This Week - The Bulldogs will remain on the road this week as they travel to Wayne State and Hillsdale for a pair of GLIAC matches on Friday and Saturday (Oct. 6-7). Friday's match in Detroit against Wayne State is slated for 7 p.m. The Warriors are 7-7 overall and 4-3 in the conference. Ferris State will head to Hillsdale on Saturday for a 1 p.m. match against the Chargers. Hillsdale is 13-9 overall and 4-3 in the GLIAC. At the Ferris State Invitational on Aug. 25, FSU defeated the Chargers 3-0. Ferris will return home to face arch-rival Grand Valley in a GLIAC match on Oct. 10 at 7 p.m.
Career Days - Three Ferris State players posted career-high marks at Saginaw Valley. Sophomore Alaina Olds had a career-high 18 kills on 32 attacks. Her previous high of 16 kills on 37 attacks was recorded on Sept. 22 against Gannon. Sophomore Angie Desmarais posted a career-high nine digs in just two games against the Cardinals. Her previous high of two was recorded last season against Mercyhurst. Another sophomore, Erin Rind, also recorded her career-best in digs with 11 against Saginaw Valley. Rind posted her previous best of four digs in a match at Grand Valley a year ago.
One Win Away - Coach Tia Brandel remains one win away from recording her 100th victory at Ferris State. She has an all-time career mark of 217-71 (.753) in eight seasons at West Virginia Wesleyan and Ferris State. At FSU, Brandel has a record of 99-51(.660). She also needs just one win to earn her 100th career victory in conference action. At West Virginia Wesleyan, Brandel was 49-0 in West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference action. In GLIAC action, Brandel is 50-31 (.617) overall.
A Look Ahead - Ferris State will return home for a key GLIAC and Great Lakes Regional match against Grand Valley next Tuesday (Oct. 10). The match is slated for a 7 p.m. start at Ewigleben Sports Arena in Big Rapids. The Bulldogs will play at Findlay and Ashland next weekend (Oct. 13-14).
Regional Rankings - In last week's NCAA Division II Great Lakes Regional Rankings, Ferris State was ranked fourth behind Northwood, Grand Valley and Northern Kentucky. The next regional rankings come out on Oct. 11. The Bulldogs also received 24 points last week to rank second among those receiving votes in the American Volleyball Coaches Association poll.
Bulldog Bites - Freshman setter Jamie Wirth is averaging 11.89 assists per game. She is ranked second in assists in the conference and is the leader in conference matches. . .Ferris State had not lost a match in which the Bulldogs won the first game prior to last weekend. FSU is now 14-2 in matches where they have won game one. . .In four game matches, Ferris State is now 2-2. The Bulldogs had been 2-0 entering the weekend. . .Ferris State is 1-3 this season when its opponent has a higher hitting percentage. . .Prior to the loss at Northwood, Ferris State had been 7-0 in Friday matches. . .Senior Sarah VanderMolen continues to lead the Bulldogs in kills, digs and blocks. Junior Erin Minnis ranks second in both kills and blocks. . .Senior Libby Martz has 25 service aces this season. She leads Ferris State and is 10th overall in the GLIAC. In conference matches, she ranks third. . .VanderMolen is fourth in the conference in hitting percentage and seventh in kills. She needs 44 kills to move into ninth place on the all-time kills chart. . .Senior Morgan Buckner is 50 kills shy of the fifth spot on the career kills chart at Ferris State. . .As a team, Ferris State is second in the GLIAC in both kills and assists. . .VanderMolen and sophomore Alaina Olds are both ranked among the conference leaders in blocks. Olds is fifth at 1.15 per game while VanderMolen is sixth at 1.14 a game.