TOPEKA, Kan. -- No. 9 Washburn is back in Topeka this weekend taking on Fort Hays State at 6 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 10 before hosting the No. 2 ranked Nebraska Kearney Lopers in a top-10 battle on Saturday at 2 p.m.
Setting The Schedule
>> No. 9 Washburn volleyball returns to Whiting Fieldhouse for a five-match homestand that begins this week against Fort Hays State and No. 2 Nebraska Kearney.
>> The Ichabods will take on the Tigers at 6 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 10 and the Lopers at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 11.
>> Friday night's game is Fraternity & Sorority Life Night and Saturday afternoon is White Out Whiting.
>> The Tigers enter the match 13-4 overall and 2-3 inside the MIAA, the Lopers are a perfect 18-0 and 5-0 in the MIAA entering the week.
Serving Up Facts
>> The Ichabods enter the week with a 15-1 record overall and a 4-1 mark inside the MIAA after completing a three-match road trip with a sweep over Emporia State on Oct. 7.
>> Washburn is 5-1 in Whiting Fieldhouse while going 7-0 in neutral court matches and 3-0 in road matches.
>> The Ichabods were picked to finish third in the MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll with 98 total points. The MIAA Tournament will once again be seeded based on KPI Rankings and not final regular season standings.
>> Washburn is ranked No. 9 in the latest AVCA rankings with 760 total points. They moved up from a No. 10 ranking last week.
>> The Ichabods went 21-8 overall last season and 11-5 inside the MIAA, finishing fourth in the regular season. They advanced to the NCAA Central Region Semifinals.
>> Last year Washburn went 2-4 against AVCA Top-25 opponents. They are 0-1 against ranked opponents this season.
>> The 2025 roster is balanced by class once again. It is the second time in the Chris Herron era with at least four players from each class, the first time coming in 2024.
The Blue Bunch
>> Austin Broadie leads the Washburn offense with 185 kills (3.49 per set) while hitting .384, third best on the team. She has started all 16 matches and also has logged 33 blocks with 38 digs. The senior has nine double-digit kill matches and ranks 20th nationally in hitting percentage and 3rd in the MIAA. She is 2nd among conference players in kills per set and 70th in the nation.
>> Bella Limback is slashing a team-high .546 with 103 kills (2.02 per set) while playing and starting in all 16 matches. She has also added 57 blocks, a team high and served seven aces. She has hit over .400 in all but two matches this season with two double-digit kill efforts. She leads the nation in hitting percentage and is 5th in the MIAA in total blocks and 4th in blocks per set.
>> Alex Dvorak is second on the team with 55 blocks (1.08 per set) on the season while starting all 16 matches. Offensively she has made 99 kills (1.94 per set) along with hitting .438, second best on the team. She has recorded five or more blocks in seven matches. The senior ranks 4th in the nation and 2nd in the MIAA in hitting percentage among qualified hitters. She is also 5th in the MIAA in blocks per set and 61st nationally.
>> Corinna McMullen has started all 16 matches this season to leads Washburn with 341 assists (6.5567 per set). She has also chipped in 17 service aces while ranking 2nd on the team with 133 digs (2.56 per set). The senior has delivered nine matches of 20+ assists and six double-doubles. She ranks 7th in the conference in assists per set.
>> Taylor Rottinghaus has suited up as the libero in every match this season leading the team with 210 digs (3.96 per set). She has chipped in 66 assists while serving 19 aces as well, a team-high. The junior has two matches making at least 20 digs. She ranks 8th in the MIAA in digs per set and 10th in total digs.
>> Brynne Topolski is second on the Ichabods with 127 kills (2.40 per set) while hitting .284. She has come off the bench in all 16 matches while making 33 blocks with 26 digs. She has four matches with double-digit kills.
>> Keilah Rivers has slashed 102 kills (2.08 per set) this season while starting in 14 matches and playing in all 16. She is third on the team serving 15 aces while scooping up 107 digs (2.18 per set) and making 23 blocks. She has two double-figure kill matches and one double-double.
>> Sydney Conner has appeared at setter in 14 matches for the Ichabods and is second on the team with 193 assists (4.95 per set). She has added 13 aces along with 72 digs (1.85 per set). The senior has registered three matches with 20+ assists and two double-doubles. Her assists per set rank 14th in the MIAA.
