UNLV Olympic sports roundup: Volleyball squad looking to reverse recent skid vs. Utah

Thursday, Nov. 4, 1999 | 1:49 a.m.

The UNLV volleyball team, a loser of three straight and 10 of its past 12 matches, will attempt to reverse its fortunes as the Rebels open a two-match homestand tonight at 7 against Utah.

Tonight's contest, which will be held in Lied Gymnasium, will be followed by a Saturday night contest at 7 against 10th-ranked BYU in the Thomas & Mack Center. Saturday's match against the Cougars will be the lone appearance this season for the Rebels in the T&M.

UNLV, which beat then-No. 14 Colorado State on Oct. 16 in the Lied, has been beset by injuries and has dropped three straight matches on the road to New Mexico, Air Force and San Diego State.

UNLV (9-10 overall, 1-7 in the Mountain West Conference) lost to Utah in three games in Salt Lake City on Oct. 9, giving the Utes a 5-1 lead in the all-time series against the Rebels.

The Rebels, who are 5-3 at home this season, have won 18 of their past 21 matches at home. UNLV had its 15-match winning streak at Lied Gymnasium snapped back in September when it lost to USC.

Following this week's home matches, the Rebels will have four conference matches, two at home and two on the road, before the Mountain West Conference Tournament begins Nov. 24 in Provo, Utah.

* MEN'S SOCCER: The UNLV men's soccer team will be shooting for a fifth-place finish in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation when it travels to Albuquerque this weekend for its final match of the season.

The Rebels (7-10 overall, 2-4 in the MPSF) are in sixth place in the league but could move up to fifth if they beat New Mexico Sunday and UC Irvine loses to San Diego State.

But the Rebels, who have won only one league road match this season, also could slip into seventh place in the eight-team MPSF is they lose Sunday and Cal State Northridge upsets UC Santa Barbara today.

The Lobos (8-8-1, 3-2-1) are riding a two-match winning streak after league wins over San Diego State and Irvine, but rank seventh in the MPSF in scoring, just below UNLV.

* CROSS COUNTRY: The UNLV cross country team will take the next week off to prepare for the upcoming NCAA West Regional in Portland next Saturday.

The regional, the Rebels' last team meet of the year, also will serve as an individual qualifying race for the NCAA Championships.

The Rebels posted their highest cross country finish in the conference since Karen Dennis took over the program in 1992 by finishing fourth out of eight teams at the Mountain West Conference Championships last weekend in Provo, Utah.

Jenni Nelson posted UNLV's top finish for the second straight race, finishing 19th overall in 18:58.6. Katie Barto was second on the team and 24th overall in 19:10.2.