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Nov. 2, 2009

BELLINGHAM, Wash. - Looking to snap a two-match losing streak, the Western Washington University volleyball team is on the road this week for two Great Northwest Athletic Conference matches, traveling to Northwest Nazarene on Thursday (7 p.m.) and going to arch-rival Central Washington on Saturday (7 p.m.).

The Vikings, 15-9 overall and third in the GNAC standings at 8-5, end their season on Saturday, Nov. 14 (7 p.m.), entertaining Montana State Billings on Haggen Court at Sam Carver Gymnasium.

Western fell 3-1 at home last Saturday to second-place Seattle Pacific (9-3), a week after losing 3-1 at league-leading Alaska Anchorage (11-2).

Western middle blocker Emily Jepsen (So., Kennewick/Kamiakin) ranks second among league leaders in blocks at 1.07 as does setter Laurie Yearout (R-Fr., Spokane/Lewis & Clark) in assists at 10.53. Libero Allison Gotz (Jr., Bothell/Archbishop Murphy) is fourth in digs at 5.14 and outside hitter Marlayna Geary (Fr., Tacoma/Bellarmine Prep) is fourth in kills at 3.85 and fifth in points at 4.06.

In last week's NCAA II national statistics, Geary ranked No.24 in kills per set, Jepsen No.20 in blocks, Gotz No.25 in digs, and Yearout No.29 in assists.

In the loss to Seattle Pacific, Geary tied for match-high honors with 17 kills and 19 digs, and Jepsen had 16 digs. It was Geary's 10th double-double this season.

Northwest Nazarene, which has lost three of its last four matches, is 14-11 overall and 7-5 in GNAC action.

The Crusaders are 5-3 at home this season. They won in five sets over Western at Bellingham on Oct. 8, despite a career-high 29 kills by Geary.

Central Washington is 13-10 overall, winning seven of nine home matches, and 5-7 in league play. The Wildcats were swept by Western at Bellingham on Oct. 3.

The Vikings lead their series with Central, 57-38-1. They hold a 23-5 advantage over Northwest Nazarene, but have lost the last two meetings after 17 straight wins.

NOTES: The Vikings are 133-20 all-time in GNAC matches, a winning percentage of .869 ... Three of Western's nine losses this season have been to American Volleyball Coaches Association/NCAA Division II Top 25-rated teams ... The Vikings have won four GNAC titles (2001-03, 2007) since the league began in 2001 and placed second last season ... Gotz, who received AVCA All-American honorable mention in 2008, and Geary were all-tourney picks at both the Southern California Classic and Central Washington Invitational to open the season ... Jepsen was the GNAC Player of the Week for Oct. 11-17 ... Western fell out of the AVCA Top 25 Poll after being listed in the preseason (23rd) ranking and the first two regular-season ratings (21st and 24th) ... The Vikings did not earn a berth in the national playoffs last year despite a 21-3 record after being the national runner-up in 2007 ... Diane Flick has a career record of 211-59, her .781 winning percentage ranking eighth among NCAA II active coaches ... Western is 6-4 on Haggen Court at Carver Gym this season where the Vikings have lost just 11 of 98 matches during Flick's 10 seasons as coach.