Broncos to compete at UC Irvine/Adidas Invitational

UCI/Adidas Invitational
Irvine, Calif. (Bren Events Center) | Sept. 3-4, 2021

THIS WEEK IN BRONCO VOLLEYBALL

WHAT'S HAPPENING: Boise State (2-1) hits the road for the first time this season as the Broncos travel to Irvine, Calif., for the UCI/Adidas Invitational this Friday and Saturday in the Bren Events Center on the campus of UC Irvine.

THE FIELD: This week's tournament field includes Boise State, UC Irvine (2-1) from the Big West Conference, George Mason (2-0) of the Atlantic 10 conference and Southern Utah (1-2) out of the Big Sky Conference.

PREVIOUSLY VERSUS THE FIELD: Boise State is a combined 11-4 all-time versus this week's field in Irvine. They open the tournament on Friday at 4 p.m. with Southern Utah, the Broncos lead that series 3-0. The Blue and Orange's second contest of the week will be against UC Irvine at 8 p.m. (MT) on Friday. The Broncos and Anteaters are former conference rivals in the Big West (1996-2000), Boise State leads the series 8-4. The final match of the weekend for the Broncos will be against the George Mason Patriots from the A10, this will be the first ever encounter between the programs.

FOLLOW THE ACTION: If you cannot attend, the best way to follow this week's action is by going to the volleyball schedule on BroncoSports.com and clicking on the appropriate "Live Scoring" and/or "Live Stream" links for the particular match you want to follow. This week's tournament will include a live scoring feed for all three matches, but only the Broncos' match versus UCI will be live streamed.

SCOUTING BOISE STATE: The Broncos enter the week at 2-1 overall following the Boise State Invitational last weekend where they defeated Dixie State 3-1, then rallied from two sets down to beat Long Beach State 3-2, followed by a 3-1 loss to Montana State.

Through three matches, Boise State is led by Spring 2021 All-MW and 2021 Fall Preseason All-MW honoree Lauren Ohlinger who recorded two double-doubles last week and tallied teams highs for kills (46), service aces (6), digs (35) and points (54.5). Kayly Pau followed with 24 kills, while Alyssa Wissinger (17), Makayla Hansen (17) and Alli O'Hara (15) combined for 49 blocks.

As a team, Boise State hit .164 percent (7th MW) and held opponents to .180 percent (4th MW). The Broncos averaged 10.15 kills per set (9th MW), 2.54 blocks (4th MW), 1.85 service aces (3rd MW) and 11.77 digs (9th MW).

Boise State was picked to place second in the 2021 Mountain West Conference coaches poll. The Broncos are coming off an abbreviated spring 2021 campaign where they went 10-5 overall in MW action and placed second. The Blue and Orange return five starters and the libero, as well as 11 members of the 2020-21 squad. In addition to the 11 returners, Boise State added six recruits — three transfers and three true freshmen — to this year's team.

SCOUTING SOUTHERN UTAH: SUU enters the week at 1-2 overall with road defeats at BYU (3-0) and versus UNLV (3-0), followed by a victory over LIU (3-2). The Thunderbirds are led by Isabella Saucedo with 26 kills, 13 digs and seven blocks. She is followed by Ronnie Robinson with 24 kills and Carissa Richie with 20. As a team, SUU hits .128 percent while its opponents have hit .258.

The T-Birds enter the season picked to place seventh (tied) in the Big Sky Conference. They finished the spring 2021 season at 8-6 overall — all conference contests — and in sixth place.

SCOUTING UC IRVINE: The Anteaters enter the week at 2-1 after the opening weekend when they won at Idaho State (3-1), lost to UTEP (3-2), then beat Seattle (3-0). UCI is led by Onye Ofoegbu who has a team-high 46 kills and is hitting .398. Joy Umeh follows with 44 kills while hitting .327 through three matches. As a team, UCI is hitting .279 percent and holding opponents to .170 percent.

The former conference rivals of the Broncos in the Big West Conference (1996-2000) enter the year picked to finish sixth out of 11 teams in the league. The Big West did not compete last year during the COVID pandemic.

SCOUTING GEORGE MASON: The Patriots enter the week undefeated at 2-0 with home victories last week over American (3-1) and Howard (3-0). They are led by Olyvia Kennedy who is hitting .294 percent with a team-high 24 kills. Peyton Ehmke adds 22 kills followed by Katie Parmalee with 21. As a team, George Mason is hitting .231 percent compared to the opponents' hitting .137 percent.

The Patriots were picked to place eighth out of nine teams in this year's Atlantic 10 race after going 5-10 last spring, 5-5 in league.

FACTS & NOTES: What To Know About Bronco Volleyball

OHLINGER DOUBLE-DOUBLES: Lauren Ohlinger led Boise State during the opening weekend of action tallying back-to-back double-doubles versus Dixie State (20 kills, 14 digs) and Long Beach State (12 kills, 13 digs).

OHLINGER LEADER OF THE PACK: Lauren Ohlinger led Boise State during the Boise State Invitational (Aug. 27-28) with teams highs for kills (46), service aces (6), digs (35) and points (54.5). She was the lone Broncos to record double-figure kills in all three contests.

THE BLUE WALL IS BACK: The Broncos recorded double-digit team blocks in all three contests on opening weekend in Boise for a total of 33. Anchoring the wall was Alyssa Wissinger and Makayla Hansen with 17 blocks each, followed by Alli O'Hara with 15.

TWO BRONCOS NAMED TO ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM: Boise State's Lauren Ohlinger and Chey Jones were both named to the Boise State Invitational All-Tournament Team (Aug. 28). Ohlinger led the Blue and Orange in near every statistical category on the weekend, while the 6-foot-4 Jones filled in at setter where she guided the Broncos to a 2-1 mark while tallying a team-high 89 assists.

SHAWN GARUS: Boise State head coach Shawn Garus, who is in his 13th season with the program, currently stands at 206-148, his career record stands at 314-268 entering his 21st year. Garus ranks second in total wins in program history, out of 10 coaches all-time. At Boise State, he has recorded nine winning seasons overall, including an active streak of six straight. He has three seasons (2010, 2015, 2016) with 20-plus wins.

UCI/Adidas Invitational
Irvine, Calif. (Bren Events Center) | Sept. 3-4, 2021

THIS WEEK IN BRONCO VOLLEYBALL

FACTS & NOTES: What To Know About Bronco Volleyball

Players Mentioned

Chey Day

Makayla Hansen

Lauren Ohlinger

Kayly Pau

Alyssa Wissinger