One and done. Seattle Pacific University has a chance to extend its season-best three-match winning streak and, at the same time, bring an end to one of the most impressive runs in the nation in the season's final volleyball contest this weekend. The young Falcons (7-9, 9-15), coming off a couple five-game road comeback victories, visit Great Northwest Athletic Conference champion and No. 7-ranked and playoff-bound Western Washington (17-0, 22-2) Saturday night (Nov. 16).

Heads up. Despite the fact that the Falcons will sink below .500 for the first time in five years, Coach Kellie Ryan has managed to keep her players' heads up. After a 1-8 start against some particularly stiff opposition, SPU responded by winning four of the next six matches. Then following a late October swoon of four losses in a row, Ryan has rallied the troops once more. The Falcons have hit .192 during the current win streak while averaging nearly two aces per game and 1.6 blocks. A win at Western Washington would not only lift Seattle Pacific back to .500 in conference matches but snap the Vikings' run of 40 consecutive league wins and 17 straight overall. Western's last league loss was to the Falcons late in the 2000 season.

Drama queens. Thanks to a pair of nail-biter triumphs, the Falcons have a chance to finish the 2002 campaign at the peak of their rollercoaster season. SPU rallied from a 2-1 game deficit and 12-8 margin in game five against Western Oregon to prevail 15-13 in the deciding game. The intensity and drama crossed the border into California two nights later when the Falcons allowed Humboldt State to build a 2-game advantage and serve two match points before reeling off wins in the final three games, including 19-17 in the fifth. They have now won three five-setters in a row, but before the Humboldt comeback it had been four years since they had won a match after losing the first two games.

Double trouble. There was a role for nearly everyone in last week's matches. Four players reached double figures in kills in each match, including double-doubles by Carri Colvin (Sr., Vancouver, Wa./Prairie) in both outings. Colvin had 13 putaways plus 26 digs at Western Oregon and another 18 and 20, respectively, at Humboldt. Katy Kravitz (Jr., Olympia, Wa./N. Colorado) posted her first career double-double vs. the Wolves with a dozen kills and 11 digs.

Strong finish. Monica Herrera (Jr., Lima, Peru/Mercy College) once again carried the offense and earned GNAC player of the week because of it. Putting the finishing touches on a rock-solid case for newcomer of the year honors, Herrera slammed 43 kills, hit for a .203 attack percentage and recorded 24 digs. Among GNAC attackers, she currently ranks second in kills per game (4.10) and eighth in service aces (0.38). Her kills average is on school-record pace (3.86 is current mark) and her total for the year is likely to rate among the top five. Herrera's 24 kills at WOU ranks No. 8 all-time and her 72 attempts erased Colvin's record of 71, set in the season's first meeting with the Wolves. Herrera set SPU and GNAC records with 30 kills in a match earlier this season.

Quick sets. The Falcons .241 hitting percentage against Humboldt was their highest of the season. They logged 450 attack attempts in the two matches, including a season-high 251 at Western Oregon. Season-best totals for kills (73) and digs (116) were also posted in that match...Colvin and Andrea Pennington (Jr., Bellingham, Wa/Whatcom CC) both recorded 20-plus digs in both matches and totaled 46 apiece. Colvin would need 44 to break into the career top five for digs...Katy Higgins (Jr., Kirkland, Wa./Redmond) recorded a season-high 59 assists at Western Oregon. That pushed her past Heather Peterson into No. 2 for career total. Higgins is the career leader in assists average and is 768 behind Deri Paulson (1986-89) for the lead in total assists...Kathleen Monda (So., Woodinville, Wa./Woodinville-WSU) hit .261 for the week and had her first- double-digit totals for kills with 11 in each match...Andrea Dettorre (Jr., Vancouver, Wa./Prairie) had back-to-back season highs in digs (14, 16) last week...Andra Taylor (Jr., Camas, Wa./Camas-Mt. Hood CC) attacked for a team-best .409 average at Humboldt and finished with 10 kills...Stacia Willson (So., Colfax, Wa./Colfax) played an entire rotation in the third game at Humboldt and helped turned the tide with two kills and an ace...Higgins ranks seventh among GNAC setters in assists per game with 10.1. Colvin ranks seventh in digs (3.73)and Monda is ninth in blocking (0.92).

SPU Coaches. In her first two seasons as a head coach, Kellie Ryan's teams have been nothing short of spectacular. The Falcons earned their first two trips to the NCAA tournament, won 44 of 58 matches and established a new record for consecutive wins (20) while equaling marks for most wins (24) and fewest losses (6) in a season. Ryan, whose past collegiate experience included two years under JoAnn Atwell-Scrivner at SPU (1994-95) and one year at Syracuse, was the Falcons' starting setter from 1989-91, earning all-conference as a senior. She remains the SPU record-holder for service aces (142) in a career and single match assists (83). Antonela Secer, a native of Croatia, returns for her second year as assistant coach, along with Jim Woolace, formerly a high school coach in Fairbanks.

Tickets, please. General admission tickets for all SPU home volleyball matches are priced $5 with students, youth and senior citizens $3 with proper identification. Teams or groups can qualify for discount rates by call (206) 281-2085 in advance.

Missing links. For the latest and best information on Seattle Pacific University athletics, stay where you're at -- on The Falcons Online. For updated standings and statistics, see the Great Northwest Athletic Conference web site.