NAMPA, Idaho — The 2026 GNAC volleyball season continues this week as Northwest Nazarene returns home for its first two matches in Nampa, hosting Alaska Fairbanks on Thursday before welcoming Alaska Anchorage on Saturday. The Nighthawks enter the week at 6-3 overall and 0-2 in conference play after opening GNAC action on the road against RV Western Washington and No. 23 Simon Fraser.

NNU will look to get into the win column in conference play against two Alaska teams that have each opened the season with strong starts. Alaska Fairbanks enters the week at 9-3 overall and 1-1 in the GNAC, while Alaska Anchorage is 9-3 overall and 2-0 in conference play.

Nighthawks' Season So Far:

Northwest Nazarene enters the week at 6-3 overall after opening the season with a 4-0 mark at the Otter Invitational before going 2-1 at the Redwood Coast Volleyball Classic. The Nighthawks opened GNAC play on the road last week, falling 3-2 to RV Western Washington before dropping a 3-0 decision to No. 23 Simon Fraser.

The Nighthawks have been led offensively by Abby Black, who is averaging 3.89 kills per set and 4.46 points per set through nine matches. Hailey Cheney has added 3.09 kills per set while hitting a team-best .360. Jenna Holm is also hitting .330 while averaging 1.31 kills per set, while Maddy Hellem is averaging 2.04 kills per set.

NNU is averaging 11.74 kills, 15.63 digs, 1.94 blocks and 2.37 aces per set. Kayci Spray leads the Nighthawks with 4.11 digs per set, while Abby Black is averaging 3.03 digs per set. At the net, Cheney leads NNU with 29 total blocks, followed by Holm with 28. As a team, the Nighthawks are hitting .212 while opponents are hitting .198.

NNU will open its home portion of the GNAC schedule Thursday when Alaska Fairbanks comes to Nampa for a 7 p.m. match at the Johnson Sports Center. The Nighthawks will then close the weekend against Alaska Anchorage on Saturday at 1 p.m. 

Alaska Fairbanks:

Alaska Fairbanks enters the week at 9-3 overall and 1-1 in GNAC play after a strong opening stretch. that included tournament wins in Hawaii, Anchorage and Fairbanks. The Nanooks went 3-1 at the Hawai'i-Alaska Challenge, 3-0 at the UAA Volleyball Invitational and 2-1 at the Denali State Bank Ice Block Classic before opening conference play with a 3-0 win over Montana State Billings and a 3-2 loss to Seattle Pacific.

The Nanooks have been led offensively by Cori Leavitt, who is averaging 2.58 kills per set while hitting .298 through 12 matches. Haylee Lyons has added 2.68 kills per set and 3.16 points per set, while Kelli Wright is averaging 1.74 kills per set. Ashlyn White has provided another efficient offensive option, hitting .333 while averaging 3.79 digs per set.

Cynphany Henderson has directed the Nanooks' offense with 6.35 assists per set, while UAF is averaging 12.61 kills, 11.64 assists, 16.45 digs, 2.13 blocks and 1.95 aces per set. As a team, Alaska Fairbanks is hitting .209 compared to a .125 attack percentage for its opponents.

Defensively, the Nanooks have been led by Tessa Onaga, who is averaging 5.49 digs per set through 43 sets. Kellan Flynn has added 2.68 digs per set, while Haylee Lyons is averaging 2.30 digs per set. UAF has recorded 724 digs compared to 674 for its opponents and has a .921 team reception percentage.

At the net, the Nanooks have recorded 93.5 total blocks through 44 sets, averaging 2.13 blocks per set. Cori Leavitt leads UAF with 37 total blocks, while Freeman, Emma has added 17 and Lyons has 12. UAF has also limited opponents to 1.75 blocks per set.

All-time vs Alaska Fairbanks:

The Nighthawks have faced the Nanooks 52 times in their Division II history, holding a 29-23 all-time record. Their last matchup came on Nov. 15, 2025, when NNU battled Alaska Fairbanks through four sets. After a hard-fought third-set victory kept the Nighthawks from being swept, NNU was unable to carry the momentum into the fourth set and fell in the match.

Alaska Anchorage:

Alaska Anchorage enters the week at 9-3 overall and 2-0 in GNAC play after winning its first two conference matches at home. The Seawolves opened the season with a 2-2 showing at the Alaska/Hawaii Challenge before going 3-0 at the Seawolf Invitational and 2-1 at the Denali State Bank Ice Block Classic.

UAA opened GNAC play last week with a pair of sweeps, defeating Seattle Pacific 3-0 on Sept. 10 before taking down Montana State Billings 3-0 on Sept. 12. The Seawolves have now won seven of their last eight matches heading into the weekend.

Offensively, Alaska Anchorage has been led by Lee Ivakina, who is averaging 3.55 kills per set and 3.95 points per set through 12 matches. Kyana Gabriel has added 2.76 kills per set, while Bella Burney is averaging 2.32 kills per set while hitting a team-best .363. Martina Riba is hitting .342 and averaging 1.64 kills per set.

Hannah Trotter has guided the Seawolves' offense with 8.19 assists per set, while UAA is averaging 13.24 kills and 11.98 assists per set. The Seawolves are also hitting .271 as a team, compared to a .175 attack percentage for their opponents.

Defensively, UAA is averaging 14.55 digs per set and has been led by Mary Nahinu, who is averaging 3.43 digs per set. Hannah Trotter has added 3.12 digs per set, while Kyana Gabriel is averaging 2.29 digs per set. The Seawolves have recorded 611 digs compared to 587 for their opponents and have a .919 team reception percentage.

At the net, Alaska Anchorage has recorded 87.0 total blocks through 42 sets, averaging 2.07 blocks per set. Bella Burney leads the Seawolves with 41 total blocks, while Martina Riba has added 36 and Emma Beck has 27. UAA has also limited opponents to 1.33 blocks per set.

All-time vs Alaska Anchorage:

The Nighthawks have faced the Seawolves 48 times in their Division II history, holding a 19-29 all-time record. Their last matchup came on Nov. 13, 2025. The Nighthawks found themselves fighting to stay in the match after dropping the first two sets, but battled back to take the third set 25-22. Although NNU kept it close in the fourth, the Seawolves were able to maintain their lead and walk away with a 3-1 victory.