Complete weekly release

Oct. 30, 2012

Friday, Nov. 2
6 p.m. PT- Cal (11-11, 5-7 Pac-12) at No. 2 Oregon (20-1, 11-1 Pac-12)
Matthew Knight Arena - Eugene, Ore.
Coverage: Pac-12 Networks, Live Audio, GameTracker, Twitter, Facebook
All-Time Series vs. the Ducks: 50-17
Last Meeting: L, 3-1 (10-3-12)

Sunday, Nov. 4
11 a.m. PT- Cal at Oregon State (13-11, 3-9)
Gill Coliseum - Corvallis, Ore.
Coverage: Pac-12 Networks, Live Audio, GameTracker, Twitter, Facebook
All-Time Series vs. the Beavers: 43-18
Last Meeting: W, 3-0 (10-5-12)

BERKELEY - The Bears begin the month of November looking for a strong finish to the regular season as they attempt to qualify for their 11th straight NCAA Tournament appearance. Cal faces a challenging schedule the rest of the way, as five of its eight remaining opponents are ranked in the top-8 of this week's AVCA top 25. The grueling stretch begins with as tough an assignment as there is in the Pac-12 - a date with No. 2 Oregon at Matthew Knight Arena.

Probable Starters
No. Name Pos. Ht. Yr. Hometown
12 Joan Caloiaro S 5-11 Jr. Saratoga, Calif.
23 Christina Higgins OH 6-2 So. Inglewood, Calif.
4 Lara Vukasovic OH 6-5 Fr. Zagreb, Croatia
8 Correy Johnson OPP 6-4 Sr. Winter Park, Fla.
7 Shannon Hawari MH 6-2 Sr. Plano, Texas
11 Kat Brown MH 6-3 Sr. Aptos, Calif.
13 Mary McKennon L 5-9 Fr. Newport Beach, Calif.

The Last Time Vs. The Oregon Schools
The Bears split their matchups with their foes from the Pacific Northwest last month in Berkeley. Cal fell to No. 2 Oregon in four sets on Oct. 3. At the time, it was the first set the Ducks dropped in conference play all season. Also in that match, the Bears lost starting outside hitter Adrienne Gehan in the first set to a knee injury. Cal swept Oregon State two nights later, serving up a season-high 12 aces.

Last Week at a Glance
Cal came a couple points away from sweeping the Arizona schools, but after beating Arizona on Friday, the Bears dropped a five-set heartbreaker to Arizona State on Sunday, falling 16-14 in the fifth set. Sophomore outside hitter Christina Higgins had a career-high 18 kills in a sweep of the Wildcats. Against the Sun Devils, senior Shannon Hawari had career-highs of 18 kills and 12 blocks.

Career weekend
A number of career benchmarks were reached by Cal players last week. Here's a summary:
Shannon Hawari
• Career-high 18 kills vs. Arizona State
• Career-high 12 blocks vs. Arizona State
• Career-high 25.5 total points vs. Arizona State
• Career-high 32 total attempts vs. Arizona State
Christina Higgins
• Career-high 18 kills vs. Arizona
• Career-high 19 total points vs. Arizona
Joan Caloiaro
• Career-high 53 assists against Arizona State

Cal All Over The Airwaves
Nine of the Bears' first 12 conference matches have been televised by the Pac-12 Networks and five of their final contests will be on TV. Four of the remaining matches will air on the Pac-12 Networks while the Nov. 7 match against Washington will be shown by ESPNU. The next four matches in a row will be on television.

The Cal Leader Board
Kills: Adrienne Gehan - 189 (3.00/set)
Hitting Percentage: Shannon Hawari - .360
Assists: Joan Caloiaro - 753 (9.65/set)
Aces: Nikki Gombar - 23 (0.29/set)
Blocks: Kat Brown, Shannon Hawari - 106 (1.33/set)
Digs: Mary McKennon - 294 (3.67/set)

Bears on Pac-12 Leader Board
Hitting Percentage: Shannon Hawari - .360 (Seventh)
Assists per set: Joan Caloiaro - 9.65 (Seventh)
Service aces: Nikki Gombar - 0.29 (t-Eighth)
Blocks per set: Kat Brown, Shannon Hawari - 1.33 (t-Sixth)
Digs per set: Mary McKennon - 3.67 (Ninth)

Welcome to Cal. ...Now Get on the Court!
Cal's injuries have resulted in a lot of inexperience on the court, and three freshmen are getting a lot of playing time because of it. Libero Mary McKennon and outside hitter Nikki Gombar have played in every set this season, while outside hitter Lara Vukasovic has started 13 matches and played in 57 of the Bears' 80 sets.

Ouch
The Bears have been decimated by injuries this season. Projected starting outside hitter Michelle Neumayr injured her knee during preseason practices and was lost for the season. Starting libero Robin Rostratter is also out for the season and middle hitter Lillian Schonewise has yet to play because of a shoulder ailment. Starting outside hitter Adrienne Gehan missed three matches with a knee injury and is still limited. Also, starting opposite Correy Johnson missed 24 sets earlier this season because of a stress reaction in her leg.