>> Autumn Gibbs has played in all 16 matches while making four starts. The junior transfer is third on the team with 126 digs (2.38 per set) and has a .974 reception percentage. She has served 13 aces and dished 18 assists. She has four double-figure dig matches.
>> Emery Keebaugh has made six starts while playing in 12 matches to register 54 kills (2.08 per set) while slashing .276. She has scooped up 23 digs with 10 blocks.
>> Natalie Hedlund has played in 13 matches making eight starts to record 60 kills (1.67 per set) while hitting .179. She has made 21 total blocks including a team-high six solo stops.
>> Shannon Frakes is third on the team with 95 assists (4.13 per set) while playing in 14 matches off the bench. She has served seven aces and made 33 digs (1.43 per set) as well.
>> Kali Henry has played in 15 matches this season off the bench, serving five aces and recording nine digs.
Head Coach Chris Herron
>> Herron is in his 24th season at the helm of the Ichabod volleyball program with a career record of 639-141 at Washburn. He became the 7th active DII coach to reach 700 career victories with the season-opening victory against Colorado Christian.
>> He has led the Ichabod to 18 NCAA Tournament appearances and six combined MIAA titles (five regular season and one tournament).
>> Has been named MIAA Coach of the Year four times (2002, 2005, 2007 and 2011).
>> Led the Ichabods to the NCAA National Championship match in 2021.
>> Has seen his players earn 52 All-American awards, 90 All-Region/District awards and 47 All-MIAA first team selections.
>> Spent 14 years as a high school coach at Tonganoxie HS and Golden City HS.
>> Is a 1980 graduate of the College of the Ozarks where he earned his bachelor's of science in physical education.
Assistant Coaches
>> Shayla Conner enters her fifth season as an assistant coach for the Ichabods.
>> The former All-American setter has helped guide Washburn to a 108-34 record in her first four seasons.
>> In her first season she helped the Ichabods to the National Championship match. In 2022, Washburn won its first-ever MIAA Tournament Championship.
>> She has coached eight total All-Americans and ten All-MIAA first team selections.
>> Camryn Turner joins the Ichabods as an assistant coach after wrapping up a two-time All-American career at Kansas in 2024.
>> She is a Topeka, Kan. native and also plays for the Grand Rapids Rise of the PVF.
>> Heather Schemper moves from the court to the sidelines joining Washburn as a student assistant after playing two seasons for the Ichabods.
By the Numbers
>> 2: NCAA Central Region Championships won by Washburn in the past six seasons.
>> 7: Number of sets lost this season.
>> 12: Number of sweeps this year.
>> 13: Number of home matches at Whiting Fieldhouse in 2025 after playing just seven at home last season.
>> 18: Number of NCAA Tournament appearances under Herron.
>> 23: Consecutive winning seasons for Washburn all coming under Chris Herron.
>> 150: Consecutive victories when winning the first two sets of a match.
>> 639: Career victories for Herron at Washburn.
Ranking Roundup
>> Washburn leads the nation and the MIAA with a .308 team hitting percentage.
>> The Ichabods are 9th nationally and 2nd among MIAA teams with 2.59 blocks per set.
>> On the defensive side Washburn is limiting opponents to a .109 hitting percentage, good for 4th nationally and 1st in the MIAA.
>> The Ichabods are dishing out 13.81 assists per set on offense, good for 3rd in the nation and second in the MIAA.
>> Washburn knocks down 14.70 kills per set to rank 4th in all of DII and second among MIAA programs.
>> Serving up 1.94 aces per set, the Ichabods are leading in the MIAA and 70th nationally.
Milestone Markers
>> Corinna McMullen is 7th in program history in total assists with 2,477. She is 4th in program history in service aces with 141. Her 971 career digs rank 28th in program history.
>> Austin Broadie ranks in the top-40 in Ichabod history in both blocks and kills. Her 237 blocks are 30th most and with 850 kills she ranks 29th. She also sits 19th in career attack percentage at .266.
>> With 1,223 career digs Taylor Rottinghaus is climbing the all-time charts and currently ranks 21st. In digs per set she is 4th in Washburn history at 4.69.
>> Sydney Conner has 1,716 career assists, putting her 13th in Washburn history. In assists per set she ranks 14th among all Ichabods.
>> In just 163 career sets with the Ichabods, Alex Dvorak is 34th in program history with 205 career blocks.
>> Bella Limback's has 256 total blocks in her career putting her 27th on the all-time charts. She is 16th in blocks per set with 0.84 each set.
