BILLINGS, Mont. – The Yellowjacket volleyball team (6-13, 2-8 GNAC) will play on back-to-back nights this weekend as they host matches on Friday and Saturday against Great Northwest Athletic Conference foes Simon Fraser University (8-11, 5-6 GNAC) and No. 8 Western Washington University (16-3, 10-1 GNAC). Both matches will start at 7 p.m. and will be played in Alterowitz Gym.
 
NUMBERS AND NOTES
 
THE SECOND TIME AROUND: This weekend marks the mid-way point of the conference schedule for the Yellowjackets as they will see the Clan and the Vikings for the second time this season. MSUB lost to both Simon Fraser and Western Washington on the road earlier in the season and finished 2-8 in their first pass through the conference slate. The 'Jackets picked up wins over the University of Alaska and Saint Martin's University in Billings and are currently winless in road conference matches.
 
A FRESH 200: Outside hitter Maddi Vigil's 221 kills this season makes her the first freshman since Monica Grimsrud in 2011 to top the 200 kill plateau. Grimsrud is also the last freshman to lead the team in kills for the season as she recorded 371 with an average of 3.67 per set. Vigil is currently averaging 3.45 kills per set and is on pace to finish the year with 349 kills. Bayli Monck currently has 171 kills and could likely reach the 200 kill mark by the end of the season.
 
LEADING THE SWARM: Libero Izela Alvarez tops the 'Jackets with 5.35 digs per set which ranks third in the GNAC and 41st in the nation. The freshman also ranks ninth in the conference with a .32 aces per set pace. Vigil leads the MSUB attack and places eighth in the conference with 3.45 kills per set and tenth in the GNAC in points with 3.73 per set. Monck is second on the team averaging 2.63 kills per set this season. Kylee Clarke is fifth in the GNAC with 9.38 assists per set. Middle blocker Hali Ehresmann leads the team with 42 blocks this season at a .65 clip. Her five solo blocks and 37 block-assists each lead the team. Junior Miranda McConnell leads the team with a .212 hitting percentage this season and is third on the team with 99 kills.
 
GNAC PACK: The No. 8 Western Washington Vikings have taken over first-place in the GNAC standings after their 3-0 victory over SFU made them the first team to 10 conference victories. No. 12 Northwest Nazarene (17-1, 9-1 GNAC) is second in the standings for the first time this season after taking their first loss last week on the road at Central Washington University (13-5, 8-2 GNAC). The Wildcats rank third in the conference. Simon Fraser currently sits in sixth while MSUB is 11th in the GNAC.
 
OPPONENT PREVIEW
 
SIMON FRASER CLAN: Simon Fraser comes in after being swept by Western Washington in Burnaby, B.C. on Tuesday night by a score of 25-9, 25-19, 25-16. The Clan struggled against the Viking's front line as WWU racked up 16 blocks in the contest while holding SFU to a .045 hitting percentage.
 
In Simon Fraser first meeting against the Yellowjackets this season, the Clan took a 3-1 victory with the help of a .273 hitting percentage. McConnell recorded on her best matches of the season in Burnaby, B.C., as she recorded 11 kills while hitting .455 with one block-assist. Vigil led the 'Jackets with 13 kills in the four sets and Alvarez had 19 digs. Clarke tallied 37 assists and four kills in the match.
 
The Clan's 18.30 digs per set rank third in the conference and are their highest rank in any statistical category. They are sixth in the conference in kills (12.66 per set) with a .187 hitting percentage which is seventh in the GNAC. May recorded nine kills in the first meeting against the 'Jackets while Mia Ricci and Kirsten Pinkney recorded 19 and 18 kills respectively as they set season highs against MSUB.
 
Junior Tessa May is the leading attacker for the Clan with a .345 hitting percentage while averaging 2.64 kills per set.   
Jayme Bratsberg is tied for first place in the GNAC with 5.37 digs per set this season as the junior has led the Simon Fraser back row. Katie Dolguikh ranks 15th in the conference with 3.48 digs per set.
 
Gina Schmidt is in her fifth year at the head of the program at Simon Fraser. In her second season at the helm she led the Clan to their first winning season since joining the NCAA with a record of 17-9, 11-7 GNAC. She has led the team to winning seasons in every year since, including last year's 21-8, 14-6 GNAC record.   
 
No 8 WESTERN WASHINGTON VIKINGS: Western Washington is riding a nine-match winning streak as they head to Billings. Over the stretch the Vikings have gone 28-2 in sets having dropped a single set to both Simon Fraser and Alaska Anchorage. Their last loss came to No. 12 Northwest Nazarene in Nampa, Idaho. Each of WWU's three losses have been at the hands of ranked opponents this season.
 
In Bellingham, Wash., WWU was captured a sweep of the 'Jackets 25-19, 25-14, 25-16 in the teams' first meeting of the season. Western recorded eight blocks in the match and held the MSUB attack to a .084 hitting percentage. Three Viking's attackers had 11 kills in the match as Abby Phelps, Michaela Hall and Joellee Buckner led a balance offense. MSUB did not have a player reach double digit kills in the match as Vigil led the team with nine and a .304 hitting percentage. Alvarez had 23 digs while Smythe recorded 17 assists.
 
The Vikings rank third in the nation in blocks per set with 2.76 which is second behind Central Washington in the GNAC. They're also in the top-25 nationally in Attacks per set (7th), Digs per set (17th), kills per set (20th), hitting percentage (21st) and winning percentage (23rd). They place no worse than third in the conference in every statistical category as a team this season.
 
Phelps has been the leading attacker for WWU this season while averaging 3.81 kills per set, third in the GNAC, and hitting .241 on the season. Hall has the fourth best hitting percentage in the conference .318 with a 2.81 kills per set average. Defensively Joslyn Bopray is second in the GNAC and third in the nation with 1.34 blocks per set while Hall's 1.22 blocks is fourth in the conference and 27th among Division II qualifiers.
 
Western Washington is led by 18th-year head coach Diane Flick-Williams who is the most prolific coach in program history with a record of 383-102 and averaging more than 21 wins per season during her tenure. Under her leadership the Vikings have made 11 postseason appearances and seven GNAC championships. 
 
FOLLOW LIVE: Live video and statistics will be available for all MSUB home matches and all GNAC road contests throughout the 2017 season, through MSUB's Stretch Internet portal.