Match #27
ART U Urban Knights (9-17, 5-13 PWC) vs. Fresno Pacific Sunbirds (11-12, 11-7 PWC)
Thursday, November 19, 2015 at 5 p.m.
Fresno, Calif. – Special Events Center
Live Stats & Live Video

Match #28
ART U Urban Knights (9-17, 5-13 PWC) vs. Dominican Penguins (8-16, 5-13 PWC)
Saturday, November 21, 2015 at 3 p.m.
San Francisco – Kezar Pavilion
Live Stats & Live Video
 

ART U CONCLUDES YEAR WITH PACWEST REMATCHES
Winners of three straight, Academy of Art University volleyball will get a chance at redemption in this, the final week of the season. The Urban Knights come off wins over Hawaii Pacific, California Baptist, and Azusa Pacific as they play their final road contest at Fresno Pacific before Senior Day highlights this Saturday's rematch with Pacific West Conference rival Dominican.

FIRST SERVE
On Thursday, Nov. 19, ART U heads out on its final roadtrip to play Fresno Pacific at 5 p.m. inside the Sunbirds' Special Events Center. Then two days later on Nov. 21, Academy of Art plays host to Dominican for a 3 p.m. Senior Day battle inside Kezar Pavilion. Prior to Saturday's match, the Urban Knights will honor senior setter Rachael Smith and senior outside hitter Isabel Emrich with a special celebration.

In addition to Senior Day festivities, Academy of Art students will be able to participate in two competitions: The #ShareYourShot Photo Competition and Sketch Knight! For the first, fans are encouraged to take photos during the match, post them to Instagram with the hashtag #ShareYourShot, and could win free meals at Chipotle. For Sketch Knight, students will have an opportunity to sketch a scene from the match, then submit those for a chance to win gift cards to BLICK.

Live coverage will be available via the links above. Remember to follow @ARTU_Knights on Twitter & Instagram and "Like" the Urban Knights on Facebook for score updates, videos, and recaps.

KNIGHT WATCH
Senior setter Rachael Smith became the second PacWest Conference athlete to achieve the career milestone of 4,000 assists this past week and was rewarded as PacWest Co-Player of the Week. She now has three double-doubles in her past three matches and 4,011 assists through 104 matches played to date. Smith ranks fourth in the conference in assists per set (10.08), one of only four players averaging double figures. One of just two ART U athletes to ever play 100 matches, she needs to play in just three more sets to become the program's leader in sets played.
 

Smith has spread the wealth offensively with junior outside hitter Melissa Brum one of the primary benefactors as Brum averages 3.56 kills per set (10th in PacWest). She is followed by freshman outside hitter Stine Raben at 3.20 kills per set (14th in PacWest). Brum has been strong defensively as well, digging the ball consistently to register four double-doubles in her past five matches and 10 on the season. Freshman middle blocker Safua Elisaia has averaged six blocks per match during the Knights' win streak. Junior libero Kabrina Speakman ranks among the top 10 in the conference at 4.28 digs per set.

SUNBIRDS SCORCHING
Fresno Pacific's 3-1 win over Academy of Art on Oct. 29 came early on in what has become a seven-match win streak for the Sunbirds. FPU's final home match will be when the Urban Knights come to visit this Friday and convincing victories over Hawaii Pacific, BYU-Hawaii, and Concordia lead into that contest. Fresno Pacific is fifth in the conference standings with a chance to pass the Seasiders this week. As far as hitting percentage goes, the Sunbirds carry two of the PacWest's top seven with Montana Lowe (.301 – 5th) and Morghan Williams (.295 – 7th)  FPU is 6-1 all-time against ART U.

PENGUIN POINTERS
Currently sporting the same PacWest record as Academy of Art and early the same overall record as well, Dominican won just nine of its next 10 matches following the Penguins' Oct. 7 win over ART U. A 3-0 victory hosting Concordia highlighted that stretch, but 3-1 triumphs over Azusa Pacific and Notre Dame de Namur give Dominican momentum heading into a Nov. 18 Senior Day contest against Holy Names. The Penguins boast a hitter, Aimee Steinwand with the fifth-most kills per set in the PacWest (4.02 k/s) and the conference's digs per set leader in Amanda Lee (5.84 d/s). Despite the loss earlier this season, the Knights hold a 10-7 advantage over Dominican all-time.

ART U VOLLEYBALL TRUMPS APU FOR THIRD STRAIGHT WIN
Riding the momentum of victories over Hawaii Pacific and California Baptist, Academy of Art University volleyball made it three wins in a row with a 3-1 triumph over Azusa Pacific on Nov. 14 inside Kezar Pavilion. PacWest Co-Player of the Week Rachael Smith highlighted the contest with her 4,000th career assist.