Scouting the Opposition
About the Fort Hays State Tigers
>> Fort Hays State fell to 13-4 overall and 2-3 inside the MIAA last time out after losing 3-0 to No. 2 Nebraska Kearney on Oct. 7.
>> The Tigers have gone 8-2 in Hays, 2-2 on the road and 3-0 in neutral court matches.
>> Jessica Wood-Atkins is in her 8th season as the head coach of the Fort Hays State volleyball program where she has gone 78-123.
>> Assistant coaches Carolynne Barbosa, Giovanna Kuntze, Tallon Rentschler and Anna Reis complete the coaching staff.
>> As a team the Tigers hit .232 with 13.8 kills per set. They also average 12.1 assists, 16.0 digs and 1.7 blocks per set. They rank 2nd in the MIAA in total assists and total kills.
>> Ashlyn Reeves leads the team with 152 kills (2.58 per set) and hitting a team-high .317. She has started all 17 matches while making a team-high 51 blocks. She is 12th in the MIAA in total blocks and kills.
>> Kirsten Evans paces the Tigers with 227 digs (3.60 per set) while serving as libero in all 17 matches. She has served a team-high 30 aces with 49 assists. She is 2nd in the MIAA in aces per set and 8th in total digs.
>> Abrey Galt has started in 13 of 17 matches and leads the team with 377 assists (6.28 per set). She has added 27 kills, 17 aces and scooped 140 digs (2.33 per set).
>> Washburn has a 49-24 edge in the all-time series after winning the last two meetings. They are 27-11 against the Tigers in Topeka.
>> The series began on Oct. 26. 1973, the most recent match was a 3-0 win for Washburn in Topeka on Nov. 9, 2024.
About the Nebraska Kearney Lopers
>> Nebraska Kearney has continued its undefeated season moving to 18-0 and 5-0 in the MIAA after defeating Fort Hays State on Oct. 7 in three sets.
>> The Lopers are 9-0 inside the Heath & Sports Center while going 5-0 in road matches and 4-0 in neutral court battles.
>> They are ranked No. 2 in the latest AVCA poll.
>> Rick Squiers is in his 33rd season as the head coach at Nebraska Kearney where he has a 822-114 record. He is third among active coaches with 1,028 career victories.
>> The rest of the coaching staff consists of Samantha Hammond, Lauren Taubenheim, Maddie Squiers, Breanna Shaffer and Mya Maxwell.
>> The Lopers as a team slash 14.9 kills while hitting .303. They also average 13.9 assists per set, 17.2 digs and 2.4 blocks. They are first in the MIAA in both kills per set and assists per set and are 2nd behind the Ichabods in hitting percentage.
>> Carly Purdy leads the team with 202 kills (3.61 per set) while hitting .266. She has started all 18 matches while also scooping 44 digs and making 28 blocks. She is 1st in the MIAA in kills per set and 56th nationally.
>> Peyton Neff controls the offense with 635 assists (11.14 per set) while starting in all 18 matches. She has served 13 aces and made 37 kills while scooping 138 digs (2.42 per set). She ranks 1st in the MIAA and 6th in the nation in total assists.
>> Ellie Spang leads the back row defense with 252 digs (4.34 per set) playing in all 18 matches. She has served a team-high 16 aces and assisted on 53 kills. She is 5th in the MIAA and 87th nationally in digs per set.
>> Brynn Stowell has 138 kills (2.82 per set) while hitting a team-high .357. She has played in 17 matches and started in 16 while also making 26 blocks and 36 digs. She is 4th in the MIAA in hitting percentage and 40th nationally.
>> Nebraska Kearney leads the all-time series between the programs 33-15. Washburn is 8-9 against the Lopers in Topeka.
>> The series started on Sept. 25, 1976 with the most recent meeting coming on Dec. 5, 2024 in the NCAA Tournament as a 3-2 win for the Ichabods.
Take a Look Ahead
>> Next week Washburn remains at home beginning Tursday, Oct. 16 hosting Central Missouri at 6 p.m.
>> Senior night for the Ichabods comes against Arkansas-Fort Smith in the regular season finale on Saturday, Nov. 15 at 2 p.m.
>> The MIAA Tournament will begin Nov. 20 and run through Nov. 22 in St. Joseph, Mo. at Civic Arena.
>> The NCAA Central Region Championship begins December 4 and runs through December 7.
