The #7 Central Missouri Jennies continue their seven-match homestand this week, by hosting Northwest Missouri State and #4 Washburn. The Jens re-enter MIAA play after going 2-0 in the Peggy Martin Challenge, presented by Comfort Inn, and look to put their 7-0 conference record on the line against the Bearcats and Lady Blues. Both teams will offer a challenge for the Jennies, as both opponents hold a combined 10-2 record in conference play. The Jennies will also put a 12-match winning streak on the line, having not dropped a match since the Colorado Premier Challenge, over a month ago.
Jennies in the Polls
Following a pair of wins over Arkansas Tech and Pittsburg State, the Central Missouri Jennies earned a #7 rank in the latest AVCA Division II Coaches Top 25 Poll. The Jens move past #8 West Texas A&M, who were tied with the Jens for the seventh spot a week ago.
The Jennies earned 595 points in the poll, their highest total since the first week of the season. The top five in the poll remained unchanged from last week, as MIAA newcomers Nebraska-Kearney keep their spot on the top of the poll after going 4-0 in non-conference play last week, earning 30 of 32 first place votes. Fellow NCAA Central Region members Southwest Minnesota State and Minnesota Duluth keep #2 and #3, while Washburn remains at #4. Five-time defending national champions, Concordia-St. Paul, takes the sixth spot just above UCM, receiving one first-place vote.
Six of the top seven teams in the poll, including the Jennies, are located in the Central region, with the Tampa Spartans being the lone representative from outside the Central region. A total of eight Central teams are ranked in the poll, with Minnesota State at #13, and Wayne State (Neb.) ranked #19.
A Win for the Jennies...
vs. Northwest Missouri
• would be the 59th straight victory over the Bearcats, a streak that dates back to 1984 ... would be the 19th consecutive win at home ... would improve the Jennies record in the MIAA to 8-0 ... would be the 45th consecutive win over another Missouri school.
vs. #4 Washburn
• would improve the Jens' record to 49-12 all-time against the Lady Blues ... would be the fourth win over a ranked opponent this season, and the 34th in the
Flip Piontek era ... would be the 3rd straight victory over Washburn ... would be the first win over a top-five team this season.
A Loss for the Jennies...
vs. Northwest Missouri
• would be the first loss to the Bearcats since 1984 ... drop the all-time series with Northwest Missouri to 78-7 ... would be the first win for the Bearcats against UCM in the
Flip Piontek era ... would be the first home loss of the season for the Jens.
vs. #4 Washburn
• would be the first loss to the Lady Blues since last year's 3-1 defeat in Topeka ... would be the first home loss to Washburn since 2010 ... be the 12th win for the Lady Blues over UCM during the Chris Herron era, the most wins against the Jennies by any active NCAA head coach.
Players of the Week
After helping lead the Jennies to a 2-0 record at the Peggy Martin Challenge last week, junior setter Juila Bates was honored as the MIAA's Specialist of the Week.
Bates averaged 12.57 assists over the weekend, and posted two double-doubles in as many matches. She totaled 55 assists in the 3-1 win over Great American Conference leaders Arkansas Tech, then bounced back the next day with 33 assists in the straight-set win over Pittsburg State. Defensively, the junior tallied 10 digs against the Golden Suns and 11 against the Gorillas. The Leavenworth, Kan. native also had a big effect at the net, totaling nine kills over the two matches, with a .364 hitting percentage. Against Pittsburg State, Bates tallied five kills off only 10 attacks, and did not commit a single attacking error.
The Jennies have tallied six MIAA Player of the Week awards so far this season, including a sweep of the Hitter and Specialist of the Week awards twice. Bates has now earned three MIAA Specialist of the Week honors, and seven in her career. Senior hitter
Bradye Peniston has been honored as the MIAA Hitter of the Week twice this season, and three times in her career. Freshman
Annie Reilly won her first career MIAA Specialist of the Week award two weeks ago, leading the UCM defense to wins over Missouri Western and Truman.
Freshman Phenoms
Three freshmen have proven to be key components to the Jennies success this season, in outside hitter
Carly Sojka, libero
Annie Reilly, and defensive specialist
Mikalee Monachino. The three first-year players have combined for 9.86 digs per set, 55 of the team's 89 service aces, and 2.42 kills per set.
Sojka put together a five-match streak of ten or more kills earlier this year, which included the best performance of her young career against #17 Lewis, where she set career highs in kills (16), digs (19) and points (16.5).
