Murray State University Athletics
Friday, September 23
Racer Arena
7:00 PM
Murray State
vs
Tennessee Tech
Senior Kayleah Sauer
Racers Set to Host First OVC Matches in Racer Arena
9/21/2011 3:31:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
The Murray State volleyball team will return to Racer Arena for the first Ohio Valley Conference matches of the 2011 season in Murray, Ky., this weekend. The Racers will host Tennessee Tech (Friday, Sep. 23/7 p.m.) and Jacksonville State (Saturday, Sep. 24/2 p.m.).
Match Notes
Scouting Tennessee Tech
The Golden Eagles are currently 1-11 overall and 0-2 in league action after the opening week. TTU is also on a three-match losing streak. The Golden Eagles are a young team, with no seniors and just three juniors out of 15 players on this year's squad.
TTU has three main hitters, and one who stands out as the clear go-to hitter. Natalie Penrod, Ellen Conti and Kelsey Gray all have over 250 attempts on the season, with Penrod seeing almost double the attempts of the other two, with 417. The trio might see the most attempts, but only Gray has a hitting percentage above .200, with a .208 (86k-32e-259ta) mark. Penrod is hitting at a .144 (129k-69e-417ta) clip and Conti is hitting at a .169 (93k-48e-267ta) pace. Gray is also the biggest blocker on the team, with 34 (7-27) in 2011. The Golden Eagles' defense is led by Allison May, with 193 digs and eight service aces.
As a team, TTU trails its opponents in all statistical categories, with the biggest difference coming in hitting percentage and service aces. The Golden Eagles are hitting at a .133 (430k-247e-1379) clip this season, but allowing their opponents to hit .284 (601-195e-1430ta). TTU is also allowing 2.0 service aces per set, while only connecting on 0.5 of its own.
The Series
The Racers currently own a 30-25 advantage in the all-time series, with MSU winning three of the last five meetings. TTU earned a win in the last match in Cookeville, Tenn., but the Racers were the winners in the last meeting in Racer Arena and own a 15-10 advantage when playing in Murray.
Scouting Jacksonville State
The Gamecocks are 3-9 overall and 1-1 in conference play this season and will play at Southeast Missouri Friday before heading to Racer Arena.
JSU has three main hitters and one that stands out above the rest. Hivya Leite is the go-to hitter, with 315 attempts (over 50 more than any other player). However, Leite has a .079 (100k-75e-315ta) hitting percentage and adds 11 service aces. Stephanie Kootz is the most accurate hitter, with a .288 (107k-32e-260ta) hitting pace. Kootz also adds 16 service aces and 21 (1-20) blocks. Liza Senekova is next on the list with a .226 (103k-46e-252ta) hitting percentage and 39 (11-28) blocks. The final hitter to watch is Jen Meyer, with a .244 (67k-18e-201ta) mark.
The Gamecocks are close in all statistical categories on the season box score, but have a deficit in hitting percentage. They are hitting .177 (493k-238e-1441ta) and allowing their opponents to hit at a .232 (462k-170e-1259ta) mark.
The Series
JSU has a 10-3 lead in the all-time series after winning the last five matches. The last MSU win was Nov. 14, 2008 in Racer Arena.
Reaching for Milestones
When the MSU volleyball team steped onto the court this season they were going for several milestones for both the team and head coach David Schwepker. The teams first win (Sep. 16, 2011) marked the 400th for the volleyball program in its 29 year history and the 125th OVC win for head coach David Schwepker. This is during his time as the head coach of the Racers and while at Tennessee State. Schwepker needs three more OVC wins for his 125th conference win at MSU.
MSU will also be aiming to reach two more milestones for their head coach. Schwepker needs five overall wins for his 200th career coaching win and 18 wins to reach his 200th win while at the helm of the Racers.
Double-Double Machines
Junior Lia Havili and sophomore Wendi Zickfield have both turned up their performances over the last two weeks. Havili is leading the team with five double-doubles, three of which she has garnered in the last two weeks of action. Zickfield has added four to the teams total, including recording on in the last three matches for MSU.
Moving Up in the Career Charts
Three of the MSU players are currently on, or just shy of making, career lists in at least one category this season. Senior Mary Cunningham currently has 141 block assists, moving her into 10th on the career block assist charts at MSU. She needs seven more to take over ninth (148-Ashley Nenninger).
Fellow senior Kayleah Sauer is already on the Racers career digs list, currently in third place (1,877). Sauer is 117 from second held by Kim Koehler (1,994) and 248 from the top spot that belongs to Heather Norris (2,125). The Louisville, Ky., native has averaged 550 digs per season in her first three years. Sauer is also close to making a second top-10 list, service aces. She ended her last campaign with 93 career service aces and the top-10 list starts at 99 and goes up to 257.
Junior Lydia Orf is also making a push to join Sauer in the 1,000 Dig Club. The St. Charles, Mo., native has recorded 687 digs and needs 313 to become the 14th member of the club.
Up Next
The Racers will return to the road for a single match next weekend. MSU will make the short trip to UT Martin Saturday, Oct. 1 for a 2 p.m. match.
Promotions
Friday - Facebook 'Like It' Day - Fans can go to our Facebook page (Murray State Racer Athletics) and print off a special coupon to redeem at the match. They can also show us the coupon from their phone and you will be entered into a raffle for prizes.
