Weekly Schedule:
Tuesday, Oct. 18 – at Southwest Baptist; 7:00 pm, Bolivar, Mo.
Friday, Oct. 21 – vs. Missouri Southern; 7:00 pm, KIRKSVILLE – Dig Pink 2011
Saturday, Oct. 22 – vs. Pittsburg State; 5:00 pm, KIRKSVILLE
FULL NOTES (PDF)
KIRKSVILLE, Mo. - - Less than a month remains in the 2011 regular season, and the Truman volleyball team will look to jump-start a mid-season rally with three MIAA matches this week. Included in the trio of matches is the team's annual “Dig Pink” night, set for this Friday at 7:00 pm against Missouri Southern.
The Bulldogs (13-9, 2-4 MIAA) open the week at Southwest Baptist on Tuesday (Oct. 18) night before returning to the friendly confines of Pershing Arena this Friday and Saturday to face MSSU and Pittsburg State. The PSU match gets going at 5:00 pm on Saturday.
Truman is coming off a 3-1 weekend at the Arkansas Tech Invitational in Russellville, Ark. The Bulldogs kicked off the tournament with a five-set victory against regional- and future-MIAA foe Lindenwood before rolling to easy wins against both Sioux Falls and Henderson State. The Bulldogs ran into the host Golden Suns in the finale of the event and couldn't escape with a perfect weekend, falling in three to ATU.
For the season, Truman is hitting .190 and averaging 12.5 kills per set while holding opponents to a .171 mark. The 'Dogs are the top digging squad in the MIAA, averaging 18.1 per frame and have raised their blocking average to 2.2 per set.
Junior two-time all-American Megan Sharpe continues to hold the top offensive spot on the Bulldog attack, averaging 2.90 kills and 1.13 blocks per set while connecting at a .309 rate. Freshman Allie Brak (2.52 kills, 3.29 digs) and senior Molly Sinclair (2.18 kills, 2.85 digs) come in next both offensively and defensively. Senior Kylie Easlon (5.36 assists) and freshmen Meghan Zimmerman (4.28 assists) continue handling the setting responsibilities, while freshman Abby Moser remains one of the nation's top liberos with 463 digs on the season (5.45 per set).
Dig Pink Match Set for Friday Night:
The Bulldogs will host their annual Dig Pink match for breast cancer awareness this Friday night during their home match with Missouri Southern. During the match, Truman will wear specially-designed pink jerseys, and a silent auction will be held during the first two sets and intermission. Anyone looking to donate items can contact assistant coach Megan Wargo-Kearney at mwargo@truman.edu. All proceeds from the evening will go to the Side-Out Foundation.
Following the Bulldogs:
Full coverage of Truman volleyball is available online at TrumanBulldogs.com, including results, upcoming game information and weekly updates.
When available, links to free online live stats are added to the Bulldog volleyball schedule page as well as the top of each weekly update.
Keep up with the Bulldogs by tracking in-game updates (when available). Follow Truman Athletics on Twitter at www.twitter.com/TrumanAthletics. Also be sure to sign up for TextCaster updates on the Bulldog homepage.
Checking Out the Competition:
Southwest Baptist “Bearcats” (8-13, 3-5 MIAA)
The Bulldogs return to Bolivar for the second time this season, after competing in the SBU Purple Bash in mid-September and turning in a 2-2 mark. The Bearcats are coming off a 1-1 weekend of MIAA play, falling in three at Pittsburg State before defeating Missouri Southern at home in four sets.
Britni Reed leads the Bearcats offensively with 3.01 kills/set but is hitting just .201 for an SBU squad that is hitting .167 on the season. Kylie Heim is averaging 2.28 kills/set and sits second on the squad in blocks at 0.94/frame.
Kelly Richardson is in her fifth season at the helm at SBU, having compiled a 52-102 mark. The Bulldogs hold a 49-6 lead in the all-time series, including a pair of sweeps last season.
Missouri Southern “Lions” (4-15, 2-5 MIAA)
The Lions enter a week of three matches having played just three times since Oct. 2, going 1-2 in a trio of MIAA matches. Most recently, MSSU fell in four at SBU on Oct. 15.
