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QUICK HITS
◊ Savannah Slattery earned a spot on the 2017 Preseason All-WCC team ... along with Emma Johnson, she was also named to the Oregon Classic All-Tournament Team ... was tabbed JLABS Challenge All-Tournament and WCC Player of the Week on 9/11 after guiding LMU to a pair of sweeps over Long Beach State and San Diego State
◊ Four of LMU's five losses this year have come to a team currently in the AVCA Top-25 (USC, Michigan, Oregon, UCLA)
◊ Kristen Castellanos currently sits third on LMU's all-time digs list (1,349) ... along with Sara Kovac, she was also named to the USC/LMU Invitational All-Tournament team
◊ LMU snapped a string of nine losses to ranked opponents and seven straight five-set losses with the win over #24 North Carolina on 9/15
◊ LMU dropped the season opener this year (USC) for just the fourth time in the last 21 seasons (17-4)
◊ The Lions rank third in the WCC in aces (73) and aces per set (1.62) ... served up a season-best 11 aces vs. Northern Illinois on 8/25 and added 10 more vs. Pepperdine on 9/23
◊ LMU ranks second in the WCC in assists per set (13.00) and kills per set (13.78), trailing only San Diego (13.73, 14.63)
◊ LMU allowed a .400 hitting percentage in the loss to USC on 8/25 - the first time allowing a .400+ mark since 11/20/10 vs. San Diego (.437)
◊ The Lions were picked to finish eighth in the WCC Volleyball Preseason Poll
◊ LMU made its 13th NCAA Tournament appearance in 2015, and has reached the Tournament in three of the last five years (2012, 2014, 2015)
◊ The Lions went 19-11 overall last year, including 10-8 in the WCC to claim a share of third place in the conference standings
◊ LMU fell a win short of 20 last year, but recorded back-to-back 20+ win seasons the previous two years for the first time since 1999-00
◊ The Lions have posted 10+ WCC wins in three straight years for the first time since 1995-97
◊ LMU won the first set in 24 of 30 matches last year, but went 0-6 in five-set matches
◊ The Lions are 305-163 (.652) at home since 1982

THIS WEEK
LMU will continue West Coast Conference play this week with a busy three-match slate that will begin with a 6 p.m. ESPN-televised road match at #17 San Diego on Tuesday night ... the Lions will then return home to host Saint Mary's on Thursday at 7 p.m. before finishing the week by welcoming Pacific to Gersten Pavilion on Saturday at Noon ... all three matches will feature live stats and video, with links available at LMULions.com and TheW.tv.

WATCH IT LIVE ONLINE
LMU Athletics will video stream all non-televised home volleyball matches this year through the LMU Sports Network and the W.tv ... the video stream is free of charge, and will be accompanied by an audio play-by-play broadcast ... to watch any and all home matches this year, please visit LMULions.com or TheW.tv.

READY FOR THE BRIGHT LIGHTS
The West Coast Conference unveiled its 2017 broadcast schedule for volleyball, and the Lions were scheduled to play a trio of nationally-televised matches ... the Lions dropped a 9/13 match at #13 UCLA that aired live on the Pac-12 Network ... LMU will next travel to San Diego for a 6 p.m. match that will air on ESPNU/Watch ESPN on September 26 ... finally, the Lions will host a televised match against Santa Clara on October 12 with first serve set for 8 p.m.

IT'S JUST A NUMBER
With a victory over No. 24 Pepperdine on November 8, 2012, LMU snapped a streak of 36 straight losses to ranked opponents (previous victory: 10/5/06 at #12 Santa Clara) ... LMU finished that year 1-5 against ranked foes before going 0-4 in such matches in 2013 ... the 2014 season went much better when the Lions were pit against Top-25 squads, as LMU went 2-2 on the year ... LMU was 4-2 against ranked opponents in 2015 after beating #20 UCLA (8/30), #12 BYU (10/24), #13 Colorado State (12/3) and #6 Stanford (12/4), but went 0-5 last year, dropping a four-setter to #12 UCLA on 8/27, falling in five after leading 2-0 over #6 San Diego on 9/27, dropping a four-set match at #5 USD on 10/20, and falling in five to #16 BYU on 10/22 and 11/22 ... so far this year, LMU is 1-3 against ranked foes, suffering a sweep at the hands of then 16th-ranked Michigan on 8/26, falling in five sets at #14 Oregon on 9/1, and suffering a sweep at #13 UCLA on 9/13 ... the Lions ended a nine-match losing streak against Top-25 foes on 9/15, defeating #24 North Carolina in five sets.