Reilly has reached double-figures in digs in her last seven matches, after putting together nine straight earlier this year. The Overland Park, Kan. native is averaging 4.76 digs per set, ranking her sixth in the MIAA. She recorded a career-high with 30 digs against #17 Lewis, and has reached 27 digs in two other matches this year. Among freshmen, Reilly ranks fourth in digs per set in Division II this season.
Monachino has strengthened the back line play this year, averaging 2.00 digs per set. The Jacksonville, Fla. native is second on the team in service aces, with 22, just two behind Reilly for the team lead. Monachino has reached double-digits in digs four times this year, with a career-high 15 digs coming against #17 Lewis.
Opponent Preview
Northwest Missouri
The Bearcats spent last weekend at the Washburn Fall Classic, where they went 2-2 against four Great American Conference opponents. Northwest holds a 5-1 record as they resume MIAA play, with their lone loss at home to Washburn.
Leading the Bearcats' offense is sophomore Brooke Batrosh, who averages a team-high 3.06 kills per set. Defensively, senior Tori Beckman anchors the back line with 5.3 digs per set, ranking among the top 25 in that category nationwide.
The Jennies lead the all-time series over the Bearcats, 78-6, and have won the last 58 meetings, dating back to 1984.
#4 Washburn
The Lady Blues are in the midst of another banner year, starting 2012 with an 18-1 record, their lone loss coming on the road against #1 Nebraska-Kearney. Washburn is near the top of the statistical leaderboard in a number of offensive areas, ranking 11th in assists per set, 14th in kills per set, and 19th in hitting percentage in Division II this year.
Senior hitter Jessica Fey leads the attack with 3.25 kills per set, and a .397 hitting percentage that ranks her ninth in the country. Four Lady Blues average at least 2.2 digs per set, in Kelsey Lewis, Hillary Hughes, Abby Wittman, and Courtney Churchman.
The all-time series sits at 48-12 in favor of the Jennies, although the rivalry has been much closer in recent history. The Jennies have won two straight against Washburn, including last year's NCAA South Central Regional final, and are 6-2 against the Lady Blues in the
Flip Piontek era.
Academic Honors
For the 2011-12 school year, 16 of the 19 Jennies volleyball players were placed on the MIAA Academic Honor Roll, accounting for 84% of the total roster. Five Jennies, including returners
Julia Bates and
Bradye Peniston, were honored as MIAA Scholar-Athletes. The award is given to all student-athletes who are named to their respective All-MIAA Teams while maintaining at least a 3.3 cumulative GPA. Additionally, senior hitter
Hillary McCormick earned the MIAA Academic Excellence Award, given to student-athletes who maintain a 4.0 cumulative GPA.
To top it all off, the Central Missouri volleyball program was awarded the AVCA Team Academic Award for their work in the classroom. The Jennies are one of only 69 programs in Division II to earn the award, making up less than 13% of Division II programs nationwide. It marks the ninth consecutive year the Jens have claimed the honor, which is earned by maintaining a 3.3 cumulative GPA throughout the entire team.
Jennies on the Air
Central Missouri volleyball can be caught online at www.AmericaOne.com. All home matches as well as select road contests, including matches this weekend, will be availiable.
Fans can catch highlights each week on Central Missouri Sportspage, Thursday nights at 7 p.m., and Saturdays at 5 p.m. on KMOS-TV. Shawn Jones will sit down with Coach Piontek throughout the season to discuss the latest match, as various Jennies will be featured throughout the year.
Jennies fans can also tune in to 98.5 “The Bar” and 1450 KOKO each Tuesday morning at 9:30 a.m. for Central Missouri Sports Talk, with Greg Hassler and Bill Turnage. The pair will talk UCM athletics, as well as other hot topics in the sports world. Jennies coaches and players will drop in throughout the season as well.
Records & Milestones
If she can collect 18 points this week against the Bearcats and Lady Blues, senior hitter
Bradye Peniston can move into fourth place on UCM's all-time points list. Peniston has totaled 1,364 points during her career at UCM, and is currently on pace to potentially move into the top three in points all-time. If she does, she would join her former teammates
Allie Huffman and
Paula Harris at the top of the list. In the win over Missouri Southern two weeks ago, Peniston became just the fifth Jennie in program history to reach the 1,300-point mark
Freshman libero
Annie Reilly has shown potential to break into the record books after a strong start to her first season. Reilly has totaled 333 digs on the year, just 279 shy of besting Katie Tarka's 2005 season, where she recorded 612 digs, the tenth-highest total in a single season in Jennies history. Reilly's dig per set average of 4.76 ranks tenth on the single-season list, and will rank third on the career list after she passes the minumum of 750 career digs.
