FIRST SERVE: Winners of three straight -- and five of its last six overall -- to close the regular season, the UC Davis women's volleyball team (17-12, 9-7 Big West) will make its first postseason appearance since 1996 this week, heading to a familiar site to compete in the 2019 National Invitational Volleyball Championship at the Walter Pyramid hosted by Long Beach State.

THIS WEEK…
WHO: UC Davis (17-12, 9-7 Big West) at National Invitational Volleyball Championship
WHEN: Wed.-Thurs., Dec. 4-5, 2019
WHERE: Walter Pyramid in Long Beach, Calif.
STREAMING VIDEO: Big West TV
LIVE STATS: Statbroadcast.com

TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE: The Aggies open tournament play on Wednesday (Dec. 4) at 5 p.m., taking on Tulsa (15-15, 8-8 American Athletic Conference) in the first game of a doubleheader, with host Long Beach State (12-16, 9-7 Big West) taking on Santa Clara (20-11, 10-8 West Coast Conference) at 7 p.m. The winners of the two contests meet in the second round on Thursday (Dec. 5) at 7 p.m.

UC DAVIS IN THE POSTSEASON: This week's postseason berth is the program's first in 13 years at the Division I level, and the first of any kind for an Aggie squad since the 1996 team finished 21-11 overall, earned the Northern California Athletic Conference title with an 11-1 record, and ended the year ranked No. 21 nationally, falling to CSU Bakersfield in the first round of the NCAA Division II West Regional in five sets. UC Davis appeared in the NCAA Division II championships nine times from 1981-96, posting a 4-9 record and an appearance in the national quarterfinals in 1992.

SERIES NOTES: UC Davis and Tulsa have met once in the history of the two programs, with the Aggies posting a 3-0 win over the Golden Hurricane in 2011... UC Davis and Santa Clara have met five times as Division I foes, with the Broncos leading that series, 3-2, but the Aggies winning the last meeting in five sets last season... UC Davis is just 5-26 against Long Beach State since 2004, but all five of the Aggies' wins in the series have come in the last six meetings, including a pair of five-set wins this year.

ABOUT THE AGGIES: Under the direction of sixth-year head coach Dan Conners, the Aggies finished 17-12 overall and a 9-7 mark in Big West play to finish in a tie for fourth with Long Beach State. The 17 wins are the most for the program since the 2012 campaign (17-14), while the nine league wins are the most since 2015 (10-6). UC Davis posted its third consecutive winning season and its fifth at .500 or better under Conners since 2014.

QUARTET EARNS ALL-BIG WEST HONORS: For the first time in the program's history, UC Davis placed three on the All-Big West first team, as senior Lauren Matias, sophomore Josephine Ough, and sophomore Mahalia White, earned spots, while sophomore setter Jane Seslar was an honorable mention selection. It marked the first time that the Aggies have had multiple first-teamers since Kaylin Squyres and Kendall Walbrecht did so in 2015, while UC Davis placed three on any all-conference first time for the first time since league MVP Jill Changaris, Camille Gutierrez, and Kaersten Hill, were honored in 1996 as members of the NCAC.

CONNERS COMMENTS...
On earning the program's first postseason berth at the Division I level...
• "I'm proud of the way this group came together and competed this year. We set a goal at the beginning of the year to be in the postseason and this group did it. They absolutely deserve the recognition that they are getting by earning a spot in this tournament. It's a fantastic and talented group and I'm thrilled that we get to keep playing into December."

On the reaction from the team when they found out about the postseason berth...
• "I think they're excited and they're trying to manage their schedules, trying to figure out what to do to get prepared for finals week next week. Our job is just to manage it, work around their schedules the best that we can, make sure they're getting time to study."

On how making the postseason helps move the program forward...
• "I think it's just another step we're taking in the right direction. Going to the postseason is always something you shoot for and we're excited to be a part of it. All credit to the team, the season's a grind -- you work through all sorts of things like midterms, injuries, and the like -- and the teams that can put it all together make it to the postseason and can KEEP it all together in some cases. All credit to the student-athletes. They've been working hard , they come together as a single unit -- which is what you're striving to do -- and they just put their head down and found ways to win and get the job done."