Three Lions are averaging nearly three kills per set, including Rachel Olinyk (2.97), Casey Ball (2.83) and Katie Politte (2.79). As a team, MSSU is hitting .156 and are allowing opponents to hit .255. The Lions are averaging 1.31 blocks and 13.8 digs per set.
Trish Knight is in her first season as the head coach at MSSU after leading Missouri State-West Plains to 676 NJCAA wins since its inception in 1993.
Pittsburg State “Gorillas” (7-15, 4-5 MIAA)
After getting off to a slow start, the PSU Gorillas have won their last two matches and have gotten out to a nearly .500 start in MIAA play. Pitt State will host Northwest Missouri on Wednesday before traveling to Missouri Western and Truman during the weekend.
Hitting .169 on the year as a team, PSU is led offensively by Morgan Voorhes' 2.87 kills/set. Lauren Brentlinger follows her on the attacking side at 2.27 kills (.294 hitting) and is the team's top blocker at 0.94/set. Like Truman, the Gorillas employ a 6-2 setting system, with duties shared between Katie Wright and Rebecca Pearson.
Ibraheem Suberu is in his 13th season at the helm in Pittsburg and has a record of 229-201.
Bulldog Block Party:
Truman posted 21 blocks in its 3-2 win against Lindenwood (Mo.) University on Friday (Oct. 14), the second-highest total in program history and highest in any regular season match. Individually, Megan Sharpe (12), Allie Brak (6) and Molly Sinclair (5) all set new career-highs blocking, with Sharpe's 12 putting her tied for fifth all-time in single-match records.
It was the most blocks any MIAA team has had this season, with Truman holding the top two spots behind the LWU match and its Sept. 9 match with 17 blocks against Minnesota State.
Checking Out the Charts:
Megan Sharpe is currently 10th all-time in program history with 314 total blocks, sitting just three back of Janelle Zehr's total of 317 (1997-2000). In addition, she is just seven back of Tiffany Graham (2002-2005) for eighth on the all-time list.
Both Sharpe and fellow junior middle Emily Briseno find themselves loitering near the solo blocks category, with Sharpe's 68 good for ninth and Briseno's 63 good for 11th all-time.
Kylie Easlon (1,769) sits just 19 assists back of former all-American Kelsey Wackerman's four-year total of 1,788 (2003-2006). Wackerman is currently eighth all-time in Truman history.
Freshmen Gaining Key Experience:
Allie Brak, Abby Moser and Meghan Zimmerman have all found themselves serving key roles in Truman's system this year, as Brak has earned a starting role on the outside, Moser has served as starting libero and Zimmerman has played every match as part of Truman's 6-2 setting system.
While Brak's numbers have been detailed above, she has also recorded eight double-doubles this season. Moser, meanwhile, is on pace for more than 715 digs this season, which would be the all-time single-season best by any Bulldog in program history. She has 14 matches this season with 20 or more digs and is second in the MIAA.
Zimmerman is one of only two Bulldogs to play in all 88 sets this season, as she is averaging 4.28 assists and 1.83 digs per set. She also has served 27 aces with just 14 errors, the best ratio on the squad.
Road Blues:
The Bulldogs, while posting an 11-3 record in neutral-site contests in 2011, have struggled uncharacteristically on the road this year, going 0-5 in true road affairs. Six of the final 12 matches will be on the road for the Bulldogs, including four of the final six.
Continuing the Tradition:
The Bulldogs rank 15th in Div. II history in all-time appearances in the top-25 (156) and are tied for ninth all-time for times ranked in the top-10 (97). Since the year 2000, the 'Dogs have posted eight 30+ win seasons, a postseason appearance each season, two trips to the national championship match and seven MIAA championships.
Up Next:
The Bulldogs re-start the conference schedule next week with matches against Emporia State, Washburn and Fort Hays. Truman will host both WU and FHSU in Pershing Arena next Friday and Saturday (Oct. 28-29).
