MACOMB, Ill. - The Fighting Leatherneck volleyball team continues conference play this weekend with a pair of matches. Western Illinois (2-13, 0-1) will first host Fort Wayne on Friday, Oct. 3 at 7 p.m. (CT). Due to homecoming festivities, the match will be played inside Brophy Hall. Following the match, The Purple and Gold will hit the road to Fargo, North Dakota for a match against North Dakota State on Sunday (Oct. 5). First serve between the Leathernecks and Bison is set for 1 p.m. (CT).
LAST TIME OUT: The Leathernecks opened conference play last weekend, dropping a pair of matches to Denver and Omaha. Western Illinois first dropped a 3-0 decision to the Pioneers, who entered the match as the lone Summit League team with a winning record. The Leathernecks pushed Denver in the middle set, ultimately falling by a 25-21 score in the middle frame. The Pioneers used a pair of 25-18 victories in the first and third set en route to the victory. Ann Miller led the way with a double-double (11 kills, 11 digs), while Samantha Fournier dished out a team-best 24 assists. Against the Mavericks, Western Illinois evened the match at one-all with close 28-26 victory in the second set. The Leathernecks were unable to sustain the momentum, as Omaha took the final two sets for a 3-1 victory. Miller once again paced the team in kills (20), Fournier led in assists (41) and Molly Murphy recorded the most digs (20).
ON THE AIR: All home matches this season will be available on the radio at 88.3 FM or online at 883thedog.com. 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. Live stream access can be found at goleathernecks.com/watch.
A LOOK AT FORT WAYNE: The Mastodons head to Macomb with a record of 7-8 (1-0) and currently sit in fourth place in The Summit League. Fort Wayne knocked off South Dakota State, 3-0, in their opening match of conference play. Fort Wayne currently sits atop the league in assists (12.77 a/s), and kills (13.55 k/s), while ranking second in hitting percentage (.229), opponent hitting percentage (.181), and blocks (2.74 b/s). Individually, Emily Spencer leads the league in kills (4.77 k/s), while Kendall Wienkes leads all players with .43 aces per set. The Mastodons are led by first year head coach Steve Florio.
SERIES HISTORY: The Mastodons lead the all-time series, 13-3, but the Leathernecks claimed the last meeting between the two schools. Western Illinois earned a hard fought 3-2 victory at home over Fort Wayne on Nov. 1, 2013. Prior to that, Fort Wayne had claimed six-straight meetings.
A LOOK AT NORTH DAKOTA STATE: The Leathernecks head to Fargo for their first road conference match of the season. The Bison, coached by Kari Thompson in her fourth season, have a record of 6-10 (1-2) this year. North Dakota State is tops in the league in digs, averaging 16.26 digs per set. Individually, Emily Minnick ranks sixth in the league in hitting (.319) while Jenni Fassbender is fourth in the league in aces, collecting .35 aces/set.
SERIES HISTORY: The Bison have the upper hand in the all-time series, holding an 11-4 advantage. The two teams have split the season series the past two seasons, with the Leathernecks picking up a 3-0 victory at home last season and winning 3-2 on the road in 2012.
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.
