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Tampa Spartans Classic 
Bob Martinez Athletic Center

Thursday, Sept. 4
No. 2 Tampa vs. No. 13 Ferris State (7 p.m.)

Friday, Sept. 5
No. 5 Central Missouri vs. No. 24 Indianapolis (12:15 p.m.)
Tusculum vs. No. 13 Ferris State (2:30 p.m.)
No. 5 Central Missouri vs. No. 2 Tampa (4:45 p.m.)
No. 24 Indianapolis vs. Tusculum (7 p.m.)

Saturday, Sept. 6
No. 5 Central Missouri vs. No. 13 Ferris State (10 a.m.)
No. 2 Tampa vs. Tusculum (12:15 p.m.)
No. 24 Indianapolis vs. No. 13 Ferris State (2:30 p.m.)
No. 5 Central Missouri vs. Tusculum (4:45 p.m.)
No. 2 Tampa vs. No. 24 Indianapolis (7 p.m.)

Tournament Preview
The Central Missouri Jennies will play four matches at the Tampa Spartans Classic in Tampa, Fla. to open the 2014 season. The Jennies first three of four matches will be against ranked opponents. First up is No. 24 Indianapolis followed by No. 2 Tampa, on Sept. 5 at 11:15 a.m. and 3:45 p.m. The Jens last played both teams in 2012 at Hemingway's Island Grill Invitational, where they split the five set matches, beating Indianapolis before falling to Tampa. The next day the Jennies will have a rematch against No. 13 Ferris State at 9 a.m. Central Missouri swept the Bulldogs at the Peggy Martin Classic last season. In their final match of the tournament, the Jennies will play Tusculum for the first time in program history at 3:45 p.m.

The Jennies went 4-0 at the Hill-Topper Classic to start last season, and have a 14-6 overall record in the first tournament of the season with Flip Piontek commanding the bench. 

Last Time Out - December 6, 2013
The Central Missouri Jennies lost their second match of the year to Concordia-St. Paul, in the semifinals of the NCAA-II Central Regional. The Jens fell in three, 20-25, 20-25, 12-25, to finish the season with at 33-2, the best overall record in program history. The Golden Bears went on to capture their seventh-straight NCAA-II Championship in a 3-0 win over BYU-Hawaii. 

The Golden Bears led the Jennies for a majority of the match. Central Missouri took their first and only lead of the match in the second set, but Concordia-St. Paul tied the score at 14-14 and quickly finished the set. The Jennies are 0-7 against the Golden Bears. 

Concordia-St. Paul had a .436 hitting percentage in the match, with 50 kills and only 6 attack errors, while the Jens hit .171 with 36 kills and 16 attack errors. The Jens had four serving aces to the Golden Bears three aces in the match. Julia Bates and Taylor Goodness both finished their career with the regional match. Bates had 23 assists, five kills and two serving aces, while Goodness had eight kills and a block solo in the duos final game in a Jennies uniform. Carly Sojka led the Jennies in kills and points, with nine kills and a serving ace, totaling 10 points. Haley Thompson had the best hitting percentage, at .333, recording eight kills and one block solo in the match. It was only the fifth match of the season that Annie Reilly did not record at least one serving ace. Reilly had six digs, assists, and a perfect reception percentage in match. 

Season Preview
The 2014 Jennies bring back three starters and a libero from last year's squad, which had the best record in Central Missouri Volleyball history and led NCAA-II in winning percentage. The team returns two of four All-Americans, but was plagued with injures in the spring, creating a close competition for several starting positions. This year the Jennies will look to stay atop the MIAA, and make their 32nd-straight NCAA Tournament appearance.
  
Outside hitter, Carly Sojka proved to be an intricate part of the Jennies' team, starting every match last season. The Junior Second Team All-MIAA selection was named MIAA Hitter of the Week once, and averaged 3.03 kills per set with a .242 attack percentage. She had the most double-double performances on the team, and recorded a personal best 26 kills in the finals of the MIAA Tournament against Nebraska-Kearney. Sojka is an all-around player that will see playing time in the both the front and back row. 
    