Rostratter Candidate For Senior CLASS Award
Senior libero Robin Rostratter was one of 30 candidates for this year's Senior CLASS Award, given annually to an NCAA Division I senior with notable achievements in community, classroom, character and competition. Rostratter has twice been named to the Pac-12 All-Academic team, and in 2010 won the NCAA Elite 88 Volleyball Award for having the highest grade point average (3.81) of any student-athlete participating in the NCAA championships. Rostratter has spearheaded countless charitable and philantrhopic causes. Among them, she has led outreach programs to spread awareness for cancer and physically challenged athletes, and served as a coach at Special Olympics athletic skills clinics and with the Cal Corps to help underprivileged children. Rostratter, who is out for the season with an injury, was not one of the 10 finalists revealed earlier this month.

Bears Unranked For First Time Since 2002
Cal fell out of the AVCA Coaches Poll on Sept. 3, marking the first time the Bears haven't been ranked since the final poll of the 2002 season. Cal was ranked No. 24 in the 2003 preseason poll and stayed in the rankings every week until the Sept. 3 rankings.

Middle Ground
Senior middle hitters Kat Brown and Shannon Hawari have spent the season rising up Cal's career blocks leader board and now hold down the No. 2 and No. 4 spots on the school's all-time list. Both players have registered 106 blocks this season, and Brown now has 461 for her career, second all-time at Cal. With 20 blocks last week, Hawari now has 437 during her career and needs just two more to move into third place on the Bears' career list. Ellen Orchard is Cal's all-time career leader with 504 blocks.

Shannon Shines
Senior middle hitter Shannon Hawari is playing as well as any middle hitter in the Pac-12 this season. The fifth-year senior is coming off a dominant weekend in which she averaged 3.12 kills and 2.5 blocks per set. That included arguably the best match of her Cal tenure when she registered career-highs of 18 kills and 12 blocks Sunday against Arizona State. Hawari ranks seventh in the Pac-12 with a .360 hitting percentage and is tied for sixth with teammate Kat Brown for sixth in the conference with 1.33 blocks per set

Welcome Back, Adrienne
Junior outside hitter Adrienne Gehan is gradually gaining back her regular playing time after injuring her knee Oct. 3 against Oregon. After missing three matches, Gehan played sparingly in the back row for the next three matches before finally playing at the net at times Sunday, when she put down eight kills. Gehan leads the Bears with 3.00 kills per set.

Mary Digs College Volleyball
Freshman libero Mary McKennon was thrust into the starting lineup Opening Day because of an injury to Robin Rostratter and has performed well. Playing every set this season, McKennon ranks ninth in the Pac-12 with an average of 3.67 digs per set.

About Oregon
• The Ducks' only loss this season came at current No. 1 Stanford in five sets. In six matches since then, Oregon has dropped only one set.
• Senior All-American outside hitter Alaina Bergsma ranks second in the Pac-12 with 4.56 kills per set. Bergsma had a match-high 18 kills in Oregon's first match against Cal this season.
• Junior setter Lauren Plum leads the nation with 12.99 assists per set.
• Senior outside hitter Katherine Fischer is second in the Pac-12 with 0.33 aces per set.
• The Ducks average a Pac-12 best 5.77 kills per set. They are second in the conference with a .294 hitting percentage.

About Oregon State
• After going 10-2 in the preseason, which included a victory over current No. 2 Penn State and a five-set loss to current No. 16 Kansas State, the Beavers have fallen on hard times in conference play. OSU enters the week having lost four in a row and six of its past seven.
• The Beavers rank last in the Pac-12 in kills and hitting percentage but are third in aces and digs.
• Senior outside hitter Camille Saxton is tied for fourth in the Pac-12 with 0.31 aces per set.
• OSU allowed Cal to hit .364 in the teams' first meeting this season, the second-highest for an OSU opponent this season.

Next Week on the Court
The Bears return home to face No. 8 Washington on Wednesday, Nov. 7 and Washington State on Thursday, Nov. 8. The Washington match airs on ESPNU and begins at 7 p.m. The match against the Cougars is on the Pac-12 Networks and starts at 6 p.m.

Following the Bears From Afar
Live statistics and live audio for Cal's matches are provided via links on the women's volleyball schedule page on CalBears.com. Fans can also receive regular in-match updates and a behind-the-scenes look at the Bears by following Cal Volleyball on Twitter and by "Liking" the Cal Volleyball Facebook page.

Cal to Host NCAA Regionals
Cal has been selected as one of four sites to host the 2012 NCAA Regionals. The third and fourth rounds will be played at Haas Pavilion on Dec. 7-8. Fans can purchase tickets at the Haas Pavilion Athletic Ticket Office or by calling (800) GO-BEARS.

Bears Excel in Classroom
For the second consecutive year, Cal was recognized with the AVCA Team Academic Award. The honor is bestowed on teams that have a cumulative grade point average of 3.30 or better on a 4.0 scale or 4.10 on a 5.0 scale. Senior libero Robin Rostratter was named to the Pac-12 All-Academic first team.

Cal Sports Report
Catch the Cal Sports Report every week on CalBears.com. Todd McKim recaps the week in Cal athletics with interviews, features and highlights. Included each week during the season is an interview with Cal coach Rich Feller.

Bear Radio
"Cal Coaches Corner" airs each Monday on KNEW 910 at 6 p.m. PT. The one-hour show features guest coaches and athletes from all of Cal's 29 intercollegiate athletics teams.