Nov. 2, 2011
Contact: Renee Adam
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Match 24
UIC (14-11, 7-6 HL) at Cleveland State (16-7, 9-3 HL)
Date: Friday, Nov. 4, 2011
Time: 7:00 p.m. EDT
Site: Woodling Gym (3,000), Cleveland, Ohio
Series: UIC leads, 41-21
Last Mtg.: CSU 3, UIC 0 (10/9/11)
Match 25
Valparaiso (17-11, 8-5 HL) at Cleveland State
Date: Saturday, Nov. 5, 2011
Time: 4:00 p.m. EDT
Site: Woodling Gym (3,000), Cleveland, Ohio
Series: Valpo leads, 15-10
Last Mtg.: CSU 3, Valpo 2 (10/8/11)
QUICK SETS: The Vikings will return to Woodling Gym to close out the regular season with a four-match homestand, beginning with a pair of matches this weekend. CSU opens the weekend with a 7:00 p.m. contest on Friday (Nov. 4) against UIC and will then host Valparaiso at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday (Nov. 5). Entering this weekend's contests the Vikings sit in second place in the league standings and will be trying to secure the No. 2 seed for the Horizon League Tournament which begins in three weeks. UIC enters Friday's match on a two-match losing skid with losses at Wright State and Butler. Valparaiso enters the weekend having won four out of their last seven league contests and currently sits in third place in the league standings.
REVIEWING LAST WEEK: The Vikings dropped their first league contest on the road last weekend at league-leader Milwaukee. Following is a brief recap of that match:
Match 23: Milwaukee 3, CSU 1 (Oct. 29, Milwaukee, Wis.)
For the first time this season the Vikings fell on the road in a league contest, dropping a four-set decision at Milwaukee. Jackie Dabbelt and Kara Koch each posted a team-high 12 kills, with Koch also adding 12 digs to mark her eighth double-double of the year. Amy Grabiec tallied a match-high 24 digs, her fourth 20-plus dig match of the season.
PREVIEWING THE VIKINGS: Expectations are once again high for the Vikings as four starters and the libero are back from last year's 22-7 team as CSU sets out to reach the league title match for the fourth time in the last five seasons. Headlining the returnees is senior setter Jordan Goad (10.27 aps) who earned first team All-Horizon League honors for the second straight season last year. She will be backed up by sophomore Annie Djukic (2.53 aps) who filled in for Goad by making five starts a year ago. Junior outside hitter Kara Koch (3.85 kps, 2.97 dps), a first team all-league pick last year, is back as the most experienced attacker on the team. Senior Kourtney Volkmer (0.93 kps) and freshman Ally Beck (1.36 kps) will both fight for time. Sophomore Jackie Dabbelt (.334, 2.23 kps) will man the right side after earning a spot on the all-newcomer team last year, while senior Megan Barhorst (1.97 kps, 0.74 bps), junior Marie Frease (.323, 2.31 kps) and freshmen Maggie Hannon and Molly King will patrol the middle. Senior Amy Grabiec (4.23 dps) returns as the libero for the second straight season to lead a talented and experienced backrow. Also returning are juniors Brittany Holland (2.06 dps) and Amanda Medvetz (1.95 dps) and senior Whitney Dalessandro (0.29 dps).
ROAD STREAK HALTED AT MILWAUKEE: Last Saturday's 3-1 loss at Milwaukee was the first on the road in league play for the Vikings this season. Prior to Saturday's contest CSU had a perfect 7-0 record in league play on the road. Despite the loss, the Vikings posted the best league record on the road during head coach Chuck Voss' tenure this season, ending the year with a 7-1 mark.
LEAGUE LEADERS: After 10 weeks of play, CSU has a strong hold on the Horizon League statistical categories, as a Viking ranks in the top-five in five of the six categories. Below are the Vikings that rank in the top-five:
Hitting %: Jackie Dabbelt-1st-.334 & Marie Frease-3rd-.323
Kills: Kara Koch-2nd-3.85/set
Assists: Jordan Goad-4th-10.27/set
Service Aces: Megan Barhorst-1st-0.36/set
Digs: Amy Grabiec-5th-4.23/set
CHASING 1,000: Junior Kara Koch is closing in on her 1,000th kill at Cleveland State, as she enters the final four matches of the regular season with 948 kills. Koch will become the 14th Viking to reach the milestone and the 10th under head coach Chuck Voss. Koch recorded her 300th kill of the season at Milwaukee last Saturday (Oct. 29) and has now posted 300 or more kills during two of her seasons at Cleveland State, also doing so last year as a sophomore (409 kills).
GOAD ADDS TO CAREER ASSISTS: Senior Jordan Goad continues to extend her hold on second place on the career assists list at CSU, as she now has 4,219 assists on her career. Last weekend Goad tallied 43 assists against the Panthers, marking her seventh match with 40 or more assists this season.
CSU IN THE NCAA STATS: After leading the Horizon League in assists (12.77 per set), service aces (1.62) and hitting percentage (.233) this week, the Vikings also rank in the top-50 in two of the categories in the NCAA weekly statistics. CSU ranks 21st in service aces and 47th in assists among Division I schools, and is one of just two Horizon League schools to rank in the top-50 in both categories.
GRABIEC CLIMBS CSU CAREER RECORD LIST: Following a 24-dig performance at Milwaukee, senior Amy Grabiec ranks third on CSU's all-time career digs list with 1,364. Grabiec is one of just three Vikings to reach the 1,300-dig milestone, and is 43 digs away from taking over second place. Grabiec has recorded 20 or more digs during four matches this season, including a season-high of 30 at Valparaiso (Oct. 8).
ON THE ATTACK: When it comes to accurate hitters in the league, it doesn't get much better than CSU as a Viking has led the league in attack percentage in each of the last nine seasons. It began with Jamie Bouyer leading the league in 2003 (.361) and 2004 (.368) and continued with Nickole Kennedy in 2005 (.318), Beth Greulich in 2006 (.364), Amy Benz in 2007 (.334) and 2008 (.303) and Greulich (.328) last season. Benz led the league for the third time in her career last season at .318.
...WHAT ABOUT THIS YEAR?: With just two weeks left in the regular season, sophomore Jackie Dabbelt leads the league in attack percentage at .334, while junior Marie Frease is third with a .323 attack percentage.
...VIKINGS AS A TEAM: As a team, CSU leads the league with a .233 attack percentage with 1,062 kills on the season. The Vikings are one of five teams in the league that have at least five players with 100 or more kills, and have posted a team hitting percentage of .275 or better during 10 matches this year.
EARLIER THIS SEASON: The Vikings will be facing UIC and Valparaiso for the second time this weekend, as CSU earned a 3-2 victory at Valparaiso (Oct. 8) and a 3-0 victory at UIC (Oct. 9) during the first half of league play. The win against the Crusaders marks the only five-set match that the Vikings have played in league action this season, and just the third overall.
NEXT UP: The Vikings will close out the regular season with two matches in Woodling Gym next weekend. CSU will first host Loyola in a 7:00 p.m. contest on Friday (Nov. 11) and will then host Green Bay in a 4:00 p.m. contest on Saturday (Nov. 12).
