Friday, August 27
DeKalb, IL
11:00 am MT
Air Force Academy
vs
CSU Bakersfield
Photo by: Josh Armstrong
Volleyball Opens Season at Huskie Invitational
8/25/2021 4:09:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Air Force will face CSU Bakersfield, William & Mary, and Northern Illinois on Aug. 27-28.
The Air Force volleyball team opens the 2021 season this weekend (Aug 27-28), as it travels to DeKalb, Ill., for the Huskie Invitational. The Falcons, playing in August for the first time in two years, will face off against CSU Bakersfield on Friday morning, before facing William & Mary and tournament host Northern Illinois in a doubleheader on Saturday.
MEET INFORMATION
The Huskie Invitational, which includes Air Force, CSU Bakersfield, Northern Illinois, Western Illinois and William & Mary, will take place at Victor E. Court on the NIU campus in DeKalb. There will be live stats for all three of the Falcons' matches, while Air Force's contest against Northern Illinois will be broadcast live on ESPN+ (direct links can be found on the team's schedule page at GoAirForceFalcons.com).
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
This is the opening weekend for all teams at the Huskie Invitational – and the first non-conference tournament for the field since 2019. Air Force (7-6) was one of three teams to play a conference-only schedule in the Spring of 2021, as William & Mary went 3-5 during an eight-match Colonial Athletic Association season and Northern Illinois finished 8-14 against its counterparts from the Mid-American Conference. CSU Bakersfield, the Falcons' first opponent, will be playing its first regular-season contest since Nov. 16, 2019, as the Big West cancelled all Fall sports in 2020.
BY THE NUMBERS
Air Force is 7-2 all-time against CSU Bakersfield, but haven't faced the Roadrunners away from the Academy since their first meeting in 1981. It will also be the Falcons' first neutral-site contest with William & Mary and their first-ever matchup with Northern Illinois. Although Air Force's series with the Tribe dates back to 1978, the two schools have only faced each other three times, with William & Mary maintaining a 3-0 advantage.
LOOK WHO'S BACK
The Falcons return a lineup that includes MW Freshman of the Year and all-conference selection Joi Harvey, as well as fellow all-MW honoree Bailey Keith. Harvey, who became the first Falcon in 27 years to claim All-Region recognition by the AVCA, averaged 2.31 kills and 1.02 blocks during her first year at Air Force and hit at a .349 clip. Keith, the Falcons' reigning MVP and only player to see action in every set during each of the last two years, added 2.45 kills per set to the Falcons' offensive production last season. BrookeLyn Messenger (2.34) and Vittoria Juarez (2.17) also registered at least two kills a set last season.
QUICK, HIT REWIND
The Falcons went 7-6 during a shortened, conference-only season in the Spring of 2021 – the program's first winning season in Division I conference play. By splitting the first six weeks of the season and capping the year with a 3-1 victory over Boise State, Air Force captured a win over every conference team it faced.
FALCONS EARN HIGHEST PRESEASON RANKING IN SIX YEARS
Air Force equaled its best-ever preseason ranking in the Mountain West in 2021, as the squad earned a No. 7 nod in the annual coaches' poll. The Falcons, who have improved their preseason standing during each of head coach Keith Barnett's three seasons at the helm, received 46 points – their highest preseason total since joining the conference and a tally that was just 15 out of the top five.
THE LONG BLUE LINE
Mac Russ continued a family tradition of being an intercollegiate athlete at the Air Force Academy, as her mother Betsy (Class of 1994, volleyball), father Steve (Class of 1995, football), and aunt Rozi (Class of 2002, basketball) all played at the Academy. Allie Griffith also has a familial connection to the Academy, as her older sister Dani is a 2013 Air Force graduate who spent her freshman year on the volleyball team.
ON THE SIDELINES
Keith Barnett returns to the sideline for his third season as head coach of the Air Force volleyball team. Barnett, who is in his seventh year overall with the program, will be joined by third-year assistant Tom Hunter, sixth-year assistant Elysse Richardson and fourth-year volunteer Kim Haas.
