Volleyball to Celebrate 50 Years as a Part of Homecoming

WARRENSBURG, Mo. (Oct. 9, 2019) - This is a big week for Jennies Volleyball, not just on the court. In addition to their two home MIAA matches, UCM will celebrate 50 years of Jennies Volleyball this weekend.

Opponents
Newman Jets (0-16, 0-7 MIAA)
Central Oklahoma (12-5, 4-3 MIAA)

Where
Warrensburg, Mo.

When
Friday-Saturday, Oct. 11-12
Friday, Oct. 11 - 7 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 12 - 7 p.m.

How to Watch
• This weekend's matches will have live video that will be available on the Jennies BlueFrame portal page at www.themiaanetwork.com/ucmmules. Live stats for each match can be found at www.ucmathletics.com

50 Years of Excellence 
• The 2019 season will mark the 50th in the storied history of Jennies Volleyball. All season long the Jennies will be celebrating that history with special events.
• Similar to the Silver Anniversary Team of 1994, the Jennies came out with a Gold Anniversary Team, adding 18 players from the past 25 years to the Silver Anniversary Team.
• The biggest event will be Oct. 12 during homecoming, when members of the 50 year team are invited back for a special celebration, including an on-court ceremony during the match with Central Oklahoma. Additionally, the team will be on the field for a recognition during halftime of the Mules Football game. 
• During each home match this season, UCM will recognize two of the newest members of the 50 year team. 

First Serve
• This week the Jennies continue their homestand by taking on MIAA newcomers Newman and Central Oklahoma. 
• Last week, UCM went 1-1 with a win over Fort Hays State and a loss to then fourth-ranked Nebraska-Kearney. 
• Central Missouri is slotted at No. 13 in the AVCA top-25 poll for the second consecutive week. They've reached a high of 12 this season. 

Story Lines
• This will be the first time the Jennies see Newman as members of the MIAA. UCM is 5-0 all-time against the Jets, including a win in Wichita last season.
• All-time against Central Oklahoma, the Jennies are 14-4. Dating back to 2015, the Bronchos hold a 4-3 edge in their last seven matches. 
• UCM's two games this weekend wrap up a season-long four-game homestand. Following this, they'll be on the road for three straight.
• On the road this season, the Jennies are 5-2. They are 2-0 in conference road matches after defeating Missouri Southern and Pittsburg State two weekends ago. 

Quick Hits
Last Time Out
• Central Missouri went 1-1 at home playing against No. 4 Nebraska-Kearney and Fort Hays State. The Jennies pushed the Lopers to the limits, going to five sets, but ultimately fell 3-2. UCM rebounds nicely picking up a 3-0 sweep over Fort Hays State.

Previously Against This Weekend's Opponents
• Though this is their first time playing Newman in the MIAA, the Jennies and Jets met last season. UCM defeated Newman in three sets in Wichita. Audrey Fisher put down 11 kills. Ally Offerdahl nearly had a triple-double with seven kills, 28 assists and 15 digs. Despite winning the opening set, and getting ahead 2-1, the Jennies lost in five to Central Oklahoma last year in Edmond. Kylie Hohlen led with 16 kills. Fisher and Rylee Neigenfind each had 13 kills. 

UCM in the Polls
• In the American Volleyball Coaches Association Preseason Poll, the Jennies remained at number 13. It is their 431st time ranked in the top-25, by far the most in Division II.  
• In the MIAA preseason poll, the Jens were picked to finish third behind Washburn and Nebraska-Kearney. They finished with 83 points and two first place votes. 

Individual Milestones
• Ally Offerdahl needs one more blocks for 100 and 43 more assists for 3300. When she reaches 3,627, she'll be in the UCM top-10 all-time. 
• Aubree Bell is approaching 9.5 points away from 600.
• Hannah Engelken will get to 200 blocks with 18 more and 400 kills with 22 more.
• Abby Skrastins is 19 digs away from 1,000 for her career. 

.300 or Better
• If you didn't see the match, a good way to know if UCM won is to look at the hitting percentage. Under Coach Piontek, Central Missouri 114-0 when they hit at least .300. While it hasn't happened often under Piontek, UCM is just 3-13 when surrendering a .300 attack percentage to their opponent. The Jennies hit a season-high .361 in their win at Missouri Southern last Friday and were at .306 in their last match against Fort Hays State.