ABOUT SAN DIEGO
San Diego enters the match sporting a #17 overall ranking, a 9-3 overall record, and a 2-0 mark in the WCC after most recently defeating San Francisco and Santa Clara on the road to start WCC play ... all three of USD's losses have come to ranked opponents, including UCLA, Texas and Utah ... Jayden Kennedy paces the team on the attack, registering 142 kills (3.55 per set) while hitting .331 ... the Toreros are hitting .270 as a team while receiving sets from Kristen Gengenbacher (435 assists, 10.88 per set) ... Merve Tanyel is the team's leading server, collecting 12 of USD's 54 aces on the year ... Addie Picha is a threat on the block for USD, managing eight block solos and 32 block assists (1.21 per set) ... San Diego is led by 17th-year head coach Jennifer Petrie.

FIFTH SET WINS ARE ELUSIVE!
The five-set heartbreaking loss to #10 BYU to finish the 2016 season proved to be a fitting summary of the luck LMU had in five-set contests last season, as the Lions went 0-6 in such contests, including 0-4 at home ... as if the losses weren't enough, LMU won the first two sets in three of those six setbacks (9/27 vs. #6 San Diego; 10/27 vs. Pacific; 11/22 vs. #10 BYU) ... in addition, LMU was up 2-1 in two of the other three losses ... all six of the five-set losses came in WCC play, with two each coming against Pacific and BYU ... the five-set struggles leaked early into 2017, as LMU led 2-1 at #14 Oregon on 9/1 only to drop the match in five ... the Lions have since snapped a string of seven straight five-set setbacks by beating #24 North Carolina in five on 9/15, improving to 1-1 in such matches this year.

THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME
One of Southern California's premier athletic facilities, Albert Gersten Pavilion is in its 36th year as home of the Loyola Marymount volleyball in 2017 ... since opening night, the Pavilion has become one of toughest places to play in the West Coast Conference ... the volleyball Lions first moved into the facility in 1982, and recorded 14 wins in Gersten's inaugural season ... since 1982, the Lions have posted an overall record of 305-163 (.652) in the friendly confines of the Pavilion ... LMU, which went 8-6 last year at home, went 10-4 at home in 2015 ... in conference play, the record is even more impressive with a 155-77 (.668) home record in WCC action ... in 34 years, the 1996 (WCC volleyball championship team and Sweet Sixteen participant) and 2003 (NCAA second round appearance) squads have been the most successful with 14-1 marks, for .933 winning percentages.

WCC PLAYER OF THE WEEK AND ALL-TOURNAMENT
For her efforts in guiding LMU to a pair of sweeps over Long Beach State and San Diego State, sophomore outside hitter Savannah Slattery was named West Coast Conference Player of the Week on 9/11 and JLABS Challenge All-Tournament ... the selection was the first of the year for LMU, and was the first of Slattery's career ... Slattery collected 12 kills in each of the two matches, finishing the week with 24 kills (4.00 per set) on 53 swings while hitting .302 ... she also registered a service ace, 16 digs (2.67 per set) and four blocks over the two matches ... the native of Malibu, Calif. narrowly missed a double-double in LMU's sweep of Long Beach on Thursday, teaming her match-high 12 kills with nine digs while also managing a block solo and one block assist.

PICKED BEFORE THE SERVE
The West Coast Conference released its preseason All-WCC selections, and LMU's Savannah Slattery was honored ... Slattery finished second on the team in kills as a freshman in 2016, totaling 330 to average 3.27 per set ... she also managed 16 aces, 114 digs and 32 blocks, including four solos and 28 block assists ... the native of Malibu, Calif. contributed double-digit kills in 18 of her 29 matches played, including a season-best 24 at BYU on 10/22 in which she also collected 14 digs for one of two double-doubles on the season ... no fewer than eight programs placed at least one student-athlete on the preseason All-West Coast Conference Team ... BYU and San Diego led the way with a pair of preseason selections.

SURVEY SAYS
In a preseason poll of the Conference's 10 head coaches, LMU was selected to finish eighth in the West Coast Conference in 2017 ... after marching to a fifth consecutive NCAA Sweet-16 berth, BYU was the unanimous pick as the favorite to win the West Coast Conference Volleyball Championship ... the Cougars have won or shared the four of the last five WCC titles including three straight.