On finishing the season with wins in five of their last six and peaking at the right time...
• "That's what we talk about doing. That kind of finish, you feel really good about that for sure."

On the tournament field...
• "Tulsa is going to cause us some match-up challenges that we're going to have to work through. They've got two good outside hitters who score a lot for them and some other pieces that get a lot of sets that we're going to have to figure out how to slow them down."

"Santa Clara has one of the best freshmen in the West Coast Conference, she'll be a match-up challenge for us as well. They're a good, well-coached team that grinds and plays good defense."

"We were fortunate to come out with a couple wins against Long Beach State, both of them went five sets, but they've got a new lineup now thanks to some players getting healthy and they were able to take down UC Santa Barbara and Cal Poly. I know they're feeling good with how they're playing right now."

"It'll be a challenging week for us, but I'm excited about it and I think we're up for the challenge."

On the pros and cons of having a week off without a match...
• "I'll let you know. I think the goal was to rejuvenate and get some health back after a grind of a season."

The Aggies will be successful this week if...
• "If we serve and pass well. Serve, pass, and play good defense. It just comes down to not letting the other teams score."

AGGIES CUT SHOTS...
• UC Davis is 3-1 against the NIVC field, falling to South Dakota, defeating Wyoming, and downing conference rival Long Beach State twice
• The Aggies rank among the top four in the Big West in kills (3rd), kills per set (4th), hitting percentage (3rd), assists (4th), aces (2nd), aces per set (2nd), block solos (4th), block assists (4th), and points (3rd)
• UC Davis stands among the top 50 in the NCAA in hitting (No. 46)
• Ough ranks 31st in the NCAA in hitting, Seslar stands 79th in assists per set and 74th in assists, while Matias ranks among the top 100 in kills per set (74th), points per set (76th), points (80th) & kills (78th)
• Matias became the 11th player in the history of the program to reach 1,000 career kills with 19 at Cal State Fullerton on Nov. 15, entering this week's matches with 1,039, while her 408 kills were the most since Squyres had 491 in 2015
• Matias became only the third UC Davis player to collect 400 kills in a season at the Division I level (Squyres and Allison Whitson each did it twice)
• The Aggies' 157 aces are the most since they finished with 169 in 2014
• Led by Lahav's 31 aces, UC Davis finished with five players with 20-or-more aces on the year -- the most since the 2010 squad had five
• Lahav's 31 aces are the most in a single-season since Squyres had 32 in 2014
• Matias enters the NIVC with double-digit kills in each of her last 13 matches (208 total), averaging a robust 4.43 kills per set in that span
• Seslar's 1,068 assists are the most by an Aggie since Jenny Woolway finished with 1,201 in 2013
• Ough's 99 blocks are the most since Kelechi Ohiri finished with 106 in 2017 and, with one more stuff, would be only the seventh Aggie in the Division I era to reach 100 for a season
• Ough's 17 solo blocks are the most since Whitson had 17 in 2011, while three more would match Betsy Sedlak's total of 20 in 2010
• Ough's .383 hitting percentage is currently third on the school's all-time single-season list trailing only Victoria Lee (.403 in 2013) and Sedlak (.395 in 2010)
• Freshman Shira Lahav has posted 17 matches with 10-or-more digs, while her 358 scoops this year are the most by a UC Davis freshman since career record-holder Malia Bolko finished with 474 in 2015
• Matias leads the team with 11 double-doubles on the year (all of the kill-dig variety), while Seslar has nine (all assist-dig), and Ough has a pair of matches with 10-or-more kills and 10-or-more blocks
• UC Davis hit .320 in the sweep of UC Riverside in the regular season finale -- the 10th time this year that the Aggies have hit .300 or better in a match
• With 17 wins this season, Conners has 93 victories in six seasons at the helm, placing him fifth among UC Davis head coaches
• The Aggies were picked to finish sixth according to the Big West coaches during the preseason

