DETROIT -- The last two matches of the 2026 regular season are here for the Wayne State University volleyball team (13-12 overall, 6-8 GLIAC).  The Warriors will see Purdue Northwest (6-18 overall, 3-11 GLIAC) for the first time this year on Friday in Hammond for a 7 p.m. eastern time first serve.  Then on Saturday at 4 p.m. eastern, WSU will square off against Parkside (15-10 overall, 7-7 GLIAC) for the season's rematch.

Coach's Corner
"This is our last road trip of the regular season," said head coach Tim Koth.  "These should be two very good matches against two very good teams and we look forward to the challenge."

Warrior Strong
Starting on offense, three players have powered Wayne State's hitting attack recently.  That trio includes senior outside hitter Katie Smith (307 kills, .240 hitting percentage), junior opposite Kyleigh Weck (213, .323) and sophomore middle blocker Katerina Stout (181, .337).  That .337 efficiency for Stout leads the team and ranks sixth in the league.  Senior setter Kayla Dulgar continues to lead the Green and Gold in assists with 908, but left the match in the fourth set at Michigan Tech due to an injury.  Next woman up, freshman Abby Parrish, has 76 assists.  Smith has paced the service ace department with 31, but is one of six with at least 10 aces.  The other five are freshman Doga Muhtaroglu with 29, rookie libero Giselle Burlingame with 23, Dulgar with 21, sophomore outside hitter Lauren Essenpreis with 17, and freshman defensive specialist Bryn Mullins with 10.  Defensively for the Warriors, Burlingame (348 digs) and Stout (74 total blocks) are the squad's frontrunners.

Scouting Purdue Northwest
Coming in at 6-18 overall, 3-11 in GLIAC play, Purdue Northwest has failed to qualify for the GLIAC Tournament for the first time since 2022.  Coached by fifth-year leader Sean Douglas (50-86 overall record, .368 winning percentage), the Lions have lost three matches in a row and five of their last seven.  Statistically, starting on offense, PNW has been paced by a trio of student-athletes in senior outside hitter Anika Huelskamp (236 kills, 2.81 per set), freshman setter Addison Smith (568 assists) and rookie outside hitter Cecilia Goode (28 service aces).  Also making her presence felt behind the service line has been Smith with 23 aces to her name.  Defensively, the dig department has featured a three-headed monster in senior defensive specialist Giana Frayer (199 digs), Huelskamp (198 digs) and Smith (192 digs).  Above the net, junior middle blocker Kennedy Rowzee (71 total blocks) has made the most headlines.

Last Time Out Against Parkside (Oct. 23; W, 3-1)
- Wayne State hit .247 for the match with 59 kills and 22 errors on 150 total attacks.
- Parkside finished at .169 with 48 kills and 23 mishaps on 148 attempts.
- The Warriors' most efficient set was the third at .273 (16-4-44), but the first for the Rangers at .441 (16-1-34).
- WSU won five of the six major head-to-head categories.
- That included points (71-64), kills (59-48), service aces (6-4), assists (56-46), and digs (65-64).
- UWP's one head-to-head edge came in total blocks, 12-6.

- Katie Smith paced all players in kills with 19 while hitting .250 on 44 swings with eight errors.
- Kyleigh Weck was also in double-digits thanks to 17 kills (one off her career high) and just one mishap on 36 total attacks for a .444 hitting percentage.
- In her second match back from injury, Katerina Stout hit .333 on 18 attempts with eight kills and two errors.
- Kayla Dulgar dished out 48 assists to go with 16 digs for her 41st career double-double and 10th of the season.
- Those 16 digs also pushed Dulgar over 1,000 for her career at 1,003.
- The Green and Gold's six aces came from three players in Doga Muhtaroglu with three, Lauren Essenpreis with two and Giselle Burlingame with one.
- Above the net defensively, three Warriors notched multiple total blocks.
- That trio included Smith with three (all assisted), Stout with three (one solo) and Nicole Dupre with two (both assisted).
- Burlingame was on top of the dig department with 22 by her name.

Up Next
Wayne State has already clinched a GLIAC Tournament berth, but the Warriors' seed is to be determined.  The top eight teams qualify for the event, in which the top seed hosts the eight seed, the two seed hosts the seven seed, the three seed hosts the six seed, and the four seed hosts the five seed.