STOCKTON, Calif. - The Pacific volleyball team will is now making its second trip through the rigors of the West Coast Conference as it will host Gonzaga (Thurs., Oct. 28 at 7 p.m.) and Portland (Sat., Oct. 30 at noon). Thursday's match will be part of the AVCA's Dig Pink campaign as fans will be able to make donations for each dig recorded by the Tigers will go to breast cancer research and awareness. It will be just the seventh home match of the season for Pacific, who has played its other 15 matches away from home. Pacific has a 4-2 mark at home in 2021. A fifth win at home will be the most since the 2018 season. 

vs. Gonzaga
MATCH DETAILS:
Teams: Gonzaga (7-14, 3-7 WCC) at Pacific (8-13, 5-5 WCC)
Date: Thursday, Oct. 28
Time: 7 p.m. (PT)
Location: Stockton, Calif. | Alex G. Spanos Center
Live Stats: https://pacifictigers.com/sidearmstats/wvball/summary
Live Video: https://wccsports.com/watch

Gonzaga Quick Facts
• Name: Gonzaga University
• Location: Spokane, Wash.
• Nickname: Bulldogs
• Head Coach: Diane Nelson
• Last win for Pacific: Oct. 2, 2021
• Last win for Pacific in Stockton: Feb. 6, 2021
• Series Note: The Tigers have won the last two meetings and six of the last eight. 

vs. Portland
MATCH DETAILS:
Teams:  Portland at Pacific (5-11, 4-3 WCC)^* 
* - record as of 10/27
Date: Saturday, Oct. 30
Time: Noon
Location: Stockton, Calif.
Live Stats: https://pacifictigers.com/sidearmstats/wvball/summary
Live Video: https://wccsports.com/watch

Portland Quick Facts
• Name: University of Portland
• Location: Portland, Ore.
• Nickname: Pilots
• Head Coach: Megan Burton
• Last win for Pacific: Sept. 30, 2021
• Last win for Pacific in Stockton: Nov. 9, 2019
• Series Note: The Tigers have won the last two meetings and three of the last four.

Last Time Out
Pacific picked up its fourth straight-set win on the season as they defeated host San Francisco, 25-22, 26-24, 25-22 on Saturday, October 23.  Darina Kumanova and Alexa Edwards led the attack with 14 and 12 kills respectively; plus setters Gabby Leo and Jenna Heller each had 18 assists. Both Leo and Heller also had two service aces to go along with 15 digs from Jadyn Tubbs.
 
NCAA Rankings
Alexa Edwards 
 - 35th in Attacks (805)
 - 49th in Attacks per set (11.00)
 - 53rd in Kills (273)
 - 85th in Kills per set (3.73)

Jenna Heller
 - 51st in Service Aces (31)
 - 68th in Aces per set (0.41)

Jadyn Tubbs 
- 73rd in Total Digs (344)
- 105th in Digs per set (4.35)

Seeing Double 
Freshman Jenna Heller leads the Tigers with 10 double double performances; plus sophomore Alexa Edwards has had eight – including a 14 kill, 12 dig effort in the four-set win ovef Gonzaga earlier this season. 

Ace
Senior Jadyn Tubbs has served up a service ace in the last eight matches for the Tigers. Plus, freshman Jenna Heller has recorded an ace in 14 of 18 matches.

Kumanova Earns Weekly Honor from ASVR
Sophomore Darina Kumanova was named the ASVR Global Player of the Week for her efforts, last week. Kumanova was instrumental in the Tigers' efforts win over nationally-ranked Pepperdine and a heartbreaking five-set loss to Loyola Marymount. In the win over Pepperdine, she had a double double with 12 kills and 13 digs. She delivered the game-winning kill against the Wave in the fifth and deciding set. Against Loyola Marymount, Kumanova posted 13 kills and eight digs in the loss. Past Pacific honorees include Svenja Engelhardt in 2010 en route to being named the ASVR Player of the Year. Engelhardt was a three-time honoree and former Tiger Natalia Tomaszewska received recognition in 2008.

Single Digits
Pacific had just eight hitting errors to go along with 31 kills in the straight-set win over Portland (Sept. 30). The last time that Pacific had single-digit hitting errors was in a nine-error effort against Portland (Nov. 10, 2018). Pacific has had single-digit hitting errors on three occasions since 2015. The last time that they had eight was against Little Rock on August 29, 2014.


