September 20, 2002
No. 17 Texas A&M (9-1, 1-0 Big 12) hits the road to battle the Colorado Buffaloes (7-4, 1-0 Big 12) in Boulder on Saturday. First serve is at 8 p.m. (CDT) at the Coors Events on the Colorado campus...Both teams were victorious in their Big 12 Conference openers on Wednesday as A&M swept Kansas in College Station, and the Buffaloes came from behind to down Baylor in four games in Waco, Texas...With the wins, A&M extended its winning streak to four matches while Colorado increased its season-high winning streak to five.
TEXAS A&M AGGIES
The Aggies, who are 6-0 at home this year and riding a 16-match home winning streak dating to last season, slipped one spot to No. 17 in this week's USA Today/AVCA Top 25 Poll despite going 3-0 last week...Three starters are hitting above .300, led by freshman outside hitter Laura Jones, who is hitting .371 and was named MVP at the McDonald's Texas Invitational II last weekend. Senior middle blocker A.D. Achilefu is hitting at a .350 clip, and junior middle blocker Tara Pulaski is hitting .308 and sports a team-high 0.95 blocks per game...Sophomore outside hitter Melissa Munsch, who has posted double figures in kills in the last six matches, leads the Aggies in kill average (3.68), dig average (3.32) and points per game (4.54) and also leads the team with five double-doubles...Sophomore setter Lexy Beers, who averaged a Big 12-best 15.00 assists per game on Wednesday, is averaging 12.18 assists for the full season...As a team, A&M is hitting .259 and averaging 15.95 kills, 2.34 aces, 16.71 digs and 2.29 blocks per game...Opponents are hitting .166 and averaging 13.26 kills, 0.87 aces, 15.58 digs and 1.61 blocks per game...A&M, picked to finish second in the league according to a preseason poll of the conference coaches, placed second with a 16-4 mark last year to tie the 1999 Aggies for the best record and equal A&M's highest finish.
COLORADO BUFFALOES
Colorado (7-4, 1-0) is riding a season-high four-match winning streak after opening Big 12 play by defeating Baylor on the road. The Buffs were led by junior middle blocker Monique Gerlach, who posted a career-high 27 kills while hitting .548. Colorado got off to a shaky start and was held to a .189 hitting percentage in the first game. The Buffs improved every game, hitting .263 and .483 in the next two games, and closing out the match with a .500 hitting percentage in the final frame. Preseason all-Big 12 setter Elizabeth Gower notched 59 assists in the win...The Buffaloes are undefeated in home matches with a 4-0 record, including a four-game victory over then-No. 17 Colorado State on Sept. 10...Three of the Buffs' loss have been to ranked opponents as they opened the season by dropping consecutive matches to No. 11 UCLA, No. 9 Ohio State and No. 4 Hawaii in Honolulu...Colorado, which finished fourth in the Big 12 last year with a 13-7 mark, is picked to tie for third this year according to a preseason poll of the league coaches...Head coach Pi'i Aiu (Colorado '89) is 105-61 in his sixth year at the helm of the Buffs.
SERIES RECORD
The Aggies lead the all-time series against Colorado, 10-3, including a 4-2 mark in matches played in Boulder...Last year the teams split the two-match series as the Buffaloes won for the first time in College Station with a 23-30, 24-30, 30-28, 30-24, 15-10 come-from-behind victory at G. Rollie White Coliseum, and the Aggies disposed of Colorado, 30-19, 30-23, 30-24, in Boulder behind a Big 12 and A&M record-setting blocking performance by freshman middle blocker Melissa Munsch. Munsch posted 13 blocks -- an A&M and Big 12 record in a three-game conference match - as the Aggies tallied a season-high 16 stuffs. Her 11 block assists tied the A&M all-time record for a three-game match...The Aggies hit .301 for the match while holding Colorado to a .121 hitting percentage. A&M also outblocked and outdug the Buffaloes, 16-7 and 56-45, respectively, at the Coors Events Center
- Texas A&M vs. Colorado:
Overall: A&M leads 10-3
At College Station: A&M leads 4-1
At Boulder: A&M leads 4-2
Sept. 18, 1994 A W 16-14,15-6, 4-15, 16-14 Oct. 19, 1996 A W 17-15, 15-8, 15-11 Nov. 29, 1996 H W 15-10, 15-12, 15-5 Oct. 17, 1997 H W 15-9, 15-13, 15-11 Nov. 29, 1997 A W 15-8, 15-12, 2-15, 15-7 Oct. 16, 1998 A L 12-15, 15-3, 2-15, 9-15 Nov. 21, 1998 H W 15-11, 15-5, 5-15, 13-15, 15-10 Oct. 23, 1999 H W 16-14, 14-16, 15-11, 15-7 Nov. 24, 1999 A W 15-10, 15-11, 16-14 Sept. 23, 2000 H W 15-7, 15-13, 13-15, 15-9 Nov. 1, 2000 A L 13-15, 11-15, 12-15 Oct. 3, 2001 H L 30-23, 30-24, 28-30, 24-30, 10-15 Oct. 24, 2001 A W 30-19, 30-23, 30-24
UPCOMING
A&M plays its second consecutive road match Wednesday as the Aggies travel to Columbia, Mo., to take on the Missouri Tigers. First serve is at 7 p.m. at the Hearnes Center...The Tigers, who are picked to finish tied for third in the league with Colorado in a preseason poll of the conference coaches, opened Big 12 play with a 26-30, 30-23, 30-24, 30-21 victory at No. 24 Texas on Wednesday. Missouri, which improved to 11-1 overall, has a bye this weekend.