#17 Volleyball Digs Into Homecoming Week

(#17 AVCA) Truman Volleyball Weekly Notes (Matches 20-21)
Full Notes (PDF)

Match 20 (Live Stats):
Truman (14-5, 8-1 GLVC) vs. Missouri S&T (10-8, 6-3 GLVC)
Date: Friday, October 18 (7:00 PM)
Location: Kirksville, Mo. (Pershing Arena)
Series Record: Truman leads, 3-0
Last Meeting: October 16, 2012 – Truman won, 3-2 (19-25, -13, -22, 16-25, 15-6) in Rolla, Mo.

Match 21 (Live Stats):
Truman vs. Drury (9-10, 4-5 GLVC)
Date: Saturday, October 19 (7:00 PM)
Location: Kirksville, Mo. (Pershing Arena)
Series Record: Truman leads, 12-1-1.
Last Meeting: September 2, 2005 – Truman won, 3-1 (21-30, -16, -22, -24) in Edwardsville, Ill.

Social Media: @TrumanAthletics || @TrumanVB || #TSUGameDay

Opening Serve:
After a three-match road trip last week, the 17^th-ranked Truman volleyball team celebrates Homecoming within the friendly confines of Pershing Arena this Friday and Saturday, as the Bulldogs host Missouri S&T and Drury in a pair of 7:00 pm matches.

The Bulldogs (14-5, 8-1 GLVC) have won eight in a row to vault atop the GLVC West division standings at the midway point of the 18-match league schedule. Truman picked up three wins in completely different fashions last week, defeating Quincy mid-week in four sets, downing Rockhurst on Friday night in a five-set thriller, and casting aside William Jewell in three sets on Saturday afternoon. The Bulldogs blasted their way to a .290 hitting percentage during the week, averaging 15.2 kills per set and serving 19 aces while allowing just eight by its three opponents. QU, RU and WJC combined to hit a mere .194 against the 'Dogs, as Truman dominated at the net to a tune of 2.42 blocks per set.

This weekend, Truman returns to Kirksville where it is 4-0 in GLVC contests this season, having most recently swept both Missouri-St. Louis and Maryville on Oct. 4-5. The Bulldogs play only on the weekend for the first time in four weeks, dating back to the GLVC opening weekend on Sept. 21-22.

On the season, the Bulldogs are averaging 13.1 kills per set and are hitting .226 as a team, compared to just 12.1 kills per set and a .171 hitting line for their opponents. Truman is also blocking 2.23 attempts per set and has dealt 104 aces to just 69 for opponents.

The winner of this week's GLVC Offensive Player of the Week award, junior OH Allie Brak, is leading the Bulldogs with 3.57 kills per set while also averaging 2.36 digs per set. A trio of sophomores – Abby Heise, Ali Patterson, and Emilee Walters – are all averaging more than two kills per set and are each hitting better than .270, with the trio also responsible for nearly 70% of the total recorded blocks by the purple and white.

Junior setter Meghan Zimmerman has navigated the Bulldog attack to a tune of 10.67 assists per set, with fellow junior Abby Moser patrolling the back line with a team-high 266 digs (3.91 per set).

Ben Briney is in his fifth season as the program's head coach and has a career record of 110-47 (.701).

Following the Bulldogs:
Full coverage of Truman volleyball is available online at TrumanBulldogs.com, including results, upcoming match 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-match updates (when available). Follow Truman Athletics on Twitter (@TrumanAthletics). Also be sure to sign up for Text Caster and Newsletter updates on the TrumanBulldogs.com homepage.

Brak Named GLVC Offensive Player of the Week:
For the second time this season, Truman volleyball junior Allie Brak has been named the Great Lakes Valley Conference's Baden Offensive Player of the Week. A recipient of the league award on Sept. 9 following the opening weekend of the 2013 season, Brak averaged 4.64 kills, 3.18 digs, and 0.73 blocks per set, while hitting .288 from the floor.

She opened the week with her fourth career 20-kill match, hitting .255 with 20 kills as Truman won 3-1 at Quincy on Tuesday, Oct. 8. She added 15 digs for her 36^th career double-double, along with an ace, a block, and two assists.

Then, on Friday (Oct. 11) night, the Texas-native was at her best against then-GLVC West co-leader Rockhurst, setting new career-highs with 27 kills and six blocks. She hit .308 on the night (27-7-65) and added 16 digs for her 37^th career double-double. She had eight kills in Truman's 32-30 second set win, helping the Bulldogs even the match at 1-1 en route to an eventual five-set victory.

Her 27 kills against RU were the most by any Truman player in the 25-point rally-scoring era, and marked the highest total in a match since Sarah Shearman recorded 26 nearly a decade ago on Sept. 15, 2004, against Central Missouri.

