in the Big 12 standings. One of the top defensive teams in the Big 12, BYU leads the league in blocks and ranks in the top three in opponent hitting percentage, holding teams to a .168 mark. The Cougar's defense is led by middle blockers Kjersti Strong and Brielle Kemavor, who both rank in the top eight in the conference, with Kemavor ranked first in blocks and blocks per set in the Big 12. Offensively, Claire Little leads the BYU attack, ranking in the top three in points (248.5) and points per set (4.52) in the conference.
LA REINA
• Melanie Parra was named Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week on Oct. 8.
• She led the Big 12 with 5.22 kills per set and 5.83 points per set and recorded double-doubles in both contests as TCU went 2-0 against Houston and No. 14 Baylor.
• With four weekly honors through the first six weeks of the season, Parra is just two away from tying the conference's single-season record.
• Her six career weekly awards from the Big 12 are tied for the most by any Horned Frog in program history with Audrey Nalls and élan McCall.
BEAR HUNTING
• TCU volleyball picked up a key conference victory, knocking off No. 14 Baylor, 3-1.
• The Horned Frogs defended their home court thanks to the second-largest crowd in program history, as over 4,094 fans piled into Schollmaier Arena.
• TCU dominated rival Baylor for its second win over a ranked team this season.
• It also marked the fourth straight win over the Bears under head coach Jason Williams, who served on the Baylor staff for seven seasons.
For all the latest TCU volleyball news, follow the Frogs on X at @TCUVolleyball, on Instagram at @tcuvolleyball and on Facebook at TCU Volleyball.
Players Mentioned
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