This Week - The Bulldogs head to Battle Creek to take part in the Sixth Annual Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Volleyball Tournament. FSU is the fourth seed in the north half of the bracket and will open tournament play on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. against Hillsdale at Kellogg Arena. The Chargers won the South Division and are 20-13 overall heading into the conference tournament.
Conference Tournament Information - The 2000 GLIAC Tournament features five teams from the North Division and three teams from the South Division. Ferris State finished fourth in the North Division of play with an 11-7 mark. Against the seven teams participating in the conference tournament, Ferris State is 6-6 this season. Four of those losses have came to Northwood and Grand Valley State. Both teams are nationally-ranked.
Seven of the eight teams participating in the tournament have been in the field each of the past two seasons. Findlay replaces Wayne State in the South Division this season. FSU advanced to the tournament championship match a year ago before falling to Northwood in three sets. On their way to the title match, the Bulldogs beat Hillsdale and Northern Michigan. Northwood, Northern Michigan and Ferris State advanced to the regional tournament last season.
Opening Round Preview - In a rematch from last year's opening round, the Bulldogs will open GLIAC Tournament action against Hillsdale on Thursday at Kellogg Arena. A year ago, Ferris State beat the Chargers 3-0 on their way to the tournament championship match. The two teams have played twice this season with Ferris State winning both times. In the first meeting on Aug. 25 at the Bulldog Invitational in Big Rapids, the Bulldogs won easily in three games. FSU also won at Hillsdale on Oct. 7 in four games. In the all-time series between the two schools, Ferris State holds a commanding 42-7 advantage. The Bulldogs have been particularly dominant in Big Rapids, where the Chargers have won just once in 20 appearances.
FSU has won the last eight meetings between the two schools. The last Charger win came on Oct. 20, 1995 at Ewigleben Sports Arena in Big Rapids. The 3-1 Hillsdale win on that night remains the only Charger victory at Ewigleben Arena in 16 appearances. Against Hillsdale, Ferris State coach Tia Brandel remains unbeaten in her career at 8-0.
A Look Ahead - Should Ferris State advance past the opening round, the Bulldogs could face either Gannon (Pa.) or archrival Grand Valley State in the semifinal round. Ferris State is 0-2 this season against Grand Valley. Against Gannon, the Bulldogs won the only meeting 3-2 in September at Ewigleben Sports Arena. Both matches against Grand Valley have been close. On Oct. 10, the Lakers managed to escape with a 3-2 victory in front of a crowd of 616 at Ewigleben Sports Arena. On Oct. 27, the Bulldogs won the first game 15-10 before losing three-straight games at the GVSU Fieldhouse in Allendale. Gannon earned the third seed in the South Division while Grand Valley garnered the second seed in the North Division. The Bulldogs own a 6-3 advantage in the all-time series against Gannon while Grand Valley holds a slight 39-35 lead in the Bulldog-Laker series. Ferris State lost to Gannon 3-1 in Big Rapids a year ago. Coach Tia Brandel is 5-1 against Gannon and 3-7 against Grand Valley State.
Big Day For Buckner - Senior Morgan Buckner surpassed the 1,400 kill mark on Friday (Nov. 3) against Saginaw Valley State. Buckner had 14 kills against the Cardinals and added 10 more on Saturday (Nov. 4) against Northwood. She now has 1,415 kills in her career and remains in fifth place on the all-time career kill chart at Ferris State. A year ago, she became the ninth player in Ferris State history to record 1,000 career kills. Besides recording her 1,400th kill against Saginaw Valley State, Buckner also posted her 750th career dig. She now has 756 career digs.
VanderMolen Climbing - Senior Sarah VanderMolen needs 12 kills to move into seventh place on the all-time career kills chart at Ferris State. The 5-11 hitter has 1,229 kills in her career. Stephanie Chaffin currently sits in seventh place with 1,240 kills in her career (1989-92). VanderMolen needs 31 digs to move into seventh place on the career digs chart at Ferris State. This season, the All-American candidate became the 10th player in Ferris State history to record 1,000 career kills. On Oct. 27 at Grand Valley State, VanderMolen also became the eighth player in the 28-year history of Bulldog volleyball to record 1,000 career digs and the fifth player at Ferris State to record both 1,000 career kills and 1,000 career digs. VanderMolen recorded her ninth triple-double performance of the season on Saturday (Nov. 4) against Northwood as she had 12 kills and 17 digs.
Regional Rankings - All eight schools participating in the GLIAC Tournament are ranked in the latest Great Lakes Regional ratings. The last ratings came out on Oct. 25. New ratings come out on Wednesday. Ferris State was ranked eighth. The top six teams in each of the eight regions advance to the NCAA Tournament. Northwood is the top team in the region. Grand Valley State was No. 2 and Northern Michigan was No. 4. Findlay, Hillsdale, Gannon and Michigan Tech were also ranked. Regional parings will be released on Sunday. The Great Lakes Regional is slated to take place Nov. 17-19 at a site to be determined.
Bulldog Bites - Earlier this year, the Bulldogs became the first team in school history to start the season 10-0. . .Junior Erin Minnis has reached double-figures in kills in all but four matches this season. . .Coach Tia Brandel needs two wins to move into a tie for second place on the career victory list at Ferris State. She has a 105-55 mark in five seasons with the Bulldogs and recorded her 100th victory at Ferris State on Oct. 6 at Wayne State. . .With 21 wins this season, the Bulldogs are the 14th team in the 28-year history of Ferris State volleyball to record a 20-win season. . .Freshman setter Jamie Wirth ranks second in the conference in assists at 11.82 per game. . .Senior Libby Martz has reached double-figures in digs in five of the past six contests and needs 33 digs to become the ninth player in Ferris State history to record 1,000 career digs.