The Jennies lose hard hitting First Team All-American Taylor Goodness, but have several players capable of filling the other outside spot. Juniors and former high school teammates, Lauren Dudgeon and Shelby Winkelmann top the list of replacements. Dudgeon played in 18 sets for the Jennies last season, with two starts, while Winkelmann returns to the sport after two years off. Winkelmann last played volleyball at the University of Nebraska, where she appeared in 20 matches for the Huskers in 2011. She is also a member of the Jennies basketball team. Redshirt Freshman Molly Lawrence and junior college transfer Jessica McDougald could also work their way onto the court.      
  
Becca Blaise looks to reclaim her starting position at rightside, but may be delayed in her return as a result of a summer surgery. Blaise averaged 2.05 kills per set, and 0.52 blocks per set. She had two double-doubles, and had double figure kills in 11 matches last year as a true freshman. Ashley Jurgens will switch in at rightside if Blaise is not cleared by the start of the season. Jurgens has appeared in 13 sets in her career with the Jennies.         
    
Haley Thompson returns at the net for the Jennies after starting all 35 games last season at middle hitter. Thompson was an All-MIAA and Daktronics All-Region Second Team selection, and was named Honorable Mention AVCA All-Region and All-America. She played in every set for the Jennies last season. As a freshman, she had the second best attack percentage in the MIAA at .337, and the most blocks on the team with 98 total.     
  
Maddie Jones also returns this season, but her playing status is still up in the air after a spring injury. Jones had the highest blocks per set average, 0.81, and reached a team-high eight blocks in a single match three times last season. If Jones is not cleared by the start of the season, sophomore Mackenzie Harding or freshman Alissa Schovanec will play the middle. Harding had three starts last season, and played in 11 sets, with a career high five kills against Washburn and Southwestern Oklahoma State.
  
The Jennies will have to replace departed MIAA Player of the year, Julia Bates at setter. She was a three-time All-American and four-time All-MIAA selection, and was named MIAA Specialist of the Week three times last season. She finished her career fourth all-time in Jennies Volleyball history with 5,347 career assists and is the first Jennie to average more than 11 assists per set for her entire career. Lauren Overby was expected earn the starting spot after redshirting last season, but a fall injury that required spring surgery could push back her first game as a Jennie. While Overby was injured, Kourtney Thompson filled the setter position and gained valuable experience playing spring ball. The competition for the starting positon is expected to be high between the two. Macki Pankratz is also a setter, but will redshirt this season after transferring from Emporia State in the spring.     

Annie Reilly returns to anchor the Jennies' defense. The Junior libero was the only member of the team to be named a Daktronics All-America honoree last season, and was also named to the AVCA All-America Second Team. Reilly averaged 0.59 serving aces per set, the highest average in the MIAA, and recorded two or more aces in 20 matches last season. She finished the year with a .979 return percentage, and averaged 5.29 digs per set. Freshman Lindsey Buehler and Katie Carlson will also compete for playing time in the back row.             

vs. Upcoming Opponents
Annie Reilly is the only member of the current Jennies squad that has played against Indianapolis and Tampa. Reilly had one serving ace and 21 digs in the Jennies win over Indianapolis, on Aug. 31, 2012, which was also the first match of her collegiate career. The next day, on Sept. 1, 2012, she had four serving aces and 23 digs in the five-set match against Tampa. 

While the Jennies first two opponents of the season will be foreign to a majority of the team, Ferris State will be realtively familiar territory. The Bulldogs fell in three to the Jennies, 25-16, 25-21, 25-19,  at the Peggy Martin Challenge on Sept. 13 last season. Reilly had an ace and 14 digs in the match, with a 1.00 recept percentage. Carly Sojka recorded her first double-double of the season, with 10 kills and 12 digs. She finished the match with a .381 hitting percentage, two serving aces, and a block assist. Haley Thompson had three block assists and five kills in the match. Maddie Jones had one block assist and four kills through three sets, while Becca Blaise had seven kills and 10 digs. As a team, the Jennies tallied 47 kills, with a .306 hit percent, eight aces, and four blocks in the match. 

