Volleyball | 11/6/2014 2:00:00 PM
DETROIT -- The Wayne State University volleyball team (9-14, 6-10 GLIAC) will conclude its season on the road this weekend at #22 Ferris State (18-5, 15-1 GLIAC) on Friday night and at #17 Grand Valley State (19-4, 15-1 GLIAC) on Saturday afternoon. The Warriors will look spoil both team's quests for a GLIAC Regular Season Championship.
SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
Ferris State enters the weekend tied with Grand Valley State for the top spot in the league at 15-1. The Bulldogs and Lakers are vying to host the GLIAC Tournament Semifinals and Championship match. FSU is coached by Tia Brandel-Wilhelm and she is in her 19th season at the helm. The Bulldogs advanced to the Elite Eight last year after collecting a regional championship. This year's team has won five in a row and is led by an offense featuring four hitters with 100-plus kill totals. Megan Vander Meer leads the way with 242 kills (3/10/set) and Courtney Rehm has 205 kills (2.59/set). Stephanie Sikorski keeps all those weapons happy with 817 assists (10.34/set). As a team, FSU is hitting .218 compared to its opponent's .117 hitting percentage.
SCOUTING THE LAKERS
Grand Valley State is also 15-1 and has its sights set on a GLIAC title. The Lakers have won their last two contests after falling at Ferris State in five sets on Oct. 28th. Deanne Scanlon is in her 20th season leading the Laker program and collected her 500th win earlier this season. Betsy Ronda leads GVSU with 229 kills (2.97/set). Kaitlyn Wolters leads the team with 748 assists (9.47/set). As a team, GVSU is hitting .196 while its opponents are hitting .113.
SERIES HISTORY
The Warriors trail the all-time series with each of its final two opponents this season. Ferris State holds a 39-14 advantage in the series that began in 1984. The Bulldogs have won 17 of the last 19 meetings. GVSU leads the all-time series 34-15 in the series that also began in 1984. The Lakers have taken 16 of the last 18 meetings.
LAST TIME OUTAfter taking the first two sets on Nov. 1, WSU survived to win the match 3-2 at Michigan Tech. The win snapped a two-match losing streak after sweeps at Saginaw Valley State and Northern Michigan. The Green & Gold won sets one and two 25-21 and 25-16. The Huskies avoided the sweep with a 25-12 set three win and forced a fifth set after a 25-22 fourth set victory. Three Warriors posted double-digit kills led by
Heather Weiss with 13 kills.
Ellen Oppenheim and
Hannah Moore both posted 11-kill performances.?
NEW LEADER
A familiar name in the GLIAC, Tim Koth came to WSU after 10 highly productive seasons at Northwood, which included 175 victories, five NCAA Tournament appearances and a GLIAC Tournament title in 2012. Koth will look to return the Warriors to the GLIAC Tournament after being absent in 2013 for the first time since 2006, and the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1994. He carries a career record of 285-267 in his 19 years of coaching. He is assisted by Michael Lozier and Dale Hartzell.
2014 CAPTAINS
Coach Koth announced his team captains for the 2014 season on July 28th. Senior Carlee Hunt (Waterford, Mich. / Walled Lake Northern), junior Madison Reeves (Indianapolis, Ind. / Avon), junior Kelsey Bonewits (Griffith, Ind.) and sophomore Mikayla Shell (Croswell, Mich. / Croswell-Lexington) will serve as the team's leaders this season.
"We believe these four ladies each bring their own different qualities as leaders for our team," said Koth. "In naming Carlee, Kelsey, Madison, and Mikayla – we have a lot of faith that we will have good leadership both on the floor, in the locker room and out in the community – and that they will represent Wayne State Volleyball in the manner in which we expect. We are looking forward to getting started in a few weeks."
Hunt was named to the GLIAC All-Academic Team and served as a team captain in 2013. She played in 29 matches, started 21 times and appeared in 104 sets. Hunt was second on the team with 277 digs (2.66/set). Reeves, who was named to the GLIAC All-Academic Excellence Team last season, also served as a team captain. She was a CoSIDA Academic All-District nominee, started all 26 matches played and led the team with 909 assists (9.09/set). Bonewits was also named to the GLIAC All-Academic Team and played in 26 matches in 2013, starting 24 times. She was fourth on the team with 119 kills (1.37/set) and led team with 80 total blocks (0.92/set), including 11 solo blocks. Shell played in 23 matches and made 10 starts. She appeared in 66 sets and totaled 74 kills (1.12/set).
IN THE POLLS
The GLIAC announced its Preseason Coaches' Poll on Aug. 14 with the Warriors and first-year head coach Tim Koth predicted to finish fifth in the North Division. Grand Valley State was selected to win the North with 55 points and seven first-place votes with Ferris State picking up the eighth and final first-place vote. The coaches tabbed Ashland as the preseason favorite to win the South Division with 46 points and six first-place votes. Hillsdale snagged the other two first-place votes.
