Kent State University
Bowling Green State University
Volleyball Hosts Bowling Green, Miami for Homecoming Weekend
10/3/2013 5:04:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
KENT, Ohio - Having won four of its last six matches overall, the Kent State volleyball team looks to remain unbeaten at the M.A.C. Center on Homecoming weekend with a pair of matches against East Division foes.
The Golden Flashes (7-8, 1-1) will host defending Mid-American Conference champion Bowling Green in a 7 p.m. contest on Friday and close the weekend Saturday evening against Miami at 7 p.m.
One of the conference's most-improved teams, Kent State enters the weekend with a perfect 3-0 home record after capturing the team championship at the Golden Flashes Classic two weeks ago. The Flashes need just one win to surpass last season's win total at the M.A.C. Center.
Kent State is among six schools that split its matches to open MAC play over the weekend. Opening on the road, the Flashes earned a huge victory over rival Akron, 3-2, on Friday to strike first in this year's PNC Wagon Wheel Challenge. They saw a four-match winning streak come to an end, however, with a 3-1 loss at Buffalo on Saturday. A 3-1 loss at Youngstown State on Tuesday gave the Flashes consecutive losses for the first time in almost a month.
Senior captains Hannah Herc and Aleksandra Nowak have been climbing the Kent State record books in recent weeks. Herc, who became the ninth member of the 1,000-dig club against Illinois-Chicago on Sept. 21, moved into seventh-place all-time (1,069) with 13 on Tuesday. Nowak surpassed Katie Veatch for fourth on the all-time assists list and currently has 2,845 for her career. Both have been among the best players in the MAC at their position this season as well. Nowak is fifth in assists per set (9.85) and Herc is sixth in digs per set (4.42).
Live stats and a live web stream will be available for both matches. Additionally, Friday will mark Kent State volleyball's season debut on the Golden Flashes Radio on iHeartRadio, which fans can listen to on a PC, smart phone or tablet. The "Voice of the Flashes" Ty Linder will provide live play-by-play of the action.
To stay in touch with all of the activities from Homecoming weekend, be sure to follow @KentStVball on Twitter.
Flash Facts
- Kent State ranks 3rd in MAC play with a .211 attack percentage.
- Nowak is averaging 11.78 assists/set in conference play, which is 3rd in the MAC.
- OH Bianca Cifaldi has been among the top freshmen in the MAC this season. She is 10th in the conference, and leads all freshmen, with 3.02 kills/set and has posted double-figure kills in 11 consecutive matches.
- Junior OH Tinuke Aderemi-Ibitola provided a spark for the Flashes' attack over the weekend. In her season debut against Akron, Aderemi-Ibitola delivered a match-high 15 kills and added 4 total blocks. She put an exclamation point on the night with a kill to give the decisive 5th set to the Flashes, 15-9.
- Junior MB Liz Reikow has been terrific at the net this season. Reikow's .304 attack percentage is the program's best since 2010. She posted back-to-back career-high kill totals over the weekend with 13 against Akron and then 15 against Buffalo.
Scouting This Week's Opponents
Bowling Green (5-8, 2-0)
- This will be the 66th all-time meeting between the schools, with Bowling Green holding a 46-19 advantage in the series.
- Bowling Green has played 4 nationally-ranked teams this season, going 1-3 in those matchups. The highlight of its season was a 5-set victory over No. 13 BYU at its home tournament on the opening weekend of the season. The Falcons enter in the midst of a three-match winning streak after opening MAC play with wins over Miami and Northern Illinois.
- The Falcons swept the MAC East weekly honors. Senior LS Lindsey Butterfield was named Offensive POW posted 4.50 kills/set to lead the MAC in conference play. Senior MB Kaitlyn Skinner was named Defensive POW after hitting .379 to go with 16 kills and 15 blocks over the weekend.
- Offensively, the Falcons are led by a pair of 2012 1st Team All-MAC selections in Butterfield and senior LS Paige Penrod. Both players are among the top 10 in the MAC in kills/set with 3.23 and 3.21, respectively.
- Skinner ranks 18th in the nation with 1.38 blocks/set on the season.
Miami (8-6, 0-2)
- This will be the 70th all-time meeting between the schools, with Miami leading the series 52-17. The schools split last year's two matchups, with the visiting team winning both times.
- Redshirt sophomore MH Jenny Ingle has been the catalyst for the RedHawks on offense this season. Ingle leads is posting a team-best 2.91 kills/set while ranking 32nd in the nation with a .406 attack percentage. She also has a team-best 62 total blocks on the season.
- Junior S/OH Meg Riley, a 1st Team All-MAC performer last season, is averaging 2.61 kills/set and 4.95 assists/set.
- Defensively, Miami has received contributions from several players to rank 54th nationally in digs/set. Five different players have recorded at least 100 digs on the season, led by senior L Madison Hardy (203).
Next Up
Kent State will complete its first time through the MAC East with when it hosts Ohio at the M.A.C. next Thursday (Oct. 10) and then travel to Central Michigan on Saturday.
