ELLENSBURG, Wash. – The Central Washington University volleyball team takes on a pair of Great Northwest Athletic Conference opponents this week.  The Wildcats host the University of Alaska Fairbanks on Thursday, before taking on the University of No. 7 Alaska Anchorage on Saturday. 
 
The Nanooks have won their past two matches and are 2-11 on the season.  In GNAC play, Fairbanks sits at 2-5 with wins over Saint Martin's University and Seattle Pacific. 
 
"We're excited for this home series against two teams playing play very well," CWU Head Coach Mario Andaya said.  "Alaska is coming off two good wins so we know their record doesn't indicate how they are playing right now.  They have good players we will have to pay special attention too, but overall we have to be good on our side of the net."
 
The Wildcats are 26-11 all-time against Fairbanks, with a 14-5 record at home.  Central Washington has won the last nine matches and have not lost at home since 2002.
 
Alaska's Sam Harthun leads the Nanooks with 177 kills.  Harthun claimed the GNAC's Offensive Player of the Week title with 35 kills and a hitting efficiency of .197.  Amberly Jeane follows behind her with 113 kills on 328 attempts.  The Nanooks are hitting just .137 through 51 sets.
 
Miranda Grieser handles the setting duties for Alaska and has compiled 279 assists.  She is averaging 5.47 assists per set. 
 
The leading block getter for the Nanooks is Kensey Mix.  She has been part of 35 blocks, four of which were solo.  Riley Podowicz has notched two solo blocks and 22 block assists.  Alaska has recorded 64.5 total blocks this season.
 
Meagan Olsen leads the Nanooks with 136 digs, followed by Samanatha Hesterman with 116. 
 
The Seawolves come into Ellensburg ranked No. 7 on the latest American Volleyball Coaches Association Coaches Poll.  Anchorage is 14-0 on the season with a 6-0 record in the GNAC.  The Seawolves will stop in Nampa, Idaho to play Northwest Nazarene before they get to Central Washington.
 
Katelynn Zanders sits atop the Seawolves squad with 194 kills.  She has a total of 489 attempts and a hitting efficiency of .233.  The most efficient hitter for Anchorage is Julia Mackey.  Mackey has posted a .356 hitting efficiency on 329 attempts.  Her 154 kills is good for second on the team.  As a team, Anchorage is hitting .289 on the season.
 
Morgan Hooe has dished out 526 assists for the Seawolves, averaging 10.73 assists per set.
 
The Wildcats are 16-21 historically.  Last season they lost both matches.  Central Washington has won two of the last five matches and three of the last nine. 
 
"Anchorage is very good in most facets of the game," Andaya said.  "They're as physical as any team we've faced all year, with a lot of weapons.  If both teams play well, it should be a tremendous match.  We are focusing on doing our part to make that happen."
 
Central Washington enters the week with a 9-4 record, with a 5-1 mark in GNAC play.  The Wildcats have picked have won three straight matches.  Last week Central went 2-0 on the road with wins over Western Oregon (3-0) and Concordia (3-2).
 
With last week's performance Linden Firethorne moved to 12^th in all-time kills for her career (811), needing just 55 kills to hold 10^th all-time.   She is currently 4^th all-time in kills per set with a 3.28 kills per set.  This season, Firethorne has posted 180 kills, averaging 3.60 per set. 
 
Sabrina Wheelhouse is currently the all-time leader in hitting efficiency at .387.  This season, she has posted a hitting efficiency of .407, notching 96 kills on 182 attempts, putting her 15^th overall in the NCAA Division II.
 
Catie Fry has moved her way to second all-time in assists with 3,254, after dishing out over 100 assists last week.  For the season, Fry has registered 540 assists with an average of 10.59 assists per set.   Fry is 29^th in the nation for assists per set.
 
Kaitlin Quirk has gotten in on 73 blocks this season for Central Washington.  She has three solo blocks and 70 block assists. She is tied fourth overall in the NCAA Division II for blocks per set with 1.43.  For her career she is second all-time with 364 blocks, but first in the rally-scoring era.  She is second all-time in block assists with 324, needing just 26 to tie the all-time mark.
 
The Wildcats lead the nation in blocks per set with 3.07.  Rockhurst maintains the second spot at 2.96 blocks per set.
 
The Wildcats are also third in total blocks (156.5) and in the top 50 programs in the NCAA Division II in hitting percentage (.230).
 
First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m. for both matches.  Live stats and video are available on wildcatsports.com.