Entering the MWC:
Hawaii
Men’s: Sailing
Women’s: Volleyball
The co-ed sailing team placed 11th nationally last year. The Wahine will have Adam Pokras back this year for his senior season with the team. The national sailing co-ed championships are an invitational event and played out by head-to-head races. Hawaii’s sailors earned the invite to the tournament last season, then took advantage for the 11th place finish.
Hawaii’s women’s volleyball team is one of the best nationally. They are ranked No. 6 in the nation and finished last year with a 27-3 record. They are currently 11-1. Emily Hartong leads them with more than 200 kills and also is second on the team in digs. Kalei Adolpho leads the team in blocks, averaging more than a block per set and Ali Longo leads the team in digs with 180.
San Diego State
Men’s: Basketball
Women’s: Soccer, Tennis, Basketball
San Diego State’s basketball team finished with a 23-11 record last year to finish fourth in the Mountain West Conference and earn a No. 7 seed in the NCAA tournament. They were one of two Mountain West teams to advance to the round of 32, defeating Oklahoma before losing to the Cinderella of 2013, Florida Gulf Coast. They have gone to the NCAA tournament for four straight years and have earned three wins in those four years in the tournament.
The Aztecs lost Jamaal Franklin, the leader in scoring, rebounding, and assists last year, to the NBA but picked Josh Davis via transfer from Tulane. In two seasons he averaged 17 points per game.
San Diego State is stacked in women’s sports. Their women’s soccer team had a 21-2-1 record last year, won the Mountain West and advanced to the third round of the NCAA tournament. Junior Hannah Keane is the Aztecs’ most dangerous player, currently leading the team in goals with four, and was second on the team last year in goals and assists. She also earned first team all-Mountain West honors in 2012. San Diego State has struggled so far in a really tough non-conference schedule. They are currently 2-5-2, but they have played one of the toughest schedules so far of anyone in the country.
The women’s tennis team won the regular season conference title last year and earned a berth in the NCAA tournament only to be ousted by nationally ranked Baylor. They had a 22-6 record and didn’t lose a match to a Mountain West opponent until the conference championship game when they were upset by UNLV. Their best returning player is senior Laura Antonana, who played in the No. 3 singles spot on the team last year and achieved a national ranking in Spain where she grew up before coming to the states to play collegiately.
The Aztec women’s basketball team had a 27-7 record last year and finished second in the Mountain West, losing just two games in conference. Both of those losses were to Fresno State – one in the regular season and one in the conference championship game. They lose their two top leading scorers, but the team is led by senior Erimma Amarikwa, who averaged almost 10 points per game.
UNLV
Men’s: Basketball
Women’s: Golf, Tennis
Basketball in the Mountain West features a lot of talent, and UNLV is a part of that. The Rebels were one of the four Mountain West teams to go to the NCAA tournament, earning a No. 5 seed, but lost to Cal. UNLV lost in the conference tournament championship to New Mexico. The Rebels have gone to the NCAA tournament four straight years but have not picked up a tournament win in that time. UNLV produced Anthony Bennet, the No. 1 overall draft pick in last year’s NBA draft, and he led the team in scoring and rebounds last year.
The UNLV women’s golf team is the defending Mountain West champions. The Rebels placed 15th in the NCAA west regional championship last year. Junior Dana Finkelstein is the best returning UNLV golfer. She tied for 10th in the NCAA west regional and shot an average of 74 strokes per round.
UNLV also has a stellar women’s tennis team that won the Mountain West Conference tournament last year and won a NCAA tournament first-round game before losing to Nebraska in the second round. Lucia Batta, the defending Mountain West player of the year, will be back for her senior season. She finished last season nationally ranked and ended up losing in the second round of the NCAA tournament, snapping her 28-game single-play winning streak.
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