Brak then closed the week by hitting .308 once again behind four kills on 13 swings in limited action during Truman's 3-0 sweep of William Jewell on Saturday (Oct. 12). She added four digs and a block during the match.

Opponent Quick Glance:
Missouri S&T checks into Friday's match having won three straight, running its record to 10-8 overall on the season. The Miners are two back of Truman in the GLVC standings at 6-3 and are 3-4 in true road matches this season.

S&T is hitting .184 as a team but has averaged 2.48 blocks per set en route to holding opponents to just a .149 mark. Krista Haslag is the team's top offensive weapon, as she is hitting .301 and averaging 2.60 kills per set. She also leads the team at the net defensively, averaging 1.37 blocks per frame. Two other regulars – Hayley Wright and Gracey Moon – are also averaging more than two kills per set, but both are hitting below-.200.

Drury will make a stop at Quincy before visiting Kirksville on Saturday night, as the Panthers have won two straight to improve to 9-10 overall (4-5 GLVC) on the year. DU is just 1-5 in true road matches this season.

The Panthers are hitting .172 as a team while giving up a .192 attack line to its opponents. Sara Borneman has been the team's go-to on offense, as she is averaging 3.35 kills per set and is hitting .238. Kaleigh Cole is adding 2.53 kills per set, while Laynie Timmons is the team's best blocker at 0.91 per set.

Bulldogs Break Records at Rockhurst:
Both as a team and as individuals, the Bulldogs shattered various records last Friday night in the team's 3-2 win at Rockhurst. The 86 total kills and 85 total assists set new top-marks in five-set matches since the 25-point rally scoring system took effect prior to the 2008 season.

Brak's 27 total kills, as mentioned previously, were the most since 2004 and highest amount in the 25-point system, while junior Meghan Zimmerman's 72 assists were the fourth-most in program history (all scoring) and highest in the 25-point system.

Brak Attacking Towards 1,000:
Junior OH Allie Brak is not just Truman's leader in kills per set on the season, but the Texas-native is inching towards 1,000 career kills. She enters the weekend sitting at 976, placing her just 24 away from becoming only the 14^th player all-time at Truman to reach the milestone.

Patterson Pacing GLVC:
Sophomore MH Ali Patterson's .429 hitting percentage in GLVC-only matches tops the league chart for the second time in as many weeks. In 28 conference sets, Patterson has put down 69 kills with just nine errors on 140 total attacks.

She and fellow sophomore MH Emilee Walters are tied for fourth in the GLVC in total blocks, averaging 1.29 per set.

Zimmerman, Moser Continue Upward Climbs:
Junior specialists Meghan Zimmerman and Abby Moser continue to move up the Truman all-time career charts with their play through the first two-plus seasons in a Bulldog uniform.

Zimmerman ranks sixth all-time in career assists at 2,718, as the Nebraska-native inches closer to both fifth-place Kelly Mangels (2,828) and fourth-place Christine Wagener (2,847). She is also up to an 8.14 assists per set mark and trails Theresa Huff's (1992) average of 9.02 per set for third place.

Moser, meanwhile, flew past Monica Marlowe (1999-2002) for seventh place on the all-time digs chart, as she surpassed 1,500 career digs last weekend. The Missouri-native sits at 1,511 entering the week, trailing Satoko Miyamae by 74 (1990-1993) for sixth all-time.

The previously-all-MIAA libero still holds the top spots in the digs/set (4.67), 20+ dig matches (34), and 30+ dig matches (3) categories. She is just five behind Marlowe's career total of 80 for sixth place in the 10+ dig matches category.

'Dogs Hold Steady at No. 17:
The Oct. 14 version of the AVCA top-25 coaches' poll kept the Bulldogs at No. 17 after the squad's 3-0 record in matches last week. Truman gained a handful of points to hold off No. 18 Colorado School of Mines by 15 points.

Truman continues to be the top-ranked team out of the GLVC and is once again the coaches' choice as the top Midwest region team. Grand Valley State (No. 20) and Ferris State (No. 22) also represent the Midwest region in the poll.

Overall, the Bulldogs have 10 opponents on their 2013 schedule who are listed either in the top-25 or are receiving votes in this week's poll.

As a program, Truman has now been in the top-25 169 total times, good for 17^th-most all-time in NCAA Division II history. The Bulldogs are closing in on Northern Colorado's mark of 172 for 16^th place.

Up Next:
The Bulldogs will partake in their first GLVC/GLIAC Crossover event – an annual tournament featuring all 16 teams from the two main conferences that comprise the Midwest region. The two-day event – held Oct. 25-26 in Aurora, Ill., – will pit the Bulldogs against three schools from the GLIAC based on each conference's standings following play on Sunday.

The full schedule of matches, including times, will be released next Monday.

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