Opponent Preview
Indianapolis Greyhounds | Indianapolis, Ind.
Series Record: UCM leads 2-0 
Last Met: 2012, UCM 3-2 (16-25, 25-16, 25-14, 24-26, 15-7)
Indianapolis has five starters and a libero returning to their roster this season. Senior setter Meghan Binkerd was the only Greyhound to be named an AVCA All-American honoree last season. She averaged 11.28 assists per set and 2.72 digs per set as a junior. The last time the Greyhounds faced the Jennies, she had 44 assists, three kills, and a serving ace. 

Four other members of the Indianapolis squad, Arielle Knafel, Julia Watkins, Kimberly Trojan, and Hailey Brown, have experience playing Central Missouri. Knafel and Watkins are both senior outside hitters and had 16 kills and four blocks respectively against the Jens. Last season, Watkins averaged 1.82 kills per set and 0.66 blocks per set. Knafel had a less explosive junior year, averaging only 0.60 kills per set and 0.12 blocks per set. 

Tampa Spartans | Tampa, Fla.
Series Record: Tampa leads 8-2
Last Met: 2012, TU 3-2 (25-14, 25-22, 11-25, 25-27, 8-15)
Tampa has five starters returning for this season, including All-American First Team honoree, Berkley Whaley. The junior outside hitter averaged 3.75 kills per set and 0.70 blocks pet set, with 51 serving aces last season. 
    
Two more juniors, Marissa Lisenbee and Jessica Wagner, were also named to an AVCA All-America team. Lisenbee averaged 2.43 kills per set and 0.89 blocks per set last season, while Wagner averaged 1.74 kills per set and 1.29 blocks per set. Lisenbee and Wagner are the only current member of the Spartans squad to have played in a match against the Jennies. Lisenbee had seven kills and five blocks through four sets against the Jennies. She finished the match with a .438 hitting percentage. Wagner did not earn a point against the Central Missouri.  

Ferris State Bulldogs | Big Rapids, Mich.
Series Record: UCM leads 7-1
Last Met: 2013, UCM 3-0 (25-16, 25-21, 25-19)
Ferris State lost one starter and a libero from last season's squad. Senior, Courtney Rehm, and junior, Alexis Huntley, were the leading offensive players for Ferris State last season. Rehm had the highest kills per set average, at 3.13, while Huntley had the most kills on the team, 375, and averaged 3.05 kills per set. Caroline Heitzman is another returner, that played a big part in the team's success last season. The junior middle blocker averaged 1.01 blocks per set with 124 total blocks on the season. 
    
Against the Jennies Huntley and Heitzman each had a team-high six kills. Huntley also had four blocks in the match, while Heitzman had two. Rehm had five kills through three sets, and hit .083, with a team-high 16 digs in the match. Another returner, Stephanie Sikorski, had three kills, and hit .500, with three serving aces and two blocks. 

Tusculum Pioneers | Greeneville, Tenn.
Series Record: First Meeting
Senior, Megan Hesse, is one of the few upperclassmen on the Tusclum roster this season. She is an all around player that was second in both kills and digs, averaging 2.42 kills per set and 2.47 digs per set last season.
She also led the team in serving aces, with 56 aces total in 30 matches. 
    
Hesse is joined by several sophomores in the starting line-up. Setter, Hannah Berling, averaged 7.03 assists per set and appeared in 123 of the 127 sets that the Pioneers played last season. Danae Stauffer had the third best kills per set average, 2.41, and hit .156 on the season. Jaida Allen also earned a significant amount of playing time last season, appearing in 23 of 32 matches. She totaled 62 blocks, and averaged 0.71 blocks per set, the second best average on the team.