FSU Volleyball At A Glance - The Ferris State University women’s volleyball team (15-13, 12-6 GLIAC) will take part in the ninth annual Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Tournament this weekend (Thursday, Nov. 13-Saturday, Nov. 15) at Kellogg Arena in Battle Creek, Mich. FSU will battle Gannon (20-8, 10-7) in the second quarterfinal round match this Thursday (Nov. 13) at 3:30 p.m. (EST). Ferris is the GLIAC North Division's third seed while Gannon claimed the GLIAC South Division's second overall seed.

A Look Back – The Bulldogs won two of three league road matches in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula last weekend (Nov. 6-8). FSU posted a 3-1 triumph over Lake Superior State last Thursday (Nov. 6) in LSSU’s Bud Cooper Gymnasium at Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. Ferris then dealt Michigan Tech a 3-0 loss Friday (Nov. 7) at MTU’s Student Development Complex Gymnasium in Houghton, Mich. Northern Michigan recorded a 3-0 victory over FSU in Saturday’s (Nov. 8) regular-season finale in NMU’s Vandament Arena in Marquette, Mich. The Bulldogs, who have won 12 of their last 17 matches to date, are currently ranked 10th in the latest (Nov. 5) NCAA-II Great Lakes Regional rankings.

Last Season – Ferris State concluded its 30th anniversary campaign (2002) with a 24-7 overall record, which included a second-place tying 15-3 GLIAC North Division finish. The Bulldogs also advanced to the 2002 NCAA Division II Great Lakes Regional Tournament.

The 31st Season – The 2003 campaign marks the 31st season of Ferris State women’s volleyball. Since the program’s inception in 1972, the Bulldogs have compiled a 667-389 (.632) overall record. Ferris has won eight GLIAC titles, made 11 NCAA Division II Tournament appearances and registered 23 winning seasons in its previous 30 campaigns.

Bulldog Captains – Junior setter Ashley Green (Pittsburgh, Pa./Baldwin), junior outside hitter Karla Fairbanks (Rogers City) and sophomore libero/outside hitter Brittny Godlewski (St. Clair Township/Marysville) were voted tri-captains for the 2003 campaign. Green was both a first-team All-GLIAC and American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-Great Lakes Region selection last season while Godlewski attained honorable mention All-GLIAC kudos. Fairbanks ranked second (3.73 kpg) among Ferris’ kills leaders in 2002.

The Bulldog Volleyball Tradition – Ferris State posted its fifth consecutive 20-win campaign last season. The Bulldogs, who have recorded at least 20 victories in a season 16 times, are presently 132-58 (.695) overall since the start of the 1998 campaign. The 1984 FSU squad won a NCAA-II record 46 consecutive matches en route to a school-best 48-3 overall mark.

FSU Headed To GLIAC Tourney – FSU, which will be making its sixth consecutive conference tournament appearance, previously claimed runner-up honors in 1998, 1999 and 2001. In six all-time tournament appearances, Ferris has posted a 6-5 overall mark. Last season, the Bulldogs lost a 3-2 decision to Gannon in the quarterfinal round (11/14/02) at Grand Valley State’s Fieldhouse Arena in Allendale, Mich. FSU advanced to the 2001 GLIAC Tournament Championship match (11/10/01) for the third time in four years and dropped a 3-0 decision versus Northwood at Kellogg Arena.

The 2003 League Tournament – The other quarterfinal round matches include Grand Valley State (North #2 seed) against Hillsdale (South #3 seed) at 1 p.m. (EST), Northern Michigan (North #1 seed) versus Michigan Tech (South #4 seed) at 6 p.m. and Findlay (South #1 seed) taking on Northwood (North #4 seed) in a 8:30 p.m. encounter. The tournament semifinal matches are slated for this Friday (Nov. 14) at 5 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. with the title match to be held this Saturday at 4 p.m. FSU would face the winner of Thursday’s match between Northern Michigan and Michigan Tech in Friday’s first semifinal match with a win over Gannon. The winner of Saturday's championship match receives the league's automatic bid to the NCAA-II Great Lakes Regional Tournament slated for Nov. 20-22 at a campus site to be determined.

Head Coach Tia Brandel-Wilhelm – FSU head coach Tia Brandel-Wilhelm presently ranks second among Ferris’ all-time coaching victory leaders. Brandel-Wilhelm, who has a current 283-108 (.724) career mark, is 165-88 (.652) in eight seasons at Ferris and recorded her 150th Bulldog victory last season at Saginaw Valley State (11/8). A 1990 Alma graduate, Brandel-Wilhelm guided the Bulldogs to NCAA-II Tournament appearances in 1999 and 2002. Brandel-Wilhelm, who was voted the GLIAC’s Coach of the Year in 2002, entered the 2003 season ranked 13th among NCAA-II’s winningest active coaches.

