MATCH #7
vs. Princeton | Friday, September 10 | Hamilton, N.Y. | 11:30 a.m.
MATCH #8
vs. Hofstra | Friday, September 10 | Hamilton, N.Y. | 4:30 p.m.
MATCH #9
@ Colgate | Saturday, September 11 | Hamilton. N.Y. | 11:00 a.m.
CLEVELAND STATE MATCH NOTES | LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO
QUICK SETS
The Cleveland State volleyball team will continue the 2021 season this weekend, traveling to Hamilton, N.Y. for the Ellis Rowland Memorial Tournament hosted by Colgate University. This will mark the third of four preseason tournaments for the Vikings, as CSU is in the midst of a 14-match roadswing to start the year. Cleveland State (2-4) will face Princeton (11:30 a.m.) and Hofstra (4:30 p.m.) on Friday, September 10, before taking on the host Raiders (11:00 a.m.) on Saturday, September 11.
ROAD WARRIORS
During the 2021 season the Vikings will play their entire non-league slate away from home, and will play their first 14 matches - including two league contests - on the road. During this stretch the Vikings will travel to six different states and will cover over 3,400 miles - 630+ of which came last weekend when Cleveland State traveled to Morehead, Ky.
McCONIHE NAMED TO ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Junior libero Audrey McConihe was named to the Eagle Challenge All-Tournament Team last time out after averaging 3.92 digs per set through the three matches. McConihe posted back-to-back 15+ dig matches against Radford (16) and Morehead State (22), with the 22 digs against the Eagles marking a career-high for the junior. So far this season, McConihe leads the team averaging 3.32 digs per set.
BLOOMER & PENFIELD LEADING THE VIKING OFFENSE
So far this season Peyton Bloomer and Chelsea Penfield have been Cleveland State's top offensive threats, combining for 95 total kills through the first six matches. Last time out, both Bloomer (17) and Penfield (14) recorded career-highs against Morehead State, helping the Vikings to their best offensive performance of the season. Over the first two weeks of the 2021 campaign, Bloomer has posted four double-digit kill matches, while Penfield's 14 kills against the Eagles marked her first double-digit kill effort of the year.
FROM THE SERVICE LINE
The Vikings had one of their best serving performances against Radford last weekend, finishing the first match of the Eagle Challenge with 11 total service aces. Five Vikings contributed aces on the match, including a team-high three from Keanna Avery and Audrey McConihe. CSU's 11 aces against Radford marked the sixth 11+ service ace match of the season among Horizon League teams.
POSTSEASON HONOREE MILLER RETURNS
Sophomore Abby Miller returns following an excellent rookie season in which she was named to the Horizon League All-Freshman Team. During the adjusted 2020 campaign, Miller led the league averaging 9.95 assists per set, helping the Viking offense to a .221 clip - the fourth best hitting percentage among league teams. Last season, Miller also averaged 2.63 digs per set and combined for 14 service aces.
…SO FAR THIS SEASON
After the first two weekends of play, Abby Miller ranks sixth among Horizon League players averaging 7.41 assists per set as the highest ranked Viking in the individual #HLVB stat categories. Miller recorded a season-best 41 helpers at Morehead State, while she also posted 10 digs against the Eagles for her first double-double of the year.
PORTIS NAMED TO BALTIMORE INVITE ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Senior London Portis was named to the Baltimore Invitational All-Tournament Team earlier this season, finishing the weekend with 19 total kills on a team-best .341 hitting percentage. Portis, who played in just two of Cleveland State's three matches at the Baltimore Invitational, posted a weekend-best 11 kills against Navy. Portis also added one block assist on the weekend.
VIKINGS POST STRONG SEMESTER IN THE CLASSROOM
With the 2021 Spring Semester in the books, the Vikings posted one of their best semesters in program history, finishing with a 3.77 Team GPA for the term - one of seven Cleveland State teams to post a 3.75+ GPA last semester. In addition, four Vikings were named to the Cleveland State President's List3.90+ (Keanna Avery, Lydia Latimer, Abby Miller, Lindsey Tout), while seven returning Vikings earned a spot on the Cleveland State Dean's List3.25+ (Peyton Bloomer, Madalynn Butler, Sarah Green, Audrey McConihe, Ainslie McLaughlin, Madison Quirino, Sam Snow).
HEAD COACH CHUCK VOSS
Chuck Voss is in his 22nd season at the helm of the Vikings, and owns a 373-245 (.603) overall record at Cleveland State. Under Voss the Vikings have recorded 17 winning seasons, including a streak of 10 straight from 2009 to 2018. 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 then later became the only active Horizon League coach to reach the 350-win mark at their current school.
UP NEXT
The Vikings will close out non-league play next weekend, taking part in the Evansville Invitational on Friday, September 17 and Saturday, September 18. The Vikings will face Murray State and the host Aces on Friday, before facing Liberty on Saturday.
