Women's Volleyball | October 20, 2016

THIS WEEK
The Western Michigan volleyball team heads back on the road for a pair of Mid-American Conference games on Friday at Kent State and on Saturday at Ohio. Both games are set for 7 p.m. starts. Friday's game can be watched live at kentstatesports.com, while Saturday's game against OU will be live on ESPN3.com.

HOW TO FOLLOW
Friday at Kent State: Live Video; Live Audio; Live Stats
Saturday at Ohio: Live Video; Live Stats

LAST WEEK
The Broncos improved their spot in the MAC West with wins over Akron and Buffalo. On Friday, WMU made quick work of the Zips in a 3-0 (25-18, 25-19, 25-19). UA was held to just a .031 hitting percentage. WMU's attack was led by senior Nicole Kinser with 14 kills and a career-high .520 hitting percentage. Sydney Lemay also reached double-digit kills with 13.

WMU also performed well in the 3-1 (25-16, 27-25, 17-25, 25-21) win over the Bulls. LeMay led the way with 16 kills, while Kinser added 15. Olivia Kofie had 12 kills in her second match back from injury, but it was freshman Kathleen Reilly that stole the show after a career-high 26 digs. 

KENT STATE AT A GLANCE // 11-10, 4-4 MAC
The Golden Flashes enter Friday's match solidly in fourth place in the MAC East with a 4-4 record. Kent State split on the road last weekend with a 3-2 win at Ball State and a 3-2 loss at Toledo. 

A lot of KSU's success can be credited to the hard work of its defense. The Golden Flashes rank third in the MAC in opponent hitting percentage (.189), fourth in digs per set (15.94) and fifth in blocks (1.98). Junior libero Challen Geraghty ranks second in the MAC and third in the nation in digs per set at 5.50. Freshman Myla King leads the team in blocks per set at 1.02 with 56 total blocks (6 solo, 50 assists).

Junior outside hitter Kelsey Bittinger is one of the top attackers in the MAC, ranking second in kills per set at 3.36. Drew Norberg is second on the team with 2.66 and Heather Youkin ranks third on the squad at 2.46. Katarina Kojic is the team's main setter, averaging 9.25 assists per set. Junior Brittney Jakscht has been used as a setter at times, averaging 4.26 assists per set in 50 total sets played. 

OHIO AT A GLANCE // 10-10, 6-2 MAC
After a tough non-conference season, the Bobcats have been on a roll, winning seven of their last nine matches. At 6-2, OU currently sits in second place in the MAC East. Ohio's only stumbling blocks in conference play have been at Miami and at Toledo. 

The Bobcats are just one of two teams in the MAC that boast attackers that average at least 3.0 kills per set. Mallory Salis leads the team with 3.19 and ranks fourth in the conference. Jaime Kosiorek sits just behind with 3.16. Ali Lake has also racked up 173 total kills at 2.47 per set in 20 sets this season. Stephanie Olman is the team's top setter, averaging 10.38 assists per set in the 58 she has played in. The team also ranks third in the MAC in service aces at 1.38 per set. Six different Bobcats have at least 10 aces on the season.

Defensively is where Ohio has struggled this season. The Bobcats rank 10th overall in the MAC in opponent hitting percentage at .236. The percentage goes down slightly during conference play at .227. Katie Nelson has been the top blocker on the season, averaging 0.87 per set. Booke Coleman leads the team in digs with 257 total and averaging 3.52 per set. Just behind her is Salis at 2.94, while Erica Walker also sports 2.86 per game.

ON A BIT OF A ROLL
Western Michigan enters Friday's match at Kent State having won three of its last four matches. In the three wins over Toledo, Akron and Buffalo the Broncos have dropped just one set in a 3-1 win to the Bulls. 

A mix of offense and defense has led to the team's recent success, holding teams to just a .118 hitting percentage and then attacking at a .223 clip. A two-headed attack by senior middle blocker Nicole Kinser and junior middle blocker Sydney LeMay have combined for 6.86 kills per set. Kinser has been averaging 3.50 and has double-digit kills in five of her last six matches. Sophomore outside hitter Bailey Schnell has also picked up her play, averaging 2.40 kills per set in the last four matches. Mary Murphy has averaged 12.0 assists per set, while freshmen and recent MAC West Defensive Player of the Week, Kathleen Reilly, has averaged 5.86 digs per set. The Broncos also saw Olivia Kofie return from injury ahead of the 3-0 sweep of Akron. 

GETTING CLOSER
Junior middle blocker Sydney LeMay now sits just 40 kills away from reaching the 1,000 kill club. LeMay leads the team at 3.35 kills per set and has racked up 268 this season. Back on Aug. 30 senior Alysia Baznik reached 1,000 against Fort Wayne. The Broncos have not had two players reach 1,000 since Michelle Moore and Katie Eberling crossed that threshold back in 2008. LeMay is fighting to become the 22nd player in program history to reach 1,000.

ON THE HORIZON
WMU returns home briefly next Thursday to host Northern Illinois at 7 p.m. The Broncos then travel to Bowling Green on Saturday for another 7 p.m. start. Western Michigan hosts MAC West rivals Central Michigan on Friday, Nov. 4 and Eastern Michigan on Saturday Nov. 8. The CMU game will start at 7 p.m., but the EMU game has been changed to an 8 p.m. start.