Saturday - Junior Racers Day - Members are asked to arrive at 12:30 for sign in. Double reward points will be awarded. Also, there will be various activities and games and member t-shirts can be picked up.
Match Notes
Scouting Tennessee Tech
The Golden Eagles are currently 1-11 overall and 0-2 in league action after the opening week. TTU is also on a three-match losing streak. The Golden Eagles are a young team, with no seniors and just three juniors out of 15 players on this year's squad.
TTU has three main hitters, and one who stands out as the clear go-to hitter. Natalie Penrod, Ellen Conti and Kelsey Gray all have over 250 attempts on the season, with Penrod seeing almost double the attempts of the other two, with 417. The trio might see the most attempts, but only Gray has a hitting percentage above .200, with a .208 (86k-32e-259ta) mark. Penrod is hitting at a .144 (129k-69e-417ta) clip and Conti is hitting at a .169 (93k-48e-267ta) pace. Gray is also the biggest blocker on the team, with 34 (7-27) in 2011. The Golden Eagles' defense is led by Allison May, with 193 digs and eight service aces.
As a team, TTU trails its opponents in all statistical categories, with the biggest difference coming in hitting percentage and service aces. The Golden Eagles are hitting at a .133 (430k-247e-1379) clip this season, but allowing their opponents to hit .284 (601-195e-1430ta). TTU is also allowing 2.0 service aces per set, while only connecting on 0.5 of its own.
The Series
The Racers currently own a 30-25 advantage in the all-time series, with MSU winning three of the last five meetings. TTU earned a win in the last match in Cookeville, Tenn., but the Racers were the winners in the last meeting in Racer Arena and own a 15-10 advantage when playing in Murray.
Scouting Jacksonville State
The Gamecocks are 3-9 overall and 1-1 in conference play this season and will play at Southeast Missouri Friday before heading to Racer Arena.
JSU has three main hitters and one that stands out above the rest. Hivya Leite is the go-to hitter, with 315 attempts (over 50 more than any other player). However, Leite has a .079 (100k-75e-315ta) hitting percentage and adds 11 service aces. Stephanie Kootz is the most accurate hitter, with a .288 (107k-32e-260ta) hitting pace. Kootz also adds 16 service aces and 21 (1-20) blocks. Liza Senekova is next on the list with a .226 (103k-46e-252ta) hitting percentage and 39 (11-28) blocks. The final hitter to watch is Jen Meyer, with a .244 (67k-18e-201ta) mark.
The Gamecocks are close in all statistical categories on the season box score, but have a deficit in hitting percentage. They are hitting .177 (493k-238e-1441ta) and allowing their opponents to hit at a .232 (462k-170e-1259ta) mark.
The Series
JSU has a 10-3 lead in the all-time series after winning the last five matches. The last MSU win was Nov. 14, 2008 in Racer Arena.
Reaching for Milestones
When the MSU volleyball team steped onto the court this season they were going for several milestones for both the team and head coach David Schwepker. The teams first win (Sep. 16, 2011) marked the 400th for the volleyball program in its 29 year history and the 125th OVC win for head coach David Schwepker. This is during his time as the head coach of the Racers and while at Tennessee State. Schwepker needs three more OVC wins for his 125th conference win at MSU.
MSU will also be aiming to reach two more milestones for their head coach. Schwepker needs five overall wins for his 200th career coaching win and 18 wins to reach his 200th win while at the helm of the Racers.
Double-Double Machines
Junior Lia Havili and sophomore Wendi Zickfield have both turned up their performances over the last two weeks. Havili is leading the team with five double-doubles, three of which she has garnered in the last two weeks of action. Zickfield has added four to the teams total, including recording on in the last three matches for MSU.
Moving Up in the Career Charts
Three of the MSU players are currently on, or just shy of making, career lists in at least one category this season. Senior Mary Cunningham currently has 141 block assists, moving her into 10th on the career block assist charts at MSU. She needs seven more to take over ninth (148-Ashley Nenninger).
Fellow senior Kayleah Sauer is already on the Racers career digs list, currently in third place (1,877). Sauer is 117 from second held by Kim Koehler (1,994) and 248 from the top spot that belongs to Heather Norris (2,125). The Louisville, Ky., native has averaged 550 digs per season in her first three years. Sauer is also close to making a second top-10 list, service aces. She ended her last campaign with 93 career service aces and the top-10 list starts at 99 and goes up to 257.
Junior Lydia Orf is also making a push to join Sauer in the 1,000 Dig Club. The St. Charles, Mo., native has recorded 687 digs and needs 313 to become the 14th member of the club.
Up Next
The Racers will return to the road for a single match next weekend. MSU will make the short trip to UT Martin Saturday, Oct. 1 for a 2 p.m. match.
Promotions
Friday - Facebook 'Like It' Day - Fans can go to our Facebook page (Murray State Racer Athletics) and print off a special coupon to redeem at the match. They can also show us the coupon from their phone and you will be entered into a raffle for prizes.
Saturday - Junior Racers Day - Members are asked to arrive at 12:30 for sign in. Double reward points will be awarded. Also, there will be various activities and games and member t-shirts can be picked up.
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