Air Force Academy

Nov. 20, 2006

VIVA LAS VEGAS: Air Force returns to Las Vegas, Nev., this week for the 2006 Mountain West Conference Volleyball Championships. The four-day tournament begins Wednesday, Nov. 22, with the play-in match between the ninth-ranked Falcons and eighth-ranked New Mexico. The match is slated to start at 3:30 p.m. (PST), at Cox Pavilion. The winner of Wednesday's match will face top-seeded Utah on Thursday (Nov. 23) at 7 p.m.

Weekly Release 15: at MWC Championships
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NO. 8 NEW MEXICO

2006 Record: 9-19 (5-11 MWC)

Head Coach: Kelley McKee

Series Record: New Mexico leads 16-3

Who to Watch: Jeanne Fairchild (3.33 kpg); Joelle Ingram (1.17 bpg)

Notables: New Mexico defeated then-No. 18 BYU on Nov. 3

NO. 1 UTAH UTES

2006 Record: 25-2 (16-0 MWC)

Head Coach: Beth Launiere

Series Record: Utah leads 19-0

Who to Watch: Airial Slavo (4.23 kpg); Emillie Toone (1.93 bpg)

Notables: Utah hasn't lost since Sept. 2 to then-No. 14 USC

WHEN LAST WE MET: Air Force dropped both regular season decisions to New Mexico. The Falcons fell 30-23, 30-28, 30-18 at the Academy on Sept. 23, before dropping consecutive 30-25, 30-24, 30-17 sets in Albuquerque on Oct. 20.

AIR FORCE IN THE MWC TOURNAMENT: Air Force has never won a match in the Mountain West Conference tournament and is 0-1 in play-in matches. The Falcons have only faced New Mexico once in post-season action, dropping a close 3-2 decision to the Lobos in 1999. Against the rest of the conference, Air Force is 0-3 against Colorado State, 0-1 against BYU, 0-1 against Utah and 0-1 against TCU.

DENIED: Freshman Michelle Harrington has boasted the team's top blocking numbers in 11 of the last 14 matches. She has single-handedly led the Falcons in five of those matches, including a career-high seven stops against Centenary, while tying for the top spot in the other six.

SENIOR SALUTE: This weekend marked the final home matches for the Falcons' lone senior Tara Dunn. Although she has only been with the program for the past two seasons, Dunn never fails to bring a spark to the lineup whenever she steps on the court.

WAIT! THERE'S ONE MORE: Air Force would also like to thank senior Jeff West, who has spent the past season as a cadet manager.

AN OPEN-SHUT CASE: Air Force opened the 2006 Mountain West Conference slate facing the same teams (Utah, BYU) that it closed the season with. It is the first time at the NCAA Division I level that the Falcons have opened and closed the conference season with the same program (BYU).

DOUBLE DOWN: Seeing significant action over the Nov. 10-12 weekend, senior Tara Dunn doubled her season kill total in just two matches. 11 of her 21 total kills this season came against UNLV and San Diego State, where she was second on the team in point production both nights.

THE BIRTHDAY GIRL: Saturday (Nov. 18) marked the 24th birthday of sophomore Ellen Bina. A graduate of the Academy's prep school, Bina spent four years enlisted in the Air Force, serving as a jet engine mechanic at RAF Lakenheath, England.

COUNTING CANDLES: It is the third time this season that a member of the Air Force team celebrated her birthday on the court. Classmate Jasamine Pettie celebrated her birthday at BYU on Sept. 15, while freshman Hannah Sorber's Oct. 14 birthday was the same day as the UNLV match.

FIRST TO 200: Freshman Katie Batchelder was the first and only Falcon to record 200 kills this season, hitting that plateau with her final kill against UNLV on Nov. 10. She currently has 223 on the season.

AMONG THE BEST: Accounting for 30 service aces in 76 games, junior Rebecca Gerton is ranked second in the Mountain West Conference with a 0.39 aces-per-game average. Gerton has had two five-ace matches, which is tied for third in the league in terms of single-match production.

'RANK' YOU VERY MUCH: The Falcons are currently ranked fourth in the MWC with 1.54 aces per game. Only TCU (2.06), New Mexico (1.80) and Utah (1.66) are ranked higher. Junior Rebecca Gerton is ranked second in the league with a 0.39 ace-per-game average, while junior Kim Kallabis is ninth in assists with 6.71 per game.

MORE STATISICAL NEWS: With 16 total aces against Norfolk State, Air Force is tied for the lead in the MWC single-match statistics.  In addition, the Falcons' 14 aces against Centenary are tied for the second-most in a single-match, while the 17.0 total blocks Air Force registered against CC is ranked sixth. Individually, Rebecca Gerton is ranked third for the five aces she put down during those two ace-filled matches, while. Michelle Harrington's .684 hitting percentage against Alcorn State is ranked third in the league.