GAME NOTES: Concordia volleyball resumes GPAC play at No. 24 Doane, College of Saint Mary
SEWARD, Neb. – The Concordia University volleyball team will be facing GPAC foes Doane College and College of Saint Mary this week. The Bulldogs will travel to Crete, Neb. on Wednesday, Sept, 16 for a 7:30 start time against Doane. On Saturday, Sept. 19 CUNE will face College of Saint Mary at Omaha, Neb. at 1 p.m. and Waldorf College (Iowa) at 3 p.m. also in Omaha.
MATCH INFO
Concordia University (11-3, 1-0 GPAC) at No. 24 Doane College (10-4, 1-0 GPAC)
Wednesday, Sept. 16 | 7:30 p.m. CT (JV at 6 p.m.)
Site: George and Sally Haddix Recreation and Athletic Center (1,100)
Radio: 104.9 Max Country
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
MATCH INFO
Concordia University (11-3, 1-0 GPAC) at College of Saint Mary (7-3, 0-1 GPAC)
Saturday, Sept. 19 | 1 p.m. CT
Site: Lied Fitness Center (800)
MATCH INFO
Concordia University (11-3, 1-0 GPAC) at College of Saint Mary (4-12)
Saturday, Sept. 19 | 3 p.m. CT
Site: Lied Fitness Center (800)
Last time out
Last week, the Bulldogs went 3-2, defeating No. 19 Hastings College at home in straight sets, Montana Western University in three sets also and No. 20 Montana Tech University three sets to two. Losses came from MidAmerica Nazarene University and Carroll College. The four matches played Friday, Sept. 11 and Saturday, Sept. 12 were at Hastings where Annie Friesen was able to surpass her career high in kills, amassing 17 in the match vs. No. 20 Montana Tech University.
In the rankings
The Bulldogs remain No. 6 in this week’s official GPAC ratings after defeating Hastings, ranked fourth in the conference, last Wednesday. Midland remains at the top of the GPAC as the only undefeated team at 13-0. As a team, the Bulldogs lead the GPAC in kills per set at 14.1 and assists per set at 12.9. Nationally, the Bulldogs received 42 votes, placing them the third highest in the “received votes” category. One of this week’s opponents, Doane rose up a spot to No. 24 while last week’s foe, Hastings dropped to No. 20.
Career high match
In the match vs. No. 20 Montana Tech University, sophomore Annie Friesen was able to top her career kills in a single match. The Kansas native slammed 17 kills into the ground off of 27 total attacks and recorded just two errors. Sophomore libero Jocelyn Garcia set her career high of digs in a single match at 27. Her previous record of 23 was set earlier this season.
Individual rankings in the GPAC
Annie Friesen: total blocks, 10th (42)
Jocelyn Garcia: service aces per set, second (0.6); total service aces, second (29); digs per set, eighth (4.0); total digs, fourth (199)
Paige Getz: kills per set, ninth (3.2); total kills, sixth (159)
Alayna Kavanaugh: assists per set, second (10.9); total assists, third (546)
Claire White: total service aces, tied for eighth (17)
Concordia vs. the top 25
In 2014 Concordia broke through with its first win over a ranked opponent since 2007. The Bulldogs wound up with three top 25 wins in 2014, making victims of No. 14 Oklahoma Baptist, No. 18 Hastings and No. 21 Dordt. Concordia went 3-7 overall against ranked teams last season. Five of those seven losses were against squads rated inside the top 10. This season, the Bulldogs are 2-0 vs ranked opponents after defeating No. 10 Hastings at home, 3-0 and No. 20 Montana Tech University, 3-2 in Hastings.
Quotable
“We’re testing our toughness and we’re going up against some real good teams. This is the type of competition we need to play. We can definitely win matches at this level and that’s the next step in the development of the program.”
-Head Coach Scott Mattera
Scouting No. 24 Doane College
The Tigers of Doane College are currently 10-4 (1-0 GPAC) this season with all four losses coming from top-25 ranked teams. The Tigers, ranked fifth in the conference have faced GPAC foe, College of Saint Mary this season in their only conference match and came out on top, 3-1. As a team, Doane has an attack percentage of .206 and are averaging 12.7 kills per set. In the serving department, the Tigers have a serving percentage of .902 and lead the GPAC in total service aces (109). The Tigers are led by head coach Gwen Egbert who is in her third season at Doane. Egbert is assisted by Ryan Gray and Hannah Vadakin.
Scouting College of Saint Mary
The Flames of College of Saint Mary are carrying a record of 7-3 (0-1 GPAC) into this weekend’s match. The losses suffered by the Flames have came from ranked opponents or rating vote getters this season. In GPAC play, CSM was defeated by No 25 Doane College, 1-3. As a team, the Flames are hitting .167 percent. College of Saint Mary leads the GPAC in digs per set at 17.4. The Flames are led by head coach Samantha Hammond who is in her sixth season at College of Saint Mary. Hammond is assisted by Cola Svec, Brianne Sullivan and Kaylee Wallace.
Scouting Waldorf College
The Warriors of Waldorf College are 4-12 (1-2 NSAA) on the season so far. As a team, the Warriors are hitting .141while recording 10.7 kills per set. Waldorf is averaging 1.3 service aces a set while tallying 9.6 assists per set. The Warriors are led by head coach Paul Meyer who is in his eighth season at Waldorf College. Meyer is assisted by Katie Rueffer, Carly Wehling and Brenna Brigham.
Up next for the Bulldogs
The Concordia Bulldogs will host No. 4 Midland University Wednesday, Sept. 23 in Walz Arena. The match is slated for 7:30 p.m.
