By: Evan O'Kelly, Associate Commissioner for Communications

Photography by: Roy Hui.

PORTLAND, Ore. – A perfect start to conference play continued last week for the Simon Fraser volleyball team, which was tabbed the Athletic Solutions GNAC Team of the Week on Monday.
 
The No. 18 Red Leafs (10-3, 7-0 GNAC) swept Saint Martin’s last Thursday before racing past Western Oregon in straight sets on Saturday at the West Gym in Burnaby, B.C. The favorites in the GNAC preseason coaches poll extended their winning streak to seven matches with the halfway point in the conference schedule approaching this weekend.
 
“I think our team’s depth has played a huge role in our success so far this season,” said SFU head coach Gina Schmidt. “We’ve faced several injuries and at every turn, we’ve had a number of different players step up when needed.”
 
 
In the sweep of the Saints on Thursday, setter Ella McVittie facilitated the offense efficiently, distributing 40 assists. It was her fourth consecutive match eclipsing the 40 mark and fifth such performance overall this season. Logan Remington, the GNAC leader with 1.51 blocks per set, delivered six total blocks while Macyn Unger and Jayden Armstrong had 10 digs apiece. Armstrong led the attack with a team-best 13 kills, and SFU swung at .254 in the contest collectively.
 
Armstrong punctuated a GNAC Offensive Player of the Week effort with a standout stat line in Saturday’s sweep of the Wolves. She posted nine kills against zero errors on 19 swings for a .474 attack percentage – the highest by any GNAC player in a three-set match so far this season. McVittie distributed 22 more assists while Unger led all players with 17 digs and Remington added in five more total blocks. The Red Leafs smothered Western Oregon to the tune of a -.070 attack percentage – the lowest by an opponent this fall.
 
“I thought our team did a great job in both matches last weekend sticking with our game plan and making adjustments when necessary,” Schmidt said. “SMU is an experienced team so it was important for us to stay patient with our offensive decision-making in the long rallies. In Saturday’s game, we executed our block and defense at a very high level.”
 
Unger, a senior libero from Prince George, B.C., has been a fixture defensively over the last four seasons and plays a key leadership role for SFU. Since debuting in the fall of 2023 she has accumulated 1,464 digs and climbed to No. 24 on the GNAC all-time list. A two-time honorable mention all-conference selection, Unger ranks fifth in the conference with 4.10 digs per set this season and holds a career average of 4.37 digs per set to rank 26th in conference history. “Macyn has obviously had a big impact on our program during her four years at SFU,” Schmidt said. “Not only is she very skilled, but she has a high volleyball I.Q. and an incredible work ethic. Macyn has been a consistent leader for our team both on and off the court thanks to her calm presence and supportive nature.”
 
After an expectedly strong start to the campaign, SFU names are scattered across the conference stat leaderboards. Nina Koavacevic leads the conference in attack percentage at .374, McVittie is tops in the league with 9.26 assists per set and Megan Hawkins is averaging a GNAC-best 0.54 aces per set. Katarina Damnjanovic is the team leader with 2.96 kills per set, while Remington’s conference-leading blocks per set figure also ranks her second in all of NCAA Division II volleyball. As a team, SFU leads the GNAC in hitting percentage at .255 while ranking second in opponents’ hitting percentage at .155.
 
Schmidt led the Red Leafs to a share of their first-ever GNAC title last year, piloting the program to a 14-4 conference record en route to an unprecedented four-way tie for first place with Central Washington, Alaska Anchorage and Alaska. Since taking over the program in the fall of 2013, Schmidt has enjoyed one of the most successful tenures in the history of the conference. Her 145-career conference victories are fourth-most since the league was founded in 2001, and SFU has gone 204-128 (.614) overall in her 13-plus seasons in charge. The Red Leafs are on their way to their fourth-consecutive winning season and 11th overall during Schmidt’s tenure and will look to make it three consecutive NCAA West Region Championships appearances at the end of the regular season.
 
The Red Leafs will complete the first half of the conference schedule on the road this week, with matches at Seattle Pacific (10-5, 5-2) on Thursday at 7 p.m. (Pacific) and at Montana State Billings (3-13, 0-7) on Saturday at 2 p.m. (Mountain).
 
GNAC Team of the Week presented by Athletic Solutions
Athletic Solutions became a GNAC partner in 2025 and is the official sponsor of the GNAC Team of the Week award. Athletic Solutions is a national leader in NIL fan engagement and e-commerce technology, collaborating with colleges and universities to bring NIL Locker Rooms to life. Its platform simplifies NIL opportunities, providing student-athletes with the tools and exposure needed to thrive in the evolving landscape of college athletics.