MATCH #7
UC Irvine | Friday, September 7 | Cleveland, Ohio | 12:00 p.m.
MATCH #8
No. 11 Illinois | Friday, September 7 | Cleveland, Ohio | 7:00 p.m.
MATCH #9
Bowling Green | Saturday, September 8 | Cleveland, Ohio | 1:30 p.m.
LIVE STATS/VIDEO | CSU INVITATIONAL TOURNAMENT CENTRAL | CLEVELAND STATE MATCH NOTES
QUICK SETS
The Cleveland State volleyball team will return to the friendly confines of Woodling Gymnasium this weekend, hosting its second preseason tournament on Friday, September 7 and Saturday, September 8. For the second installment of the CSU Invitational, the Vikings will welcome UC Irvine (12:00 p.m. - Friday, September 7), No. 11 Illinois (7:00 p.m. - Friday, September 7) and Bowling Green (1:30 p.m. - Saturday, September 8) for a trio of matches throughout the two-day tournament.
CSU INVITATIONAL FIELD
UC Irvine | The Anteaters enter the weekend with a 1-5 record on the year, with their lone win coming in a 3-1 decision against Saint Mary's over the first weekend of the season. Last time out, UC Irvine hosted their own invitational, falling to CSU Bakersfield, Georgia and Texas Tech.
No. 11 Illinois | The Illini enter the weekend with a perfect 5-0 record on the year, which includes a 3-0 mark against Top-25 teams. To begin the season, Illinois was ranked No. 12, and has since moved up one spot to No. 11 in the current poll behind the undefeated start to the year.
Bowling Green | The Falcons currently stand at 2-5 on the season, and enter the weekend on a two-match winstreak with wins over Youngstown State and UNLV last time out. Through the first 10 matches of the season, nine of them will come on the road for Bowling Green, including the three matches this weekend.
LAST TIME OUT…
The Vikings finished the Michigan Invitational with a 1-2 record, picking up a five-set victory over Harvard and falling to No. 23 Michigan (3-0) and Eastern Michigan (3-1). Last Friday's contest against the Wolverines marked the first top-25 opponent for the Vikings this season, while last Saturday's 3-2 victory over Harvard marked the first five-set win of the year.
VIKINGS TABBED HORIZON LEAGUE PRESEASON FAVORITES
Last month the Vikings were selected to repeat as Horizon League Champions, as they were tabbed the Horizon League Preseason favorite, picking up 69 points and four first place votes in the league's preseason poll. The Vikings are three-time defending Horizon League Champions, and were named the preseason favorite for the third straight season.
POSTSEASON HONOREES RETURN
The 2018 Vikings welcome back two Horizon League postseason honorees in Sara Skeens and Emily DeGeorge, while Chuck Voss returns as the reigning #HLVB Coach of the Year. Skeens, a junior outside hitter, earned Honorable Mention All-Horizon League accolades last season after averaging a team-best 3.10 kills per and earning #HLVB Tournament MVP honors. DeGeorge, a sophomore outside hitter, was named to the All-Freshman Team last season after averaging 2.78 digs and 1.74 kills per set. DeGeorge also set a Cleveland State freshman class record with 325 total digs during her rookie campaign.
TOUGH SCHEDULE AHEAD
Friday's match against Illinois will mark the second top-25 opponent for the Vikings over the last two weeks, as Michigan (L, 3-0) was also ranked in the top-25 when they Vikings faced the Wolverines last week (No. 23). Entering the week, Illinois is ranked No. 11 in the most recent poll, earning 1,048 points. This marks the second straight season that the Vikings will be facing a top-25 opponent during the non-league slate (No. 25 Purdue, L 3-0, 8/25/17).
STOVER NAMED TO ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Senior Rachel Stover represented Cleveland State on the Michigan Invitational All-Tournament Team last weekend, earning the accolade after averaging 2.50 kills and 1.25 blocks per set for the tournament. Stover tallied back-to-back 11-kill performances against Harvard and Eastern Michigan, while she also notched a career-high nine blocks against the Crimson. The 11 kills marked her first double-digit kill matches of the season, while she also tallied a team-best eight kills against No. 23 Michigan.
GREENE ON THE BLOCK
After the first two weeks of the 2018 season, sophomore Hannah Greene continues to lead the Horizon League in blocks, averaging 1.68 blocks per set. Greene, who has combined for 37 total blocks this year, also ranks 11th nationally with her 1.68 blocks per set average. Greene has recorded three or more blocks in every match so far this season, including back-to-back nine-block performances against Binghamton and Montana State to start the year.
…CLEVELAND STATE BLOCK PARTY
As a team, the Vikings are averaging 3.18 blocks per set, a mark that leads all Horizon League teams entering the third week of the season. Not only are the Vikings at the top of the Horizon League, but they are also ranked in the top-five nationally in blocks per set and the top-10 in total blocks (70.0). Through six matches, Cleveland State has recorded 10.0 or more team blocks three times, including a season-high 17.0 total team blocks against Binghamton in the season opener.
GRECOL LEADING THE VIKING OFFENSE
Through the first part of the season, Cleveland State's offense has been led by freshman Christina Grecol, who enters the weekend with 219 total helpers on the year. Grecol, who is the first freshman to lead the Viking offense as the primary setter since Jordan Goad in 2008, currently ranks second among Horizon League players averaging 9.95 assists per set while this also ranks her 81st nationally. Grecol's season-high performance came against Harvard last weekend, as she tallied 53 assists in the five-set victory over the Crimson.
DOHAR SETS CAREER-HIGH AGAINST EASTERN MICHIGAN
Last time out, senior Rachael Dohar recorded back-to-back 20-dig performances against Harvard and Eastern Michigan, with a 21-dig effort against the Crimson and a career-high 29-dig performance against the Eagles. Dohar, who has been Cleveland State's libero for five of the first six matches this season, is averaging 4.50 digs per set, ranking fourth among Horizon League players.
HOME-SWEET-HOME
Entering this weekend's CSU Invitational, Cleveland State owns a perfect 3-0 record when playing at home so far this season. The Vikings, who will play 14 of their 28 matches at home, are currently on an 11-match winstreak in Woodling Gymnasium dating back to last year. This year's 14 home matches ties the second highest single-season total for home contests and marks the most matches in Woodling Gymnasium since the 2009 season. Over the last three years, Cleveland State owns a 34-5 record at home.
HEAD COACH CHUCK VOSS
Chuck Voss is in his 19th season at the helm of the Vikings, and owns a 341-205 (.624) overall record at CSU. Under Voss the Vikings have recorded 15 winning seasons, including nine straight entering the 2018 season. Cleveland State has eclipsed the 20-win mark eight times since Voss took over the program, and has captured Horizon League Tournament titles five times (2007, 2012, 2015, 2016 & 2017) under his guidance. During the 2016 season, Voss became the all-time winningest coach in program history and became the the only active Horizon League coach to reach the 300-win mark at their current school.
UP NEXT
Cleveland State will hit the road for the final preseason tournament of 2018 next weekend, traveling to Butler for the Bulldog Brawl (Friday, September 14 & Saturday, September 15). The Vikings will close out non-league play against Santa Clara, Kent State and the host Bulldogs.
