MACOMB, Ill. - The Fighting Leatherneck volleyball team concludes a three match homestand this weekend, hosting IUPUI and Oral Roberts in league action. Western Illinois (4-15, 2-4) will first face IUPUI on Friday evening (Oct. 17), with first serve set for 7 p.m.. Following the match, Oral Roberts comes to town for a Sunday (Oct. 19) afternoon contest. The match is slated to begin at 2 p.m.
LAST TIME OUT: The Leathernecks split a pair of league matches this past weekend, falling to South Dakota before coming home to sweep South Dakota State, 3-0. The Purple and Gold took a business-like approach against the Jackrabbits on Sunday, claiming the match 28-26, 25-20, 26-24. Ann Miller had another great outing, posting 23 kills while hitting at a .408 clip (23 kills, 3 errors, 49 attacks). Peyton Crosser (8 kills) and Melanie Miller (5 kills) each contributed offensively while Samantha Fournier had 34 assists and six kills.
ON THE AIR: All home matches this season will be available on the radio with Cody Snodgress and Matt DeSalvo will handle the announcing duties this season. Live video streaming will also be available for home matches this season, with a subscription required to view. Eric Sutera will serve as the play-by-play announcer while Emily Manley will be the color commentator.
Radio: 88.3 FM or 883thedog.com
Video Streaming: goleathernecks.com/watch (subscription required)
Live Stats: sidearmstats.com/wiu/wvball
A LOOK AT IUPUI: The Jaguars come to Macomb with a 10-11 record, including a a 4-2 record in Summit League play. The Jags are coached by Steve Payne who is in his 18th season at the helm of the program. This season, the team is led by Kaitlyn Hickey who has posted 277 kills to lead the team, while her 3.51 kills per set rank fifth in the league. Hickey also ranks second on the team in digs with 238 recorded this year. Beth Howard leads the league in digs (350) while posting the second-most digs per set (4.47) in The Summit League. IUPUI is currently on a two-game winning streak after picking up a 3-0 win over South Dakota State and a 3-1 decision against Fort Wayne.
SERIES HISTORY: IUPUI leads the all-time series, 24-9, over the Leathernecks, having claimed the last 12 meetings. Western Illinois last beat the Jaguars, 3-0, Oct. 20, 2007.
A LOOK AT ORAL ROBERTS: The Golden Eagles are 9-10 (3-3) this season, their first season back as members of The Summit League. Head coach Sheera Sirola, in her 12th season as head coach, leads a team into Macomb that is headlined by freshman Laura Milos. Milos currently ranks third in the league in kills (303) and kills per set (4.33). Fellow freshman Lucija Bojanjac has averaged 10.66 assists per set, tops in the league. Oral Roberts was victorious its last time out, defeating North Dakota State by a 3-1 decision.
SERIES HISTORY: Oral Roberts leads the all-time series, 29-5, over Western Illinois, having taken the last eight meetings. The two teams haven't met since 2011, a 3-1 victory for the Golden Eagles.
STATISTICALLY SPEAKING: Senior Ann Miller is making her way up the record books in career kills and career attack attempts. Miller currently ranks fifth in career kills (1,183), needing 53 kills to move into fourth place. Miller ranks second in career attack attempts with 3,606, and is on pace to break the program record set by Amy Sauerwein (5,699). Looking at the conference, Miller ranks first in the league (11th nationally) in attacks per set (12.03), freshman Kayla Ruff ranks second in aces per set (.40), and Molly Murphy is fifth in digs per set (4.30).
MILLER MAKES HISTORY: Senior Ann Miller made Leatherneck history at the UIC Invitational, becoming the 10th player in program history to record 1,000 career kills. At the end of the weekend, Miller ranked 10th in program history in career kills. The following weekend at the Hoosier Classic, Miller continued her move up the ranks as she collected 30 kills in the opening match against Butler. The 30 kills ranks fourth most in program history for a single match, and moved Miller into eighth place on the career kills list. Miller currently has 1,093 kills, and is 22 kills shy of moving into seventh place (1,114, Monique Houston).
TEAM ACCOLADES: The Leatherneck program picked up three All-Tournament Honors during the non-conference portion of the season. Senior Molly Murphy was named to the All-Tournament Team of the Active Ankle Challenge, hosted by Ball State, after leading the team in digs (39) on the weekend. Murphy also had six assists and one ace on the weekend. Fellow senior Sam Fournier was recognized at the Leatherneck Invitational, being named to the All-Tournament Team. Fournier, who had never recorded more than four assists in a match at Western Illinois, tallied 109 assists on the weekend. Ann Miller was an All-Tournament Team selection of the UIC Invitational after collecting 52 kills on the weekend. Miller recorded 26 kills in a come-from-behind victory against UIC, falling one kill shy of matching her career-high in kills. Miller received national recognition as well, as she was named a one of 30 candidates for the 2014 Senior CLASS award. The award is given out to one senior athlete in 10 different NCAA Division 1 sports for notable achievements in the four areas of excellence - community, classroom, character, and competition. Miller is the lone volleyball representative from The Summit League.
SENIOR LEADERS: The squad is paced by four seniors this season, Ann Miller, Sam Fournier, Molly Murphy, and Mallory Gibson. The quartet of seniors have been a presence on the court since their freshmen years, compiling 1,102 combined sets played between the four players.
LEATHERNECK NEWCOMERS: Four new players join the Leatherneck family for the 2014 season. Junior middle blocker Peyton Crosser joins the program after transferring from Indian Hills CC (Iowa), while sophomore setter Elyse Keating comes to the Leathernecks after playing for one season at the University of Mount Olive (N.C.). Western Illinois also brings in two freshmen in setter Courtney Joyce and Kayla Ruff. Joyce (Chicago, Ill., Mother McAuley) helped lead Mother McAuley to a 2013 class Class 4A State Championship, while being named the 2013 SouthtownStar Player of the Year, as well as the Girls Catholic Athletic Conference Player of the Year. Ruff (Bettendorf, Iowa, Pleasant Valley) comes to Western Illinois after being named Honorable Mention All-Conference her final three years of high school. Ruff helped pace the Spartans of Pleasant Valley to a combined 66-9 record her final two seasons, with appearances in the state semifinals and elite 8.
THE SCHEDULE: Western's 2014 schedule breakdown: three road tournaments, consisting of nine matches, one home tournament with three matches, one additional home nonconference contest, and 16 Summit League matches. Total, the Leathernecks will play 11 matches in Western Hall or Brophy Hall, and 17 matches on the road.
THE COACHING STAFF: Head coach April Hall enters her third season at Western. 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 in 2012 is the team's graduate assistant.