DIBS ON DOUBLE-DIGITS
Double-Digit Kills Performances (High)
Lauren Matias - 23 (27 vs. Wyoming)
Mahalia White - 14 (21 vs. Wyoming)
Leonie Strehl - 7 (18 at UC Irvine)
Josephine Ough - 6 (14 vs. Wyoming)
Demari Webb - 5 (15 vs. Sacramento State)
Alexa Rockas - 2 (13 vs. CSUN)

Double-Digit Digs Performances (High)
Shira Lahav - 17 (25 vs. Cal State Fullerton)
Lauren Matias - 13 (17 vs. Wyoming)
Jane Seslar - 9 (14 vs. Sacramento State & at Long Beach State)
Ally Reyes - 4 (19 vs. Sacramento State)
Perri Starkey - 3 (10 vs. Wyoming & at Cal State Fullerton & at UC Riverside)

Double-Digit Blocks Performances
Josephine Ough - 2 (10 at Cal Poly & at Long Beach State)

Double-Digit Points Performances (High)
Lauren Matias - 25 (30 vs. Wyoming)
Mahalia White - 15 (22 vs. Wyoming)
Leonie Strehl - 8 (18.5 vs. CSUN)
Josephine Ough - 7 (18.5 at Cal Poly)
Demari Webb - 6 (16 vs. Sacramento State)
Alexa Rockas - 5 (14.5 vs. CSUN)

DOUBLE-DOUBLES
Lauren Matias - 11 (Kills-Digs)
Jane Seslar - 9 (Assists-Digs)
Josephine Ough - 2 (Kills-Blocks)

2019 HONOR ROLL
Lauren Matias - Big West Conference Player of the Week (Oct. 14)
Shira Lahav - Big West Conference Defensive Player of the Week (Sept. 23)
Mahalia White - Aggie Invitational MVP; UVU Wolverine Invitational All-Tournament Team; Roadrunner Classic All-Tournament Team
Demari Webb - Aggie Invitational All-Tournament Team
Jane Seslar - Aggie Invitational All-Tournament Team
Josephine Ough - South Dakota Classic All-Tournament Team
Alexa Rockas - Roadrunner Classic MVP
 

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ABOUT UC DAVIS
Providing a small-town community feel while providing a world-class academic experience, UC Davis is home to more than 37,000 students and centrally located between San Francisco, Lake Tahoe, and the Napa Valley. The No. 5-ranked public university in the nation according to the Wall Street Journal and Times Higher Education, and among the top 15 public universities nationwide according to U.S. News and World Report, UC Davis offers nearly 100 graduate programs and more than 100 academic majors across four colleges and six professional schools, ranking among the world and nation's best in numerous disciplines, including veterinary science, agriculture, and plant and animal programs.

AGGIE EVO
Launched in 2017-18, the Aggie EVO System is UC Davis Athletics' investment in the primary mission of preparing student-athletes for a successful "launch" after graduation. Thanks to a collaboration of alumni, university resources, corporate partners, coaches and Student-Athlete Outcomes staff, all Aggies are guided over four years to acquire the skills, knowledge, opportunities and tools to better know and navigate the "World of Work" after graduating from UC Davis. Follow the Aggie EVO system on Twitter and Instagram at @AggieEVO.

MARYA WELCH INITIATIVE
Named after the former physical education instructor, coach and Dean of Women who founded women's sports on the campus 25 years before the passage of Title IX, the Marya Welch Initiative for Women's Athletics provides comprehensive support for UC Davis' 16 women's athletics programs. Through the support of the Marya Welch Initiative and its group members, student-athletes are provided the best possible opportunity to succeed inside the classroom, and in competition, through special project gifts and by increasing visibility and participation at women's events throughout the year. All gifts to the Marya Welch Initiative are matched 1:1, doubling the impact on our women's programs. Visit https://give.ucdavis.edu/ATHG/324041 for more information.