MACOMB, Ill. - The Fighting Leatherneck volleyball team concludes non-conference play this Friday with two matches in the Huskie Invitational hosted by Northern Illinois. Western is scheduled to face George Washington Friday morning at 10 a.m. before facing former Summit League foe Oakland at 5 p.m.

LAST TIME OUT: Western Illinois volleyball battled the Chicago State Cougars for the second time in the last week on Tuesday evening (Sept. 17). The Leathernecks defeated the Cougars 3-0 for the second time to improve to 5-8 on the season. The Cougars fell to 2-10 on the season after the loss.

"Tonight was a good win against a scrappy Chicago State team," head coach April Hall said. "We came out strong and on a mission. We executed our game plan from start to finish and adapted to game time adjustments very well. Adversity hit us a little bit during the match but we maintained our composure throughout." 

Western handled the Cougars in the opening set 25-13 to take an early 1-0 lead in the match. Set two saw the Leathernecks win 25-18 while the third and final set was a 25-23 victory for the Purple & Gold. The three-set sweep is the third for Western this season.

"It was good to see strong efforts across the board from our team," said Hall. "We found a rhythm in our offense and our defense battled well for us tonight. We showed the continuum of volleyball and how each and every part is reliant on the other." 

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A LOOK AT GEORGE WASHINGTON: George Washington, who enters the weekend with a 4-6 overall record, is a member of the Atlantic 10 Conference. The Colonials most recently participated in the Carolina Classic where they lost to #18 North Carolina, defeated Albany and fell to James Madison. Rachael Goss leads the Colonials in kills with 86 (2.32 per set), Jordan Timmer and Emily Clemens lead them in assists with 195 (8.48 per set) and 130 (3.71 per set), respectively, Maggie Skjelbred leads them in service aces with 10 (0.29 per set), Maggy Doyle leads them in digs with 189 5,11 per set), and Chidima Osuchukwu leads them in blocks with 40 (1.08 per set).  

SERIES HISTORY: Western leads the all-time series 2-0 with wins in 1987 and 1989. Both Fighting Leatherneck victories were five set matches.

A LOOK AT OAKLAND: Oakland, who moved to the Horizon League from The Summit League this offseason, enters the weekend tournament with a 5-6 overall record. The Golden Grizzlies most recently went 1-2 in the Notre Dame Tournament, falling to the Fighting Irish 3-1 and Auburn 3-0 before concluding the weekend with a 3-1 win over Loyola. Cassie Pelloni leads the Golden Grizzlies in kills with 126 (3.23 per set), Ciara Schultz leads them in assists with 212 (5.44 per set), Melissa Deatsch leads them in service aces 12 (0.31 per set), Taylor Humm leads them in digs with 140 (3.59 per set), and Amanda Baker leads them in blocks with 41 (1.08 per set).

SERIES HISTORY: Western leads the all-time series 18-12. The two team's played conference matches, two per season, beginning in 1998. Last season, in Oakland's final season as a member fo The Summit League, WIU earned a 3-2 victory in Michigan, while the Golden Grizzlies down Western in Macomb, 3-1.

IN THE SUMMIT LEAGUE (Last Updated 9/18): As a team the Leathernecks rank first in kills (596), assists (571), service aces (68), and service aces per set (1.42). Western ranks second in attacks (1,654), digs (699), solo blocks (23), points (741.0), and assists per set (11.90). WIU ranks third in digs per set (14.56) and kills per set (12.42). Individually, Ann Miller ranks in the top five of four categories: third in kills (174) and points (192.5), fourth in kills per set (3.62) and points per set (4.0). Samantha Fournier ranks in the top five of five categories: third in attacks (455), fourth in kills (168) and points (189.0), fifth in points per set (3.9) and kills per set (3.5). Sarah Fetter ranks first in assists (494) and second in assists per set (10.29). Bailey Kaloupek ranks fifth in digs with 139.

IN THE NATION (Last Updated 9/15): As a team, Western ranks in the top 100 of one category, service aces per set, having averaged 1.44 this season. Individually, Kaitlynn Novak ranks 52nd in service aces per set with a 0.44 average, and Sarah Fetter ranks 80th in assists per set with 10.2.

CAREER LIST: Setter Sarah Fetter has 2,611 career assists at Western, which ranks fifth in program history. Fetter is 329 assists away from fourth on the all-time list. Tracy Benson recorded 2,940 during her time on the court at Western (1983-87).

ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM: Ann Miller was named to the CEFCU Classic All-Tournament Team on August 31st after she finished the weekend with 57 kills, a .417 hitting percentage, 34 digs, four service aces, and five blocks.  A week later, Bailey Kaloupek was named to the Diet Coke All-Tournament team on September 7th after recording 46 digs (5.1 per set) throughout the tournament. At the Iowa Tournament, Miller earned her second All-Tournament team honor along with Samantha Fournier. Both hitters finished with 51 kills on the weekend.

CAREER-BESTS: Mallory Gibson posted a new career-high on August 30th versus Bradley when she stuffed 10 total blocks. During the Leathernecks' September 5th match at Northern Illinois, Bailey Kaloupek bettered her career-high in digs with 29. Sarah Fetter recorded a career-best 65 assists in September 14's loss to Drake, while Ann Miller also bettered her career-high in kills that game, finishing with 27.

SCHOLAR-ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Ann Miller was named Papa John's Scholar-Athlete of the Week on September 3rd for her performance the week prior on the court and in the classroom; the honor is the second for Miller in her career. In the classroom, Miller is a two-time Summit League Fall Academic All-League Distinguished Scholar. The Bettendorf, Iowa native owns a 3.909 GPA and is majoring in Supply Chain Management. 

THE SCHEDULE: Western's 2013 schedule breakdown: four tournaments made up of 12 matches, three additional non-conference contests, and 14 Summit League matches. The Leathernecks play eight matches at home in Western Hall or Brophy Hall, and 21 matches on the road.

THE COACHING STAFF: Head coach April Hall enters her second season at Western and has hired a pair of new coaches. Laura DeBruler, who concluded her collegiate volleyball career at Illinois in 2010 is the Leathernecks' full-time assistant, while Bridget Murphy, who completed a decorated career at Western Illinois as a defensive specialist last fall is the team's graduate assistant.

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