Oct. 22, 2010
Complete Release in PDF Format 
COLLEGE STATION, Texas - Texas A&M begins the second half of Big 12 Conference play on Saturday as the Aggies play host to the Colorado Buffaloes at Reed Arena. The start time, originally slated for 6:30 p.m., has been changed to 3 p.m. to allow Aggie fans the opportunity to also watch the A&M-Kansas football game, which will be televised on FSN at 6 p.m. from Lawrence, Kan.
It will be Camper Appreciation Day at the Colorado match, and anyone wearing an A&M Volleyball Camp T-shirt will be admitted free. In addition, Aggie volleyball players will hold an autograph session for all fans following the match.
The Aggies (9-11, 3-7 Big 12), who have won the last four meetings against the Buffaloes, are tied with Colorado (6-10, 3-7 Big 12) and Kansas State for eighth place in the conference standings.
A&M, which defeated Colorado, 3-2, earlier this season in Boulder, is coming off a 3-2 (25-22, 20-25, 25-20, 24-26, 15-10) loss at Oklahoma on Wednesday. The Buffs are coming off a 3-1 (22-25, 25-17, 25-22, 25-10) home loss to No. 12 Iowa State.
This will be the final Big 12 match-up between the two teams, as the Buffaloes depart for the Pac 10 Conference in July.
A&M QUICK HITS:
• Junior outside hitter Kelsey Black has taken team-high honors in kills in all 20 matches this season. She leads the Big 12 with 4.80 points and 0.41 aces and is third in the league with 4.05 kills per set for the full season.
• Black entered the week ranked 23rd in the nation in points per set, 30th in aces per set and 34th in kills per set.
• A&M is 8-0 this season when winning the first set.
• A&M had four players post double figures in kills in the same match for the first time this season in the Oklahoma match on Wednesday. It is only the third time this year three or more players have tallied double-digit kills in the same match. Black led the Aggies with 19 kills, and setter Allie Sawatzky had a career-high 12 kills against the Sooners. In addition, Stephanie Minnerly had a career-high 10 kills, and Lindsey Miller also pitched in 10 kills.
• A&M entered the week ranked 22nd in the nation in home attendance, averaging 1,594 per match in nine home contests. The Aggies, who are currently 4-5 in home matches this season, had a season-high 3,305 in attendance to cheer them on to a 3-0 victory against No. 8 Texas on Sept. 16.
• A&M has played in seven five-set matches this season. The record for most five-set matches in a season is nine set in 1988 and tied in 2005. The Aggies have played eight five-set matches in a single season three times, most recently in 2008.
• Aggie libero Tori Mellinger recorded a career-high 34 digs against Missouri on Oct. 13, the most digs by a Big 12 player this season. Her 34 digs also is the most by an A&M player in the rally-point scoring era -- using both the 30- and 25-point scoring cap -- and ranks fifth all-time in the Aggie record books. It is the most digs by an Aggie since Erin Gibson had 35 against Colorado in 2000 and is only four shy of tying the all-time record of 38 set by Yvonne Van Brandt in 1988 and tied by Stacy Sykora in 1998 using the side-out scoring format. Mellinger has posted double figures in digs in 16 of the last 18 matches. She has posted 20 or more digs five times this season and ranks eighth in the Big 12 with 4.04 digs per set for the full season and is eighth with 4.12 digs per set in Big 12 matches only.
• Freshman setter Allie Sawatzky, who has started every match for the Aggies this season, ranks fifth in the Big 12 with 9.55 assists per set in all matches. She is eighth in the league with 9.34 assists per set in conference matches only.
• Junior transfer utility player Elise Hendrickson has started three of the last four matches as the right-side hitter and played in every set over the last four matches. She has tallied double-figures in two of the last three matches.
• Black has twice tied the A&M all-time record for aces in a match this season for both a three-set match and a five-set match, posting six apiece against both Sam Houston State and Pacific. She already has 31 aces in 2010, more than any player has recorded in a full season since Sarah Ammerman had 36 in 2007.
• Sophomore middle blocker Stephanie Minnerly is ranked eighth in the Big 12 with 1.07 blocks per set for the full season and eighth in the league with 1.10 blocks per set in conference matches only. A&M has led its opponent in blocks in each of the last three matches, with Minnerly averaging 1.21 and blocks per set in those matches.
• Black, Sawatzky, Minnerly and Lindsey Miller have started every match this season, and Chelsea Ringel has started all but one and has played in all 76 sets. Mellinger has been the designated libero in every set.
• Laurie Corbelli, the winningest coach in A&M volleyball history, is 372-180 in her 18th season at the helm of the Aggies and 472-286 in the 25th season of her head coaching career.
A&M-COLORADO SERIES RECORDS:
• A&M leads the all-time series, 21-9, since the teams first met in 1994, including 20-9 in Big 12 matches only.
• A&M is 11-3 against the Buffs in matches played in College Station.
• Overall, A&M has won the last four matches against the Buffaloes, as well as six of the last seven meetings. A&M has swept the Big 12 season series six times. CU tallied its only season series sweep in 2006.
• The match in Boulder earlier this season was the 11th time the contest between the two teams was decided in the fifth set. CU is 6-5 against the Aggies when the match goes five.
• CU's most recent win against the Aggies was a 3-2 (16-25, 23-25, 25-22, 25-20, 15-9) victory on Sept. 27, 2008, in Boulder. The Buffs' most recent win in College Station was Oct. 25, 2006, in five sets.
• In the most recent meeting, A&M got a crucial Big 12 road match victory, defeating Colorado, 25-22, 25-17, 18-25, 23-25, 15-6, on Sept. 29 at the Coors Events Center. Kelsey Black had 18 kills and Chelsea Ringel added a career-high 13 kills in the win. Freshman setter Allie Sawatzky also pitched in a then career-high eight kills and tallied 45 assists, and libero Tori Mellinger led all players with 21 digs. A&M held a narrow 7-6 lead in the final set but then reeled off eight unanswered points to race to the win. The Aggies, who outhit the Buffs, .364 to -.235 in the set, hit .213 for the match, posting 61 kills, 59 assists, three aces 68 digs and 11 blocks. Colorado hit .173 with 53 kills, 52 assists, three aces, 61 digs and 12.5 blocks.
COLORADO NOTES:
• Colorado is 6-10 overall and tied with A&M and Kansas State for eighth place in the Big 12 standings with a 7-3 league mark.
• The Buffaloes have lost five of their last six matches. Most recently, they fell to No. 12 Iowa State, 22-25, 25-17, 25-22, 25-10, Wednesday in Boulder. Kerra Schroeder led CU with 21 kills, and Anicia Santos added 11. Megan Beckwith had 20 digs and Nichole Lindow had a team-high four blocks.
• The Buffaloes are 1-5 in away matches. The one win was a 3-2 victory at Texas Tech on Oct. 13.
• Schroeder, a 6-0 sophomore outside hitter from San Diego, leads CU and is fourth in the Big 12 with 4.02 kills and 4.49 points per set for the full season. Freshman libero Megan Beckwith is ninth in the league with 4.00 digs per set.
• Junior setter Alyssa Valentine is ninth in the Big 12 with 8.95 assists per set for the full season.
• Liz Kritza (Tulane `00) is in her second season as head coach at Colorado.
UPCOMING:
The Aggies take on Texas Tech on Wednesday, Oct. 27 at the United Spirit Arena in Lubbock, Texas. First serve is slated for 6:30 p.m. A&M then has a bye before returning home to Reed Arena on Nov. 3 for a rematch against Oklahoma. The match against the Sooners will start at 8 p.m. and will be televised by ESPNU.