MATCH #22
@ Wright State | Friday, October 27 | 6:00 pm
Live Stats | Live Video
MATCH #23
@ IUPUI | Satuday, October 28 | 4:00 pm
Live Stats | Live Video
CLEVELAND STATE MATCH NOTES @ WRIGHT STATE/IUPUI
QUICK SETS
The Cleveland State volleyball team will close out the month of October on the road this weekend, traveling to Wright State and league-leading IUPUI. The Vikings will open the weekend with a 6:00 p.m. contest against the Raiders on Friday, October 27, before taking on IUPUI at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, October 28. Entering the weekend, Cleveland State stands at 14-7 overall this year and 7-3 in Horizon League play.
THIS WEEKEND'S OPPONENTS
Wright State | The Raiders enter the weekend standing at 9-14 overall this season and 3-7 in #HLVB play with wins over Cleveland State, Green Bay and Youngstown State. WSU enters Friday's contest on a three-match losing skid and currently sits eighth in the league standings.
IUPUI | The Jaguars enter the weekend with a 12-11 overall record and a league-best 8-2 mark in Horizon League contests. IUPUI currently sits at the top of the league standings, winning three straight matches and six of their last seven. The Jaguars will take on Youngstown State Friday evening prior to Saturday's match against Cleveland State.
VIKINGS PICK UP MOMENTUM
Entering this weekend's roadtrip the Vikings have won four straight matches and five of their last six. During this stretch Cleveland State has picked up wins against Milwaukee, UIC, Green Bay, Northern Kentucky, and Youngstown State, and has improved to 7-3 in league play. After 10 league matches, the Vikings are tied for second place in the league standings and are just one match out of first place.
MIDDLEBROOKS NOTCHES 1,000 CAREER KILLS
After posting 19 kills against UIC last Friday, senior middle hitter Alexis Middlebrooks recorded her 1,000th career kill, becoming the 16th Viking all-time to achieve the feat. Middlebrooks enters this weekend's matches with 1,013 career kills and has been averaging a team-best 3.26 kills per set this season, a mark that ranks eighth among league players.
…AND PROVIDES EFFICIENT OFFENSE
Alexis Middlebrooks has been Cleveland State's most efficient offensive threat this season, entering the week with a league-leading .358 hitting percentage on the year. In league matches only, Middlebrooks is hitting at a .371 clip, which is also tops among league players. For her career, Middlebrooks ranks third in the CSU Career Record Book, owning a .324 career hitting percentage.
KILNER NOTCHES 4,000 CAREER ASSISTS & MOVES UP RECORD BOOK
Following an 84-assist weekend against UIC and Milwaukee last time out, senior Gina Kilner eclipsed the 4,000-assist mark for her career, finishing the weekend with 4,078 career helpers. Kilner became just the fifth Viking all-time to reach 4,000 career assists, while she also moved into third place in the CSU Career Record Book with her 4,078 helpers. Kilner is just the second current Horizon League player to eclipse the 4,000-assist mark, joining UIC's Nicole Johnson.
DeGEORGE HAVING STRONG ROOKIE CAMPAIGN
Freshman outside hitter Emily DeGeorge has been having an excellent first season at Cleveland State, appearing in all 21 matches and picking up a starting spot in 15 of them. For the season, DeGeorge is averaging 1.63 kills per set and 2.76 digs per set, and has been playing as an all-around player for the majority of the contests.
GREGA CONTINUES CLIMB UP CSU CAREER RECORD BOOK
Senior Shannon Grega combined for 42 digs in last week's matches against UIC and Milwaukee, eclipsing the 1,300-dig mark for her career. Grega, who posted 19 digs against the Flames and 23 against the Panthers, became just the fourth Viking all-time to reach 1,300 career digs, and enters Friday's match at Wright State with 1,318 career digs. Among league players, Grega ranks second averaging 4.56 digs per set, and has tallied 374 total digs this season.
…CONTINUES TO INCH CLOSER TO SERVICE ACES TOP-10
Shannon Grega has also been strong from the service line this season, as she enters the week leading the Horizon League averaging 0.43 service aces per set. Grega, who recorded two aces against Milwaukee last week, has 98 on her career and is inching closer to a spot on the top-10 list in the CSU Career Record Book. For the season Grega has 35 aces - the first Viking to notch 30+ aces in a season since the 2011 season - and still has at least six matches left to play this year.
SKEENS IN #HLVB PLAY
Ever since starting Horizon League play, sophomore Sara Skeens has been hitting her stride, averaging 2.75 kills per set with a team-best 110 total kills. Skeens, the reigning Horizon League Co-Freshman of the Year, has tallied double-digit kills five times against #HLVB opponents, including career-high tying 17-kill efforts against Wright State and Green Bay. Through the last four matches Skeens has combined for 45 total kills, a stretch in which Cleveland State has posted a perfect 4-0 record.
KILNER NOTCHES TRIPLE-DOUBLE
Earlier this season, senior setter Gina Kilner recorded the first triple-double of her career, posting 46 assists, 14 digs and 10 kills against IUPUI. Kilner, who is just the fourth Viking to record a triple-double under head coach Chuck Voss, is the second #HLVB player to achieve the feat this season (Jordan Lentz, Oakland) and just one of 26 players nationally.
2017 WEEKLY #HLVB HONORS
So far this season the Vikings have been honored twice by the Horizon League, as senior setter Gina Kilner was named the #HLVB Offensive Player of the Week on September 11 and senior libero Shannon Grega was named the #HLVB Defensive Player of the Week on October 9.
HEAD COACH CHUCK VOSS
Chuck Voss is in his 18th season at the helm of the Vikings, and owns a 329-202 (.619) overall record at CSU. Under Voss the Vikings have recorded 14 winning seasons, including eight straight entering the 2017 season. Cleveland State has eclipsed the 20-win mark seven times since Voss took over the program, and has captured Horizon League Tournament titles four times (2007, 2012, 2015 & 2016) under his guidance. Last season Voss became the all-time winningest coach in program history while also eclipsing the 300-win mark for his Cleveland State career - becoming the only active Horizon League coach to achieve the feat at their current school.
UP NEXT
The Vikings will begin the month of November at home next weekend, hosting Oakland (Friday, November 3) and Youngstown State (Saturday, November 4).
