VIKINGS, WILDCATS SQUARE OFF AGAINST THE BEST: Western Washington, which was ranked No. 15 in the 2023 AVCA/TARAFLEX preseason top-25 poll, and GNAC preseason favorite Central Washington get their highly anticipated seasons going with as tough a schedule as can be constructed. The Vikings will open against No. 18 Regis and No. 19 Cal State San Bernardino on Thursday, take on No. 9 Cal State LA on Friday and cap the weekend against No. 3 MSU Denver on Saturday. The Wildcats, who received votes in the initial national rankings, will play the same four touted opponents taking on MSU Denver Thursday, Cal State San Bernardino Friday, and Cal State L.A. and Regis on Saturday.

FALCONS FACE EARLY TESTS IN SOCAL: Receiving votes in the preseason national poll, Seattle Pacific will square off against four strong opponents to kick off its season. SPU’s first two matches at the Seaside Invitational are against Lewis and Point Loma, which each also garnered votes in the preseason rankings. The Falcons will also play Biola and Cal State San Marcos and will remain in Southern California for a Tuesday tilt at Vanguard in Costa Mesa, before next week's Cougar Classic in San Marcos.

RED LEAFS HEAD TO BIG ISLAND: Simon Fraser will be on island time this weekend, taking on four opponents at the Hawaii Challenge in Honolulu. Among the Red Leafs’ foes are Chaminade, which was the first team out of the top-25 rankings, and Sonoma State which also received votes on preseason ballots. SFU also faces West Virginia State and Hawaii Pacific.

ALASKA SCHOOLS LOOK TO BUILD OFF HEAD START: A pair of nationally ranked teams will feature at the Alaska Airlines Center, with the prime matchup at the Seawolf Classic being No. 14 Alaska Anchorage playing host to No. 7 St. Cloud State on Friday night at 7 p.m. (AKDT). The Seawolves and the Nanooks of Alaska will each take on Upper Iowa, Cal Poly Humboldt, and Florida Tech along with St. Cloud State over the weekend. Both teams enter the week with a 1-3 record after their opening weekend in Fairbanks.

Ainsley Smith – Alaska Nanooks

Keep an eye on Alaska setter Ainsley Smith, who racked up an average of 8.79 assists per set during the Nanooks’ opening weekend of games. In the Nanooks’ five-set victory over Hawaii Hilo on Saturday, Smith blew away her career high with 53 assists, which was 13 better than her season high of 40 on Nov. 12, 2022 against Western Oregon. The North Pole native is coming off an average of 5.47 assists per set in 2022 – a figure that led the team and ranked eighth in the conference. In addition to her facilitation, Smith chipped in 25 digs and 11.0 total blocks over the Nanooks’ first four matches of the 2023 campaign.