Complete Game Notes (Interactive PDF)
Five More On The Road
Season-opening road trip wraps up with Turnpike Tussle Tuesday and four matches in Arkansas this weekend
Washburn will end its 13-match road trip to start the season by playing its MIAA opener Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Emporia State and then playing four matches in Arkansas this weekend. The Ichabods will play Texas Women's Friday at 10 a.m. and Dallas Baptist at 6 p.m. at the Arkansas-Fort Smith Mary Beth Sudduth Invitational. Saturday they'll play Harding at 10 a.m. and UAFS at 6 p.m.
The Ichabods went 2-2 last weekend as they suffered their first losses of the season Friday in five-set defeats to then-No. 22 Central Washington and to Grand Valley State. Saturday they bounced back with a five-set win over Tarleton State and a sweep over Western Oregon. That marked the first time since 2003 Washburn played in three straight five-set matches.
Washburn swept Emporia State last year in the season series and has won seven straight over the Hornets. The last win for ESU in the series was in 2009 in Emporia. The Hornets are 6-2 this year after going 2-2 last year.
All four of Washburn's opponents this weekend enter the week with winning records.
Ichablogging Weekly Notes
(Around 140-character or less tweets highlighting the season)
Abby Wittman had 189 assists last weekend and moved to 4th in career history at WU, now with 2,714. She also became the fourth Ichabod to total 2,000 assists and 1,000 digs.
Corrine Stringer played in her first action this weekend since 2010 and had 2.91 kills a set with a pair of double-figure matches Saturday.
Wittman was the lone Ichabod named to the Colorado Mines Invite all-tournament team.
Washburn is undefeated in Herron's 11 MIAA openers. The Ichabods swept Emporia State at home last year to open the conference season.
Washburn ended its 53-week reign in the AVCA national top 10 as it fell to No. 11 in Monday's poll. The Ichabods did extend their overall streak in the top 25 to 124 weeks.
The Ichabods return all-MIAA selections
Marissa Cox,
Abby Wittman and
Kelsey Lewis. Cox, a junior rightside hitter, is Washburn's leading returner with 2.38 kills and 0.87 blocks a set last year. She earned honorable mention all-MIAA. Senior setter
Abby Wittman led the team with 9.28 assists a set and earned third team all-MIAA. Lewis averaged 1.91 kills and 2.66 digs a set last year to earn honorable mention.
Washburn was picked third in the MIAA preseason coaches poll and earned three of the 12 first-place votes. Defending champion Nebraska-Kearney is first and Central Missouri is second.
Emporia State is also 6-2 after two losses last weekend at the Central Missouri Peggy Martin Challenge. ESU leads the all-time series 76-32 over WU but the Ichabods have won seven straight.
Texas Women's also went 2-2 at Colorado Mines last weekend and is 5-3 overall. Washburn is their fourth ranked opponent this year. The all-time series with Washburn is tied at 3-3.
Dallas Baptist is 4-3 and will play Arkansas-Fort Smith Thursday before the invite begins. WU is 3-0 all-time against DBU.
Harding is 5-4 this year after going 3-1 at North Alabama last weekend. Washburn leads the all-time series 7-2 with seven straight wins.
UAFS is 4-2 this year after winning twice last week. Washburn has won the only meeting between the two schools.
Impressive Streak Comes To End
Ichabods fall to 11th as reign in AVCA top 10 comes to end
Washburn's impressive 53-week stay in the AVCA national top 10 came to an end as the Ichabods were picked 11th in this week's poll.
The Ichabods went 2-2 last weekend and are 6-2 overall as they fell from sixth place. They had been in the top 10 since the first week of the 2009 season. This is, however, Washburn's 124th straight ranking in the top 25, a streak that dates back to the start of the 2004 season.
Washburn is the third highest team in the MIAA. Nebraska-Kearney is fifth and Central Missouri is sixth. These are the only three ranked teams in the league. The Central Region makes up seven of the top 11 schools in the nation.
Wittman moves up in career assists
Moves from fifth to fourth after big weekend
Senior setter
Abby Wittman had 189 assists last weekend to move from fifth to fourth in career assists at Washburn. She now has 2,714 to pass Jonni Oestreich who had 2,606 from 1988-91. Wittman will need to total 1,346 assists this year to move into the top three.
Wittman also reached 1,000 digs this past weekend to move to 20th in Washburn history. She is the fourth Washburn player to record at least 2,000 assists and 1,000 digs.
Coming Up Next
Washburn finally home for one then back on road for the weekend
Washburn will play its first home match of the season next Tuesday, September 24 against Northwest Missouri in a non-conference match. The Ichabods will then travel to Pittsburg State September 27 and Central Oklahoma the next day.