Bulldog Bites - Karla Fairbanks has recorded 10 kills or more in 19 of her last 20 outings to date. She has 1,078 career kills to date and needs six more to tie Erin Minnis (1,084; 1998-01) for 12th place on the school's career kills leaders list ...... Freshman outside hitter Danielle Baucher (Kalamazoo/Mattawan) has totaled 10 or more digs in 12 of her last 15 outings to date ...... Ferris has won three consecutive five-game matches after dropping its initial five this campaign ..... Sophomore setter Emily Clouse (Tiffin, Ohio/Bascom Hopewell-Loudon) needs eight digs to notch her 200th career dig ..... Karla Fairbanks' 483 kills to date this campaign ranks as the school's second-best performance in the previous 10 seasons behind Alaina Olds' 503 kills a season ago. She is 28 shy of matching Karen Volkers’ (1987-90) 10th-place school single-season total of 511 kills established in 1989 ....... FSU assured itself of its fifth consecutive winning season last weekend. The Bulldogs have finished .500 or better seven of the last eight years to date.

Fairbanks Leads The Way – Karla Fairbanks totaled 58 kills, 31 digs, five total blocks and four service aces for Ferris in three matches last weekend. The 2002 GLIAC All-Academic Team pick averaged 5.8 kills and 3.1 digs per game during the stretch. Fairbanks, who notched her 200th career block and 600th career dig at Michigan Tech, is currently FSU’s leader in both kills (4.47 kpg) and digs (2.90 dpg) this season. She became the 13th player in school history to record 1,000 career kills versus Saginaw Valley State (10/31).

Green Moves Up The List – Ashley Green presently has 3,463 career assists to date and surpassed Melissa Petty (3,443; 1991-94) for third place on the school's all-time list at NMU. The 5-9 Green, who totaled 1,348 assists in 2002, currently has 1,150 assists this campaign. She needs 1,491 additional assists to reach Sharon Sanders’ (1981-84) second-place mark of 4,954 assists.

On The Road Again – Ferris State is 579-278 (.676) overall since 1981 and sports a 380-224 (.629) record in road/neutral site matches during that span. The Bulldogs are 89-59 (.601) overall in league road matches since 1987, including a 6-4 (.600) mark this season.

Looking Ahead – Six teams will receive berths into the 2003 NCAA-II Great Lakes Regional Tournament, which will be held Nov. 20-22 at a campus site to be determined. New regional rankings are slated to be released this Wednesday (Nov. 12) with the official tournament parings set to be announced this Sunday (Nov. 16). FSU has made 11 NCAA-II Tournament appearances to date.

Between The Lines – FSU head coach Tia Brandel-Wilhelm will make periodic appearances throughout the season on “Between The Lines,” a weekly half-hour television show devoted to Ferris State Athletics. The program, which is hosted by Phill Mooney and produced by FSU’s media productions department, airs each Saturday at 3:30 p.m. (EST) on Northern Michigan’s WFQX-Fox 33.

FSU On The Internet – Ferris State University Athletics’ official web site can be found at www.ferris.edu/sports. The site features information on all of FSU’s varsity athletics programs.

A Look At The Opponent:

Gannon: FSU maintains an 8-5 series edge heading into this Thursday’s 14th series meeting against Gannon. The two teams have split the last six series’ outings. Ferris head coach Tia Brandel-Wilhelm has a current 7-3 career coaching mark against the Knights, including a 3-2 win in the last meeting (10/10/03) at FSU’s Ewigleben Sports Arena in Big Rapids, Mich. GU concluded the regular season with a 20-8 overall record and a 10-7 league mark after registering a 3-2 conference home win over Ashland last Sunday (Nov. 9). Last season, Gannon posted a 16-11 overall record and a third-place 10-7 mark in the GLIAC’s South Division. The Knights, who have currently dropped four of their last six outings, are coached by fifth-year head coach Michele Mason. Ferris is presently 4-2 versus GU all-time in home contests and 4-3 in road/neutral site encounters. The two teams split a pair of meetings in 2002 with FSU winning 3-1 (10/11) at Erie, Pa., and the Knights recording a 3-2 victory in the 2002 GLIAC Tournament (11/14) at Allendale, Mich. Ferris defeated Gannon 3-0 (15-3, 15-4, 15-8) in the only other league tournament contest between the two teams in 1998 (11/12).