WINS FOR THE AGES
LMU has managed a few streak-stopping victories over the last three years, most notably defeating Stanford, BYU and UCLA ... the Lions' latest accomplishment was a road sweep at then-#6 Stanford on 12/4/15 to advance to the 2015 NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 ... the victory over the Cardinal was the first in program history, as the Lions had previously gone 0-3 and never won a set ... Stanford was also the highest-ranked opponent to be fall to the Lions (previous: 3-2 at #9 Hawaii on 9/23/05) ... LMU posted a five-set victory over then-No. 12 BYU on 10/24/15, marking the first win over the Cougars in program history (1-11) ... prior to LMU's sweep of UCLA on 8/30/14, the Bruins had won seven straight matches over the Lions ... the all-time series now stands at 11-3 in favor of UCLA, as the Lions swept the Bruins for the second straight year on 8/30/15 in match two of the season ... 2015's victory came on the road, and was the first on the road for LMU at UCLA since December 4, 1986 (3-2) while playing in the NCAA Tournament.

DiG PiNK
For the 11th consecutive year, LMU volleyball will help raise awareness and funds for the fight against breast cancer through the Side-Out Foundation DiG PiNK campaign ... LMU's DiG PiNK event is scheduled for October 21 versus BYU ... fans will have the opportunity to donate at the match and bid on silent auction items, with the proceeds from the auction going to the Side-Out Foundation ... fans can donate before, during and after the match by visiting: http://bit.ly/LMUDigPink17

PCH CUP
Separated by 19.1 miles of scenic coastline, longtime cross-town adversaries Loyola Marymount and Pepperdine came together in an effort to boost their decades-long rivalry with the creation of the Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) Cup ... the series, which is in its ninth year, serves as an annual scorecard for the NCAA-sponsored athletic contests between the Lions and Waves, and challenges each institution to rise above the other within the West Coast Conference ... any head-to-head competition, including matches in the post-season and tournaments throughout the year, will be counted toward the scoring and added to the scorecard as they occur ... for the sports in which the two teams do not meet head-to-head, the teams will battle for points that will be awarded on the basis of overall finish at their respective post-season championships ... Pepperdine currently leads in the 2017-18 PCH Cup standings, 2.5-0 ... LMU won the 2016-17 PCH Cup, 12-9.5 ... to learn more about the PCH Cup and view the current scorecard, please visit: lmulions.com/pchcup

A CLASSIC DUO
LMU went 2-1 at the 2017 Oregon Classic that was hosted by then-No. 14 Oregon ... at the conclusion of play, sophomores Savannah Slattery and Emma Johnson were each named to the Oregon Classic All-Tournament team ... Johnson finished the three matches with 34 kills (2.62 per set) on 56 attacks with just five errors to record a solid .518 hitting percentage ... she also added three block solos and 13 block assists to contribute 43.5 total points ... Slattery finished the week with 43 kills (3.31 per set), four aces, 31 digs and eight block assists ... the team leader in points, she contributed 51 over the course of the weekend while collecting a pair of double-doubles.

LOCAL ALL-TOURNAMENT HONORS
Following the conclusion of the USC/LMU Invitational to open the season, junior Sara Kovac and senior Kristen Castellanos were named to the All-Tournament team ... Kovac finished the three matches with 28 kills on 54 swings, averaging 2.80 kills per set while hitting .352 ... the native of Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada also added five block assists ... Castellanos, serving as LMU's libero, served up three aces while accumulating 37 digs to average 3.70 per set over the course of the tournament.

LET'S SETTLE THIS ON NEUTRAL GROUND
LMU has historically been extremely impressive in matches played at neutral sites, in which neither team is playing on their home court ... so far this year, LMU is 2-0 on neutral courts ... the Lions, who went 4-0 last year in neutral matches, went 4-1 in neutral matches in 2015 after finishing 2014 with the same 4-1 record ... LMU was 1-1 in neutral contests in 2013 after finishing 2-3 in 2012 ... 2011 saw the Lions go 4-2 in neutral matches, while they were 6-2 in 2010 ... overall, LMU is 128-59 (.684) in neutral contests since the 1983 season, including having posted perfect neutral records in nine of those 34 seasons ... over that span, LMU has had only five seasons with losing records in neutral matches.

LMU VOLLEYBALL ON TWITTER & INSTAGRAM
For fans, parents and players interested in following LMU volleyball even closer this year, LMU volleyball will be posting to social media under the handle @LMU_Volleyball ... to get the inside look at LMU volleyball, make sure to follow @LMU_Volleyball on Twitter and Instagram.

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