FIRST SERVE … 

>> Coming off two victories at home, the third-ranked Washburn volleyball team will hit the road for a pair of midweek matches. The Ichabods will travel to Hays, Kan., on Tuesday, Oct. 22 to play Fort Hays State before going to St. Joseph, Mo., on Thursday, Oct. 24 to take on Missouri Western. Both matches are slated to begin at 6 p.m.


QUICK HITS … 

>> The Ichabods are 9-1 in matches played away from Lee Arena this season.

>>  In the MIAA standings, Washburn has sole possession of second place and holds a one match lead over Central Missouri (14-6, 8-3 MIAA).

>> Nebraska-Kearney remains atop the conference with a perfect record (20-0, 11-0 MIAA).

>> Libero Faith Rottinghaus was named the MIAA Specialist of the Week on Oct. 21. 

>> The Ichabods have earned an MIAA weekly award five of the seven weeks this season.

>> In the latest AVCA rankings, Washburn is tied for third with Northern State.

>> Including Washburn, there are 10 Central Region teams ranked in the top-15. Nebraska-Kearney (No. 2), Central Missouri (No. 10), and Northwest Missouri (No. 14) also represent the MIAA in the rankings.


LAST TIME OUT … 

>> The Ichabods went 2-0 at home last weekend against opponents ranked in the top-15.

>> Washburn won 3-1 against No. 9 Central Missouri; 25-22, 25-27, 25-19, 25-23.

>> The following day, the Ichabods posted a 3-2 victory over No. 14 Northwest Missouri; 25-20, 30-32, 25-18, 23-25, 15-7.

>> A 9-0 scoring run in the fifth frame against NWMSU propelled WU to the match victory.

>> Rottinghaus moved up to sixth all-time in digs in Washburn's record books after the NWMSU match.

>> Montgomery eclipsed 900 career kills in the match against the Bearcats.

>> Genna Berg and Allison Sadler finished with a double-double in both matches. 

>> Berg, Erica Montgomery, Allison Maxwell, and Emma Palasak had double-figure kills in both matches.


ICHABOD LEADERS IN THE MIAA … 

>> As a team, Washburn ranks in the top-four in every statistics category in the MIAA except one.

>> The Ichabods lead the league in assists/set (13.11), kills/set (14.34), and service aces/set (1.53).

>> They also lead in holding their opponents to the lowest average in assists/set (9.39) and kills/set (10.36).

>>  Several Ichabods are ranked in the top-10 throughout the conference statistics list.

>> Allison Sadler leads the MIAA in assists/set, averaging 11.00.

>> Berg has the second-best kills/set average in the league with 3.75.

>> Kelsey Gordon is ninth in hitting percentage with a .301 mark.

>> Taylor Antonowich is second in the conference with 0.39 service aces/set.

>> Gordon and Allison Maxwell are back-to-back on the top-10 blocks list, as Gordon is averaging 0.89 blocks/set while Maxwell is at 0.85/set for sixth and seventh, respectively.

>> Rottinghaus is third in digs/set with 5.38.


NATIONAL RANKS … 

>> Washburn volleyball has been ranked in the AVCA Top-25 Poll for the past 18-straight rankings, dating back to Sept. 17, 2018. The team has also been in the top-five for the entirety of this season.

>> The Ichabods are ninth in the nation in kills/set, 16th in assists/set, and 18th in opponent hitting percentage.

>> Washburn is also tied for 10th in winning percentage (.882).

>> Sadler's assists/set average is the 17th-best in all of Division II.


HEAD COACH CHRIS HERRON … 

>> Chris Herron is in his 18th season leading the Washburn volleyball program and holds an overall record of 521-105 and is 245-61 in MIAA matches.

>> He has won 596 matches as a collegiate head coach (combined record between Washburn and Benedictine) and is four victories away from 600.

>> Herron's career collegiate winning percentage of .817 is seventh-best among active Division II coaches and is 18th-best all-time in D-II.

>> Herron is 28-3 against FHSU and 30-4 when coaching MWSU. 

>> He also holds a record of 157-51 when playing away matches.



MILESTONE TRACKER … 

>> Antonowich needs nine more digs to reach 500 in her career.

>> Rottinghaus is seven digs away from 1,600.

>> Sadler needs 40 more assists to reach 1,900 in her career. She is also 103 assists away from moving into the top-10 of Washburn's record book.

>> Maxwell is 23 total blocks shy of reaching 300 in her career.

>> Berg is nearing 1,000 kills and is 56 away from the milestone. 


SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION ...

Fort Hays State Tigers

>> The Tigers hold an overall record of 6-13 and are 3-8 in MIAA matches this season. The team is looking to snap a six-match losing streak.

>>  Washburn and Fort Hays faced eachother earlier this season on Sept. 20. The Ichabods shut out the Tigers in Lee Arena, 25-18, 26-24, 25-16.

>> In the match, WU hit .284 and held FHSU to a .190 attacking percentage.

>> Washburn led in kills, 49-32, and in service aces, 7-2. Four of the seven aces were by Taylor Antonowich.

>> Individually, the Ichabods were led in kills by Gordon (13) while Delaney Humm (10) paced the Tigers.

>> Currently, the Tigers are at a .164 attacking percentage and their opponents are hitting .215.

>>  Humm leads the team with 203 kills on the season and averages 3.5 per set (third-best in the MIAA). She also leads the team with 10 service aces. 

>>  Setter Katie Darnell has tallied 520 assists this season for an 8.25 average.

>>  Defensively, Abbie Hayes has recorded a team-best 248 digs and Morgan Christiansen has made 46 total blocks.

>>  Jessica Wood-Atkins is in her second season leading the Tigers.

>>  Washburn holds a close 48-46 lead in the all-time series between the two teams. The Ichabods are also on an eight-match winning streak.

Missouri Western Griffons

>> The Missouri Western Griffons are coming off a sweep against Newman to improve their record to 11-7 (5-5 MIAA). The Griffons will take on No. 14 Northwest Missouri on Tuesday, Oct. 22, before facing Washburn.

>> The Ichabods defeated the Griffons, 3-1, at home on Sept. 28. 

>> Washburn hit .208 and led in kills (62-40), digs (70-55), and service aces (9-3).

>> In the match, Erica Montgomery tied a career-high in kills with 22 to lead the Ichabods offensively. Sam Duncan and Allie Kerns both landed 11 kills to lead the Griffons.

>> Berg served up five aces and Gordon made nine blocks.

>> Missouri Western is currently at a .216 hitting percentage and has held its opponents to a .181 clip.

>> Ali Tauchen is the team-leader and fourth in the MIAA in kills and hitting percentage, totaling 209 terminations with a .346 percentage. 

>> She also has a team-best 18 service aces and leads in blocks with 64 total. Her 1.03 blocks per set average is second-best in the conference

>> Setter Lauren Murphy has dished out 627 assists for an average of 10.11 per set, which is fifth-best in the league. 

>> Defensively, Tiana Butler has racked up 359 digs and is second in the conference averaging 5.89 per set.

>> Marian Carbin, MIAA Coach of the Year in 2017, is in her sixth season with Missouri Western.

>> Missouri Western narrowly leads 47-42 in the all-time series against Washburn. The Ichabods have won the last two meetings.