ELLENSBURG, Wash. – The Central Washington University volleyball team plays its final regular season road game against Western Oregon on Saturday at 1 p.m.
 
GAME INFORMATION
Wildcats vs. Western Oregon
Saturday, Nov. 16 | 1 p.m. PT
New PE Building | Monmouth, Ore.  
 
QUOTABLE 
" We look forward for another opportunity to compete and to improve from the last outing," CWU Head Coach Mario Andaya said. " We're going to embrace the matches we have left and continue to commit to our goals."

NCAA WEST REGIONAL RANKINGS
The NCAA released their regional rankings were updated on Wednesday. The Wildcats dropped one position and now rank seventh in the west region. Defense has been a strength for the Wildcats throughout the 2019 season. The team ranks 51^st in the country with an average of 2.12 blocks per set. They rank 46^th in digs with 17.70 per set. 

LAST TIME OUT
The Wildcats took on Concordia (Ore.) in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play. The Wildcats smothered the Cavaliers in several statistical categories, but dropped the match 3-2 (18-25, 25-15, 25-21, 23-25, 15-12) on Thursday night.
 
The Wildcats dropped the opening set against the Cavaliers after attack errors proved costly for the Wildcats in the opening set of the match. The Wildcats committed six attack errors while the Cavaliers committed just one. The offensive efficiency led to 12 kills on a .333 hitting percentage for the home team.
 
A fast start for CWU in the second set helped the team even things at 1-1 early on. The Wildcat offense found their rhythm in the second set. The team made just two attack errors while converting 14 kills. The Wildcats hit at a .387 clip. At the same time, the Cavaliers made nine attack errors and hit just .045 for the set.
 
The Wildcat defense was stout in the third set. They held the Cavaliers to another low hitting percentage. The Cavaliers finished the third set after hitting .082. At the same time, the Wildcat offense had 14 kills on a .146 hitting percentage to go up 2-1 overall.
 
It was a back-and-forth affair between the two squads in set No. 4. Both teams put together a string of runs but the Wildcats could not contain the Cavaliers. The home team had 14 kills while making just four attack errors. They owned a .222 hitting percentage as the evened the match at 2-2.
 
In the deciding set, the two teams battled to a 6-6 tie. The Cavaliers went on a pivotal 5-1 run that gave them an 11-7 lead. From there, Ashley Kaufman had two straight kills followed by another one from Lexi Schamadan. The small 3-0 run cut the Cavalier lead to 11-10. In the closing moments of the final set, the home team used a 4-2 run to take it 15-12 and cap off the come-from-behind effort.
 
Makala Swart finished the match with a double-double. She had a game-high 17 kills while adding 16 digs. Kaufman added a double-double of her own. She had 16 kills and 22 digs for a stellar night. Schamadan was the only other Wildcat to finish with double-figure kills. Schamadan finished the match with 13 kills.
 
Gabrielle Aihara and Sydney Remsberg distributed the ball well. Aihara wrapped up the match with a game-high 33 assists. Defensively, Aihara added 14 digs for a double-double. Remsberg doled out 23 assists.
 
Defensively, the Wildcats were led by Julia Mellander, Sierra Sharma and Kyla Morgan. Mellander had six total blocks and added nine kills to the Wildcats offensive effort. Sharma added five total blocks. Morgan led the effort in reception, accumulating 33 digs during the match.
 
WILDCATS IN THE GNAC
The Wildcats have established what they do well as the weeks dwindle on the regular season. The Wildcats remain fourth in conference by keeping opponents to a .163 hitting percentage. The Wildcats are rank fourth in blocks by averaging 2.1o per set. The team also ranks fourth with 17.85 digs per set.

The defensive is fueled by performances in reception and at the net. Morgan continues to lead the conference with 5.70 digs per set. She also ranks 20th in the country in the same category. Mellander ranks fourth in conference with 1.15 blocks per set. Mellander's totals are 40th in the country. 
 
Experienced players highlight the offensive standouts for the Wildcats. Aihara's 8.52 assists per set is the seventh best in conference. Swart ranks seventh in conference with 3.27 kills per set. The team also ranks third in assists (12.26) and kills (13.09) per set. 
 
SCOUTING WESTERN OREGON  
The Wolves find themselves in 10th place in the GNAC standings. They've gone 4-20 with a 2-15 record in conference play. On Nov. 2, the team picked up their most recent conference win over Saint Martin's in three sets.
 
The Wolves are allowing opponents to average 12.5 kills per set while racking up a .258 hitting percentage. The Wolves have averaged 10.8 kills per set while hitting .169. The Wolves struggle in reception, as teams are averaging 2.5 aces per set against them. The Wolves average 12.7 digs per set.
 
The Offense is led by Sianna DeCarli. The junior has 216 kills over 78 sets played for an average of 2.77 kills per set. Lauren Smith is the only member of the Wolves to average more than two kills per set. The newcomer has 2.20 kills per set. The offense goes through Aubrey Stanton. The Camas, Washington native has 553 assists on the season for an average of 7.68 per set.
 
Allie Spear leads the team in reception. She's had 353 digs over 80 sets played for and an average of 4.41 digs per set. Allyson Crisp is tough at the net. Crisp has 63 total blocks, 17 of which have come on the solo effort.

SERIES HISTORY
Since 2002, the Wildcats are 25-10 against the Wolves. The Wildcats are 9-1 over their last 10 matchups against the Wolves. The Wildcats have had a tougher time on the road against the Wolves. They're 15-3 at home while going 10-7 on the road.
 
The two teams met earlier this season on Oct. 17 as the Wildcats handled the Wolves 3-0 (25-16, 25-16, 25-17) inside Nicholson Pavilion.

Defense was the theme for the Wildcats on Thursday. The team held the Wolves to a .147 hitting percentage. The Wolves could only muster 29 kills on the match. Julia Mellander and Diana Fa'amausili were stout at the net. Mellander led the way with five total blocks, while Fa'amausili added three total blocks of her own. Offensively, the Wildcats had 44 kills on a .297 hitting percentage. They gained a major advantage from behind the service line as they totaled eight service aces to the Wolves' two.  
 
Swart tied for a match-high 11 kills on the evening. She had an outstanding .360 hitting percentage. Ashley Kaufman also had a strong night, racking up nine kills and 15 digs. Fa'amausili added to her excellent defensive performance with eight kills. 
 
Gabrielle Aihara and Sydney Remsberg ran an efficient offense. Aihara led the way with 18 assists, while Remsberg wasn't far off with 17 of her own.