DETROIT -- Fresh off a 4-0 start to the season courtesy of the Warrior Invitational, the Wayne State University volleyball team will take that season-opening winning streak on the road. The Warriors will be in Amherst, N.Y. at Daemen's Wildcat Classic on Friday-Saturday, Sept. 12-13 to face a trio of opponents in those two days. WSU will face Dallas Baptist (3 p.m.) on day one before seeing Clarion (10 a.m.) and Daemen (6:30 p.m.) the following day.
Coach's Corner
"We are looking forward to traveling together this weekend to play three high quality opponents," said head coach
Tim Koth. "It should be a very beneficial time for our team to grow."
GLIAC Offensive Player of the Week
Kayla Giroux's (Flat Rock, Mich.) fourth career GLIAC OPOW honor comes after she was named the Warrior Invitational All-Tournament Team MVP. The senior hit .487 during Wayne State's 4-0 season-opening week with 64 kills and only nine errors on 113 attacks. The middle hitter reached 1,000 kills for her career in the second match and led the Warriors to their first 4-0 start since 2021. Defensively, she registered 13 total blocks (one solo, 12 assisted) to go with two service aces in the tournament's finale and five-set victory over Winona State on Saturday.
GLIAC Defensive Player of the Week
Kayla Dulgar (Warsaw, Ohio / River View), now a four-time GLIAC SOW, joined Giroux on the Warrior Invitational All-Tournament Team. She was responsible for 169 assists (10.56 per set), 55 digs (3.44 per set) and 10 total blocks (all assisted). The setter finished with a double-double (assists & digs) in three of the four matches as well. On the program's career assists chart, the junior moved up two spots from ninth to seventh with 2,292 career assists to her name.
Other Standouts
While Giroux paced Wayne State in kills, newcomer
Paige Giehtbrock (Clarkston, Mich. [Rider]) was the ringleader in attack attempts with 138. Giehtbrock sent home 43 kills with 19 errors for a .174 hitting percentage. Also on the attack, three more Warriors notched at least 20 kills including
Katie Smith (Macomb, Mich. / Utica Eisenhower) with 23, freshman
Katerina Stout (Macomb, Mich. / Dakota) with 22,
Leigha Baldwin (Perrysburg, Ohio [Purdue Fort Wayne]) with 21, and
Saige Martin (Westphalia, Mich. / Pewamo-Westphalia) with 21. Giehtbrock is also proving to be vaulable behind the service line as her seven aces are on top of that category.
Switching to the defensive side of the ball,
Kendyl Andrews (Flushing, Mich.) dug out 62 attacks, but Dulgar wasn't far behind the team's libero with 55 of her own. Giehtbrock received more swing attempts than any other member of the Green and Gold at 111, 34 of which she dug out, as part of a .964 reception percentage. Above the net, Stout started her career with a bang that included 25 total blocks, three solo and 22 assisted.
Scouting Dallas Baptist
Dallas Baptist, member of the Lone Star Conference (LSC) and WSU's first opponent of the week, started its season by hosting the Dallas Classic last weekend. DBU went 2-1 on its opening weekend, with 3-0 victories over Southwest Baptist and East Central. The Patriots fell 3-2 to Minnesota State Moorhead to conclude the event. Karly Wells was a standout performer for DBU, as the junior posted an even 60 kills across the three contests, including 34 in the five-set thriller with MSM. That was enough for a .377 attack percentage to place second on the squad. Dallas Baptist posted a 20-10 mark last year, including a 12-4 conference ledger in the LSC. The Patriots are led by fifth-year head coach Jordan Fish.
Scouting Clarion
The second opponent of the weekend for the Green and Gold,
Clarion, had a 2-2 mark during its own Tony Banner Memorial Tournament last weekend. Members of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC), CU alternated wins and losses during its four contests. The Golden Eagles' two triumphs were 3-0 decisions against Goldey-Beacom and Roberts Wesleyan, while their two defeats were 3-2 heartbreakers to Shippensburg and American International. Among the statistical leaders for Clarion after the first weekend are sophomore Raegan Stader in kills (51), junior Kylie Barto in assists (96), sophomore Lauren Fjerstad in aces (eight), and junior Finley Kearney in total blocks (18). The Golden Eagles finished 2024 with a 15-12 ledger, including a 9-5 mark in the PSAC. They are coached by 19-year head coach and three-time (2010, 2013, and 2014) PSAC West Coach of the Year, Jennifer Herron.
Scouting Daemen
The host squad,
Daemen, a member of the East Coast Conference (ECC), also went 2-2 over its first weekend at the Ashland University Invitational. The Wildcats defeated West Liberty and Ursuline, both by 3-1 marks, but fell 3-1 to Indiana (Pa.) and 3-0 to host Ashland. DU was led all weekend by senior and 2025 ECC Preseason Player of the Year Nahirka Malpica, who tallied double-digit kills in all four matches. In addition, freshman Sole Rancy, freshman Keira Mullen and junior Kate Trueblood all totaled over 10 total blocks across the weekend. In 2024, Daemen recorded a 17-9 record and went 9-3 in the ECC. The Wildcats are coached by Kaysie Shebeneck in her first season at the helm of the program.
