MATCH #23
Valparaiso | Fri., Oct. 31 | 7:00 p.m.
Live Stats | Live Video
MATCH #24
UIC | Sat., Nov. 1 | 4:00 p.m.
Live Stats | Live Video
*Senior Day*
PDF MATCH NOTES
Cleveland State vs. Valparaiso & UIC
QUICK SETS
The Cleveland State volleyball team will return to the friendly confines of Woodling Gymnasium for the final time this weekend, hosting Valparaiso and UIC in its final homestand of the 2014 regular season. Entering the weekend, CSU stands at 11-11 overall and 4-5 in Horizon League play. The Vikings will open play against Valparaiso on Friday, October 31 (7:00 p.m.) and will then face UIC on Saturday, November 1 (4:00 p.m.).
THE MATCH-UP // VALPARAISO
Valparaiso enters Friday's contest with an overall record of 19-6 and stands at 5-4 in Horizon League play. The Crusaders posted a 14-2 non-league record to start the season, but have been struggling since then, winning just two of their last five matches.
THE MATCH-UP // UIC
UIC enters the weekend with an 11-13 overall record and also stands at 5-4 in Horizon League action. The Flames opened Horizon League play with just a 1-3 record, but have won four out of their last five contests to move into fourth place in the league standings.
EARLIER THIS SEASON…
The Vikings split their contests against Valparaiso and UIC earlier this season - earning a 3-1 victory against the Flames, and falling to the Crusaders, by a matching 3-1 score. Grace Kauth recorded her fifth double-double of the season with 14 kills and 13 digs against UIC, while Maggie Hannon notched eight kills and three blocks against Valparaiso.
SENIOR DAY SATURDAY
Saturday's contest against UIC will serve as Senior Day for the Vikings, as the team will honor Ally Beck and Maggie Hannon before the match. This duo has led CSU to over 70 wins during their career - including two 20-win seasons, a Horizon League Regular Season Title, a Horizon League Tournament Title, and a NCAA Tournament appearance.
KAUTH TIES CAREER-HIGH AGAINST OAKLAND
Sophomore Grace Kauth led the Viking offense against Oakland last weekend, tying her career-high with 17 kills against the Golden Grizzlies. Kauth, who is averaging 2.56 kills per set this season, has been CSU's top offensive threat during seven matches and has tallied double-digit kills nine times.
…REACHES 200 KILLS & 200 DIGS ON THE SEASON
Along with her 17 kills against Oakland, Grace Kauth also posted 17 digs on the match - giving her 200 kills and 239 digs on the season. Kauth is the first Viking to record 200 kills and 200 digs this season, and just the sixth Horizon League player to achieve the feat. Kauth, who posted a team-high 305 kills last season, also became just the second current Viking to notch 200 kills in back-to-back seasons (Maggie Hannon).
ROBERTS NOTCHES SEASON-HIGH 40 ASSISTS
Dayna Roberts returned to a primary setting role against Oakland and Wright State last weekend - combining for 63 assists on the weekend, including a season-high 40 assists against Oakland. Roberts is averaging 5.09 assists per set this season, and has now posted 40 assists or more in 11 matches throughout her career.
HANNON ON THE OFFENSIVE ATTACK
For the fourth time this season, senior Maggie Hannon recorded a hitting percentage above .500 - posting a .526 mark against Wright State (11-1-19) last weekend. Hannon has a team-high .291 hitting percentage on the season - ranking sixth among Horizon League players. She notched a season-high .533 hitting percentage against Milwaukee three weeks ago, posting eight kills on 15 attempts with no errors.
CSU HAS EXCELLENT DEFENSIVE EFFORT VS. OAKLAND
Cleveland State recorded a season-high 99 digs against Oakland last weekend, posting the second-highest single-match total among Horizon League teams this season. The 99 digs is the most by a CSU team since the 2012 season, when the Vikings posted 100 or more digs three times. Five Vikings recorded double-digit digs against the Golden Grizzlies, marking the first time this season that has happened.
…HOLMES RETURNS TO FORM
A major portion of CSU's defensive efforts against Oakland came from Nikki Holmes, who tallied 24 digs - her fifth 20-dig match of the season. Holmes is averaging 4.67 digs per set this season and is closing in on 900 for her career, entering the weekend with 892 total digs. Holmes ranks third among Horizon League players in digs per set, while she ranks 59th nationally in the category.
HANNON CLOSING IN ON CAREER RECORD BOOK
Entering the weekend senior Maggie Hannon is just shy of cracking the top-10 on the CSU career block assists list, entering Friday's contest with 236 block assists on her career. Hannon, who is 11 block assists shy of tying for 10th on the list, has recorded 73 total blocks so far this season, averaging 0.94 blocks per set. Hannon already has her name in the CSU career record book once, currently ranking sixth with a .303 hitting percentage.
CSU AMONG THE NATIONAL LEADERS
Entering the weekend Cleveland State continues to rank in the top-75 nationally in digs per set (19th - 16.99) and blocks per set (68th - 2.37) - also ranking second in the Horizon League in both categories. CSU is one of just two league teams to average over 16.00 digs per set this season and is also one of two league teams to average over 2.25 blocks per set on the year.
ROBERTS ON CAREER ASSIST LIST
Dayna Roberts continues to add to her career assist total, as she combined for 63 assists last weekend, entering Friday's contest with 1,772 career assists. Roberts currently ranks seventh on the CSU all-time career assist list, and is on her way to becoming just the seventh Viking to record 2,000 assists all-time.