WHAT'S ON DECK
Air Force heads to Spokane, Wash., next weekend (Sept. 3-4) for the Gonzaga Invitational.
Current Defense Department and Air Force Academy rules require all individuals to wear a mask inside Academy facilities. All individuals who have not been fully vaccinated must wear masks outside on military installations.
MEET INFORMATION
The Huskie Invitational, which includes Air Force, CSU Bakersfield, Northern Illinois, Western Illinois and William & Mary, will take place at Victor E. Court on the NIU campus in DeKalb. There will be live stats for all three of the Falcons' matches, while Air Force's contest against Northern Illinois will be broadcast live on ESPN+ (direct links can be found on the team's schedule page at GoAirForceFalcons.com).
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
This is the opening weekend for all teams at the Huskie Invitational – and the first non-conference tournament for the field since 2019. Air Force (7-6) was one of three teams to play a conference-only schedule in the Spring of 2021, as William & Mary went 3-5 during an eight-match Colonial Athletic Association season and Northern Illinois finished 8-14 against its counterparts from the Mid-American Conference. CSU Bakersfield, the Falcons' first opponent, will be playing its first regular-season contest since Nov. 16, 2019, as the Big West cancelled all Fall sports in 2020.
BY THE NUMBERS
Air Force is 7-2 all-time against CSU Bakersfield, but haven't faced the Roadrunners away from the Academy since their first meeting in 1981. It will also be the Falcons' first neutral-site contest with William & Mary and their first-ever matchup with Northern Illinois. Although Air Force's series with the Tribe dates back to 1978, the two schools have only faced each other three times, with William & Mary maintaining a 3-0 advantage.
LOOK WHO'S BACK
The Falcons return a lineup that includes MW Freshman of the Year and all-conference selection Joi Harvey, as well as fellow all-MW honoree Bailey Keith. Harvey, who became the first Falcon in 27 years to claim All-Region recognition by the AVCA, averaged 2.31 kills and 1.02 blocks during her first year at Air Force and hit at a .349 clip. Keith, the Falcons' reigning MVP and only player to see action in every set during each of the last two years, added 2.45 kills per set to the Falcons' offensive production last season. BrookeLyn Messenger (2.34) and Vittoria Juarez (2.17) also registered at least two kills a set last season.
QUICK, HIT REWIND
The Falcons went 7-6 during a shortened, conference-only season in the Spring of 2021 – the program's first winning season in Division I conference play. By splitting the first six weeks of the season and capping the year with a 3-1 victory over Boise State, Air Force captured a win over every conference team it faced.
FALCONS EARN HIGHEST PRESEASON RANKING IN SIX YEARS
Air Force equaled its best-ever preseason ranking in the Mountain West in 2021, as the squad earned a No. 7 nod in the annual coaches' poll. The Falcons, who have improved their preseason standing during each of head coach Keith Barnett's three seasons at the helm, received 46 points – their highest preseason total since joining the conference and a tally that was just 15 out of the top five.
THE LONG BLUE LINE
Mac Russ continued a family tradition of being an intercollegiate athlete at the Air Force Academy, as her mother Betsy (Class of 1994, volleyball), father Steve (Class of 1995, football), and aunt Rozi (Class of 2002, basketball) all played at the Academy. Allie Griffith also has a familial connection to the Academy, as her older sister Dani is a 2013 Air Force graduate who spent her freshman year on the volleyball team.
ON THE SIDELINES
Keith Barnett returns to the sideline for his third season as head coach of the Air Force volleyball team. Barnett, who is in his seventh year overall with the program, will be joined by third-year assistant Tom Hunter, sixth-year assistant Elysse Richardson and fourth-year volunteer Kim Haas.
WHAT'S ON DECK
Air Force heads to Spokane, Wash., next weekend (Sept. 3-4) for the Gonzaga Invitational.
Current Defense Department and Air Force Academy rules require all individuals to wear a mask inside Academy facilities. All individuals who have not been fully vaccinated must wear masks outside on military installations.
Players Mentioned
DS/L
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
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