KIRKSVILLE, Mo. - - Coming off a 3-1 opening weekend at the Midwestern State Invitational, the 22^nd-ranked Truman volleyball team heads to Bolivar, Mo., this weekend for the Southwest Baptist Purple Bash. While there, the 'Dogs will face No. 12 Minnesota State and Colorado School of Mines, along with regional opponents Southern Arkansas and Arkansas-Fort Smith.

Last weekend, the Bulldogs picked up three four-set wins but came up short in the lone “away” match of the weekend, falling in three sets to the host MSU Mustangs. Truman defeated Nova-Southeastern (Fla.) in the season-opener and rallied back from early deficits to defeat Texas A&M-International and Incarnate Word (Texas) on day two of the event.

The Bulldogs hit .171 for the weekend and averaged 12.7 kills per set, behind senior outside hitter Molly Sinclair's team-leading 40 kills (2.86 per set). Truman also got more than two kills per set from a trio of juniors – Megan Sharpe, Heather Hargadine and Emily Briseno – as well as a 3.50 kills per set mark in limited action by freshman outside hitter Allie Brak. Brak put up a season-high 16 kills in Truman's 3-1 win in the finale against Incarnate Word.

Senior Kylie Easlon and freshman Meghan Zimmerman were nearly identical in the team's 6-2 system, with Easlon totaling six additional assists and Zimmerman tacking on two extra aces. On the back line, freshman libero Abby Moser earned all-tournament and MIAA Specialist of the Week accolades with nearly 90 total digs (5.80/set). As a team, the Bulldogs matched their opposition at 1.8 blocks per set, with Sharpe's 0.93/set leading the way for the purple and white.

A Look at the Opposition:

Truman will play four matches in two days at the Purple Bash, starting with its first top-25 showdown of the season on Friday at 11:30 against 12^th-ranked Minnesota State. The Mavericks went a perfect 4-0 last weekend at the Alaska-Fairbanks Tournament, where they took down UAF twice, and both Grand Canyon (Ariz.) and Dallas Baptist once. They were picked to finish fifth in the NSIC and have qualified for four of the last five NCAA tournaments.

As a team, the Mavs hit .262 and were led by junior MB Jill Storlie's 4.00 kills/set and .367 hitting percentage. Junior OH Chelsea Fogerty also put up impressive numbers (3.64 k/s, .311%) for an MSU team that averaged 15.2 kills per frame. Three Mavericks averaged more than three digs per set, led by senior libero Alli Rice (3.64), and both Storlie and junior OH Kayla Berning averaged a full block per set.

The Bulldogs will return to the court at 6:30 pm Friday night to face the Muleriders of Southern Arkansas, who went 2-0 last weekend in a pair of home matches. SAU, picked to finish fourth in the new Great American Conference, returns four starters from 2010, including senior MB Jordan White, who put down 3.25 kills/set and hit .317 during the opening weekend. Junior RS Courtney Smith also had a big performance in the opening weekend, hitting .556 with 15 kills and no errors in a five-set win against Cameron.

Then, on Saturday, the Bulldogs open at 11:00 am against Colorado School of Mines, a team that went 4-1 during the opening weekend of play. Picked to finish third in the RMAC this season, the Orediggers hit .312 in their first five matches – all at home – while holding their opponents to just a .185 mark. Junior OH/RS Jackie Stabell had her way early on, averaging 4.06 kills and hitting .406 after playing in all 18 sets. Four different players recorded double-figure blocks during the weekend.

Finally, Truman closes the event with a critical regional match against Arkansas-Fort Smith, the preseason favorite in the Heartland conference. It is the first time the Lady Lions (3-1) have been eligible to win the HC after recently reclassifying to Division II. UAFS opened the season with a 3-0 loss to No. 6 Nebraska-Kearney but rebounded with three sweeps to wrap up the UNO Classic, taking down Augustana (S.D.), Minnesota-Moorhead and Northern State. Junior MH Heidi Luks hit .420 and averaged an even 4.00 kills/set, as the Lady Lions hit .264 as a unit. Three other players averaged better than 2.2 kills/set, including senior MH Jettie Stec, who coupled her 2.44 k/s mark with a .364 attack percentage.

Following the Bulldogs:

All four Bulldog matches will have live stats provided via TrumanBulldogs.com. Links to all four Bulldog matches will be made available through TrumanBulldogs.com on the Volleyball schedule page.

A Check of the All-Time Numbers:

The Bulldog volleyball program has played nearly 1,300 matches in program history, but only 15 of them have come against this weekend's quartet of opponents. Truman has gone a combined 8-0 against SAU (4-0), CSM (2-0) and UAFS (2-0) but is just 3-3-1 all-time against Minnesota State-Mankato.

The last time Truman and MSU met was in 2009 (a 3-1 win for MSU) at the UNO Showcase, but the teams hadn't played before that since 1992. Truman has never dropped a set in six combined matches against SAU and CSM, but the squads haven't played since 2004 (SAU) and 2000 (CSM). Due to the recent reclassifying of UAFS, the teams have met just twice, but the Bulldogs swept last season's battle at the UMSL tourney.

Freshmen Make Fast Starts:

Four Truman freshmen all saw action during the first weekend of play, led by libero Abby Moser was named to the all-tournament team and was the first Bulldog specialist to earn MIAA Specialist AOW honors since Whitney Boehler in 2008 after averaging 5.80 digs per set and posting three matches with 20 or more digs. Fellow specialist setter Meghan Zimmerman had 57 assists and led the Bulldogs with six aces, while outside hitter Allie Brak averaged 3.5 kills per set and led the team with 16 kills in the finale against UIW. Middle blocker Emilee Walters played in just two sets but totaled two kills and added an assist.

Signed, Sealed, Delivered:

Already 1-0 in such a situation this year, when Truman got ahead, 2-0, in a match last season, it was lights-out for their opponents, as the 'Dogs closed out matches 100% of the time in the ensuing sets. Truman finished 2010 16-0 when getting ahead, 2-0.

Throw it in Neutral:

This year's squad picked right up where last year's team left off on neutral site matches, as Truman won all three at last week's MSU Invitational.

Neutral-site matches proved to be Bulldog opponent kryptonite in 2010, as the purple and white blasted their way to a 10-1 mark, compared to 8-2 at home and 7-5 in true road affairs.

Continuing the Tradition:

Truman has been ranked in the AVCA?top-25 coaches' poll every week since the 2000 season, spanning 155 consecutive polls. During that time, the 'Dogs have posted eight 30+ win seasons, a postseason appearance each season, two trips to the national championship match and seven MIAA?championships.

The Bulldogs rank 15th in Div. II?history in all-time appearances in the top-25 (155) and are tied for ninth all-time for times ranked in the top-10 (97).

Bulldogs Tabbed Third in MIAA:

The Truman volleyball team was picked third in the 2011 MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll, announced Wednesday, Aug. 3 by the league office.

The Bulldogs earned 65 points in the poll, earning seven third-place votes and a pair of second-place votes. Truman fell in behind preseason favorite Central Missouri (81 points, nine first-place votes) and Washburn (73 points, one first-place vote). Emporia State (50) and Pittsburg State (47) rounded out the top five. Coaches were not allowed to vote for their own team.

The MIAA will play as a ten-team volleyball league in 2011 following the departure of Nebraska-Omaha in March. The only current league school not competing in volleyball is Lincoln (Mo.).

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