Golden Flashes Open MAC Tournament Play Friday Against Ohio

Friday, November 22

Geneva, Ohio

12:00 p.m.

Kent State University

Ohio University

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Photo by: David Dermer

Golden Flashes Open MAC Tournament Play Friday Against Ohio

11/20/2013 10:46:00 AM | Women's Volleyball

2013 MAC Volleyball Championship Bracket (PDF)

KENT, Ohio—The Kent State volleyball team (12-17, 6-10) will make its first postseason appearance since 2010 when it takes the floor this weekend for the 2013 Mid-American Conference Tournament at SPIRE Institute in Geneva, Ohio. The 8th-seeded Golden Flashes seek the first conference tournament crown in program history, beginning with a quarterfinal match against regular season champion Ohio (24-4, 14-2) at noon on Friday.

In a season that has featured many ups and downs, Kent State hopes to be on the upswing this weekend. After a 1-5 start, the Golden Flashes won five of the next six to enter conference play at .500. They went 4-2 to open conference play, which included the program's first win over a ranked school, for their best start to the MAC season since 2007, but then dropped four straight.

The Flashes then got a crucial weekend sweep of Buffalo and Akron to even their record in league play. The team lost its final four matches down the stretch, however, for a three-way tie for seventh in the conference.

Head coach Don Gromala made great strides in his second year at the helm. His squad doubled its win totals, both overall and in the MAC, from a season ago. Kent State, which was picked to finish last in the MAC Preseason Coaches' Poll, tied for third in the East Division and enters the weekend with its highest winning percentage since 2009.

At the beginning of the season, the Flashes set their sights on making their first trip to SPIRE with a return to the MAC Tournament. Now that they have achieved that goal, they are not content on just taking in the experience.

"All of the girls are really excited to be back at the MAC Tournament," Gromala said. "But we're not satisfied as a group. They know they haven't been playing great volleyball as of late and we're trying to make some changes and fix some things heading into Friday's match.

KENT STATE IN THE MAC TOURNAMENT
Kent State owns an 8-14 all-time record in MAC Tournament play since its inception in 1987. The Flashes advanced to the championship match in their first appearance back in 1996, losing to Miami 3-0. They have made three semifinal appearances with the most recent coming in 2007, which is also the last time the Flashes won a match in the tournament. Kent State swept through Buffalo and Bowling Green in the first round and quarterfinals, respectively, before losing in four sets to Ohio in the semifinals.

This will be Don Gromala's first time at the conference tournament as a head coach. He is no stranger to the tournament, however. As a member of the coaching staff at Ohio from 2004-07, Gromala helped the Bobcats capture three consecutive MAC Tournament crowns.

SERIES HISTORY
Kent State owns a 23-42 all-time against Ohio. The teams split their two regular season matchups this year, as the Flashes snapped a 23-match drought against the Bobcats on October 10. It was a historic victory for Kent State, which earned its first win over a nationally-ranked opponent in program history. Ohio entered the M.A.C. Center ranked No. 18 in the AVCA Coaches' Poll and fell in fewer than four sets for the only time this season (25-23, 21-25, 25-18, 25-22).

"Beating them on our court earlier in the year, I think that definitely helps our confidence level a little bit going into the tournament," Gromala said. "But we've also spoken about whatever happened in the past doesn't really matter as far as records go. Everyone's there to win and it's going to be an exciting tournament."

Sophomore opposite Kelly Hutchison turned in one of the top offensive performances in the MAC this season by totaling 22 kills and a .333 attack percentage. Senior setter Aleksandra Nowak also had a big night for Kent State with 43 assists and 14 digs. Sophomore middle blocker Bridget Wilhelm was terrific at the net, posting eight kills on just 11 attempts and totaling seven blocks in the victory.

The rematch in Athens last Thursday did not go as well, as the Bobcats avenged their previous loss with a 3-0 sweep (13-25, 15-25, 17-25). Playing without Hutchison, the Flashes were unable to get much going on offensive. Their pins really struggled and combined for just 11 kills and a .020 hitting percentage.

FLASHES RACK UP MAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK AWARDS
Kent State set a program record by earning MAC Player of the Week honors five times this season. Ohio (9) and Ball State (7) were the only schools to earn more weekly awards from the conference than the Flashes. Bridget Wilhelm was one of just three players to be named Offensive Player of the Week multiple times, winning the award twice. Kelly Hutchison and Liz Reikow also earned the award, while Hannah Herc was named Defensive Player of the Week once.

FOLLOW THE MAC TOURNAMENT
All matches from the 2013 MAC Volleyball Championship will be streamed live on the conference website.

FLASH FACTS

A big reason for Kent State's improvement in head coach Don Gromala's second season has been the leadership of captains Aleksandra Nowak and Hannah Herc. The senior duo are the only Flashes with MAC Tournament experience and played in a first round matchup at Toledo at the end of their freshman season. Nowak had a double-double with 43 assists and 10 digs, while Herc played two sets and had a dig.
Nowak ranks sixth in the conference with 9.84 assists/set this season to lead the Kent State offense. She enters the weekend with 3,346 assists and will finish her career fourth on the Flashes' all-time list.
Herc, who leads the Flashes with 4.21 digs/set from her libero position, will also leave her mark in the Kent State record books. The senior from Eden, N.Y. has 471 digs on the season, which is the 3rd-most in program history. Herc has tallied 1,279 digs over the past four seasons to rank third all-time in program history.
Middle blockers Liz Reikow and Bridget Wilhelm have been the most consistent hitters for the Flashes during conference play. Reikow has posted a team-best 2.58 kills/set in league play while hitting at a .315 clip. Wilhelm averages 1.95 kills/set in MAC matches while hitting .267 and leads the team with 15 aces. They have combined for 82 blocks and are Kent State's top two scorers.
Sophomore Kelly Hutchison leads the team with 2.65 kills/set and will need to return to her early-season form to help the Flashes find success against an excellent Ohio defense. Hutchison posted a career-high 22 kills in the first matchup between the schools, but did not play in last week's rematch.
Junior Lauren Engleman has emerged as one of the Flashes' top offensive options in recent weeks. Engleman has posted double-digit kills in four of the past six matches and is the only pin that is hitting better than .200 during November.

SCOUTING THE BOBCATS

The Bobcats have won eight consecutive matches and clinched the MAC regular season championship by defeating Kent State and Central Michigan on the final weekend of the season. The Bobcats have won at least a share of the East Division title 10 straight years and at least a share of the overall title in seven of the last 10 years.
Ohio ranks in the top 50 nationally in blocks (12th), hitting percentage (26th) and digs (47th), while leading the MAC in hitting percentage (.263) and blocks (2.83/set).
Transfer graduate student Alexis Pinson has made a huge impact in the middle for the Bobcats. A four-time MAC East Defensive Player of the Week honoree, Pinson finished the regular season ranked second in the conference in blocks/set (1.37) and hitting (.355).
2012 MAC Player of the Year Kelly Lamberti leads the Bobcats with 3.09 kills/set, which ranks eighth in the conference.
Sophomore Abby Gilleland earned her third MAC East Offensive Player of the Week award in the final week of the regular season. Gilleland ranks fourth in the MAC with 10.56 assists/per set.

UP NEXT
The winner of Friday's quarterfinal match will advance to Saturday's first semifinal match at 2:30 p.m. against either No. 4 Bowling Green or No. 5 Northern Illinois.