DETROIT -- Coming off its first GLIAC win of the season on Tuesday at Saginaw Valley State, the Wayne State University volleyball team (4-9 overall, 1-4 GLIAC) will travel to Davenport (5-8 overall, 2-3 GLIAC) and Parkside (9-4 overall, 4-1 GLIAC) this week.

COACH KOTH
"This is a challenging trip against two very talented teams, but we're looking forward to it."

LAST TIME OUT - SAGINAW VALLEY STATE
- The first set, the tightest one of the match, saw nine ties and three lead changes.
- Wayne State took the lead for good at 14-13 and led by as many as four at 24-20.
- Both teams hit well that set, including .311 for WSU and .324 for SVSU.
- Nearly just as close as the first period, the second stance boasted seven deadlocks and three lead changes.
- Once the Cardinals were in front by two at 20-18, the Warriors rattled off a 7-2 run to take the set and 2-0 match lead.
- The third set was all Wayne State from the jump, including two separate 7-0 runs.

LEADING THE WARRIORS
The Wayne State offense has been paced by Giroux so far this fall.  Right now, Giroux's hitting efficiency sits at .373, third best in the league, as she's racked up 133 kills to just 33 errors on 268 total attacks.  Also factoring into the Warrior attack have been a pair of newbies in Molly Miller with a team-leading 159 kills (third in the GLIAC) and Katie Smith with 85.  Miller has started all 13 of the team's matches like Giroux.  The third and final Warrior to have been in every starting lineup is Kayla Dulgar and her 454 assists, 9.46 per set, which rank first and second in the conference, respectively.  Kendyl Andrews' 19 service aces rank in a tie-for-fifth in the league while Dulgar's 18 are close behind her in a tie-for-eighth.  Defensively, Andrews ranks third in the GLIAC in digs with 197 while Giroux is slotted in 10th in total blocks with 35.

SCOUTING DAVENPORT
Led by fifth-year head coach Brian Netzler, Davenport started GLIAC play at 2-1, but has since dropped two-straight matches in league action.  As a team, the Panthers are second in the conference in total service aces with 91 and third in aces per set with 1.78.  Individually, three different players have sent home 12 or more of them, including Lindsay Taylor (18), Stephanie Kalinowski (18), Nicole Odeen (15), and Ola Nowak (12).  Taylor is on top of the team's kill department with 140 while a pair of setters, Odeen (232 assists) and Lexie Beeke (195 assists), have run the offense.  Defensively, DU is paced by Kalinowski's 230 digs and Emmy Webb's 30 total blocks.

GLIAC DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
For the third consecutive week, Davenport's graduate libero Stephanie Kalinowski was named GLIAC Defensive Player of the Week.  Kalinowski registered a career high in digs for the second time this season, recording 37 in a five-set nail-bitter against No. 22 Ferris State.  The libero helped lead the Panthers to a 3-1 victory in their home opener over Lake Superior State, finishing with a match-high 19 digs.  She totaled 56 digs and 6.22 digs per set.  The graduate leads the conference in both total digs (220) and digs per set (4.58).

SCOUTING PARKSIDE
Parkside is off to its best start since joining the GLIAC in 2018.  The Rangers have won three matches in a row, five of their last six and are 6-1 when playing at home inside De Simone Arena.  Sixth-season head coach Leigh Barea has turned to a pair of attackers as the team's top kill getters in Ava Irvin (145 kills) and Sam Fisch (111 kills).  Karlee Lois has accounted for 408 of the team's 500 assists while Natalie Harris has racked up 16 service aces.  On the other side of the ball, the Rangers have highlighted Harris' 187 digs and Mariena Coon's 40 total blocks.

GLIAC OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Parkside's junior outside hitter Elle Truckenbroad tallied 19 kills while swinging at a .366 clip in the win over Michigan Tech.  Not only was that a career high in kills for Elle, but it also set a new season high for the team.  The next day, Truckenbrod followed a 22-point performance with a 15.5-point gem in the Rangers win over Northern Michigan.  In that match, she had 14 kills with a .324 hitting percentage.