Top-25 Opponents
• Last season, the Jennies played 12 top-25 ranked teams among their 33 matches. They went 5-7 in those games. Things weren't much different to start 2019. Eight of the first 10 teams they faced were ranked or receiving votes in the top-25, including No. 1 overall, and defending champions Tampa. The Jennies are off to a 2-5 start this season against ranked opponents. After their match Saturday, the Jennies will play at Northwest Missouri in what will likely be their next ranked opponent. 

Drama Club
• Facing a number of tough opponents, it's not hard to see why so many of their matches have gone to four and five sets. They've played four matches to four sets and five to five sets. 
• Of their 60 sets, 30 have been decided by just five points or less. The Jens are 15-15 in those 30 sets. 

MIAA Leaders
• Thus far, Central Missouri is in the MIAA top-five in hitting percentage (4th), assists (3rd), kills (4th), service aces (4th), opponent kills (3rd) and opponent digs (5th).
• Audrey Fisher sees her name a bunch of times in the MIAA top-10. She has moved up to the top of the league in hitting percentage at .371. She is also in the top-20 in service aces (14th - 0.28) and kills (17th - 2.67)
• Ally Offerdahl has moved to third in the league with 10.77 assists per set. She has 646 which leads the MIAA.
• On the defensive end, Abby Skrastins is third in the league with 5.18 digs per set. She is also 2nd with 311 total digs.
• Hannah Engelken is fifth with 0.92 blocks per set. Her 55 total are second, one off the league lead. 
• Sydney Lierz has accumulated enough time to join the MIAA leaderboards. She is now 11th in the MIAA in kills per set with 2.79. Both Fisher (160) and Lierz (145) are in the top-15 in total kills. 

Scouting the Opposition
Newman Jets (0-16, 0-7 MIAA)
• Newman joined the MIAA in 2019 and the Jets are still looking for their first win in the league. This season, the Jets are winless at 0-16 and 0-7 in MIAA games.
• The Jets are under the direction of second-year coach Jose Lugo. The team went 2-25 in his first year in 2018.
• Newman is last in the MIAA in a number of statistical categories. 
• The offensive leader for Newman is Trinity Conley. She has 196 kills this season, averaging 3.32 per set. Conley is fifth in the MIAA in kills per set. 
• Next closest is Eve Pearson who has 2.00 kills per set and 114 for the season. 
• Reagan Roth is the Jets setter. She has 7.07 assists per set this season. 
• As a team, Newman is hitting just .121. Opponents have a .255 attack percentage against them.
• Service has been a problem for the Jets. They have allowed 93 service aces while landing just 61 themselves. Three Jets have accounted for 40 of the 61 service aces. Jada Key leads the team with 14. Reagan Roth and Trinity Conley each have 13.
• Mackenzie Anderson leads the Jets defense with 4.13 digs per set. On the season, Newman averages 14.15 digs per set and their opponents are at 15.90.
• The Jets have held their own blockings the ball. They have 74 this season led by Imani Jones who has 35. Jada Key is right behind her with 30 blocks. 

Central Oklahoma Bronchos (12-5, 4-3 MIAA)
• After winning two straight, Central Oklahoma fell last week to No. 5 Washburn 3-0 in Edmond. For the season, the Bronchos have a 12-5 record and are 4-3 in the MIAA.
• The Bronchos have only played three games on the road this season and are 1-2 in road games. However they are 7-0 in neutral site games, putting them at 8-2 away from home.
• This season, the Bronchos are hitting .202 and averaging 12.65 kills per set. Amanda Desch leads the team with 136 kills while hitting .290. Also with more than 100 kills is Bailey Combs. She averages 2.4 and is hitting .275.
• Desch does a lot for the Bronchos. Not only is she leading the team in kills, she also leads them in assists. She averages 5.57 assists per set this season and has 295. On the defensive end, Desch is second on the team with 3.00 digs per set and 159 total digs. She has three triple-doubles this season.
• The Broncho defense is second in the MIAA in digs per set. They average 18.85. The defense is led by Dominique Lipari. She leads the MIAA with 6.68 digs per set. Noone else in the MIAA averages more than six digs per set.
• No team allows fewer blocks in the MIAA than the Bronchos. While they have 83.5 this season, they've given up just 67 and their 1.2 allowed per set is the fewest in the league. 
• UCO scores a bunch off of the serve. They have 81 service aces this season led by Ericka Scholl's 18. Five different Bronchos have more than 10 service aces this season. Burns and Desch have 13 each.
• When Desch isn't setting, look for Scholl to play setter. She is second on the team with 4.41 assists per set.