Bringing the Hammer
Pacific hit at a season-high .280 clip in the last meeting against Portland on Sept. 30. The .280 hitting percentage is the highest by a Pacific team since a .287 clip against UC Davis on August 31, 2019. In the five-set win over Pepperdine (Oct. 7), the Tigers put down a season-high 67 kills. The 67 kills are the most since a 71-kill effort against Santa Clark on Feb. 23, 2021. Also, Pacific hit .239 in the win against Pepperdine – its third highest hitting percentage of the season.

Block Party
The Tigers are averaging 1.70 blocks per set including a season-high 12 blocks in the five-set loss to Cal (Sept. 4). The 12 blocks are the most by a Pacific team since a 12 block effort at Portland on October 10, 2019. Kennedy Kaminsky and Alexa Edwards share the team lead with 15 block solos. In nine matches, most recently at Gonzaga, the Tigers have recorded double-figure block assists. Pacific recorded a season-high 18 against CSUN (Sept. 11). The 18 were the most since a 22-block assist effort against Pepperdine on Nov. 3, 2018.

Home Sweet Home
With the win over USF on Sept. 28, the Tigers have won eight of its last nine conference home openers. Plus, Pacific has now won nine of its last ten meetings at home against the University of San Francisco. The lone blemish came last spring on Feb. 9, 2021. 

All-Tournament Honors
• Ramonni Cook (Elk Grove, Calif.) was named to the Sacramento State All-Tournament Team. Cook averaged 2.67 kills per set and a .197 hitting percentage, plus she also averaged 0.67 blocks. In the Tigers' four-set win over CSUN, she had 10 kills en route to a .304 hitting percentage to go along with four blocks. The night before in a five-set loss to Sacramento State, she had 13 kills and three blocks.
• Alexa Edwards (Sacramento, Calif.), Darina Kumanova (Sofia, Bulgaria) and Jadyn Tubbs (Turlock, Calif.) were named to the Pacific Community Classic All-Tournament Team. Edwards, a sophomore outside hitter from Sacramento, had 50 kills and a .252 hitting percentage to go along with six blocks in the three matches to lead Pacific. She recorded a season-high 21 kills in the five-set loss to Cal. She started the tournament with an 18-kill performance in the straight-set win over Tarleton State.

Kumanova, a sophomore outside hitter from Sofia, Bulgaria, has made an immediate impact after transferring in from UMBC. She had 31 kills and a .194 hitting percentage and a team-best 10 service aces. Kumanova had five service aces in the straight-set win over UC San Diego.

Tubbs, a senior libero from Turlock, had a team-best 56 digs and five service aces in the three matches. All five of her service aces came in the straight-set win over Tarleton State.

Serving Up Aces
Pacific has had 12 service aces in three matches, most recently against USF (Sept. 28). The 12 aces are the most by a Pacific squad since they also had 12 aces against Alabama State on Sept. 7, 2018. Of note, Pacific had 13 service aces against the University of San Francisco on October 21, 2017.

Setting Up for Success
Pacific is using a pair of setters – Jenna Heller and Gabby Leo – to set up its attack. Heller leads the Tigers with 445 assists and Leo has 282. 

Family Tree
Alexa Edwards (Sacramento, Calif.), Jenna Heller (Gilbert, Ariz.) and Sammie Sublett (Ramona, Calif.) are second generation members of the Tigers. Cathy Lumb-Edwards, the mother of Alexa Edwards,  played for the Tigers from 1980-83 and served as a graduate assistant for Pacific's 1986 national championship team. Heller is the third member of her family to attend Pacific, as her father DJ (1989-90) played baseball while her mother Melanie Beckenhauer-Heller (1988-91) was a two-time All-American on the volleyball team. Sublett's mother, Leona Bielefeld-Sublett (1985-88), was a player on both of the Tigers' 1985 and 1986 national championship teams.
 
Classroom Success
The Tigers' Gabby Leo was named to the West Coast Conference All-Academic Team for a second-straight year for her efforts in the classroom. At the conclusion of each athletic season, the WCC selects an all-academic squad for each WCC-sponsored sport. To be considered, a student-athlete must maintain at least a 3.20 cumulative grade point average, while also being a significant contributor to her team.