FSU Volleyball At A Glance - The Ferris State University women’s volleyball team will take part in the Great Lakes Region Crossover this Friday and Saturday (Sept. 12-13) at Highland Heights, Ky. The Bulldogs are slated to face Southern Indiana and West Virginia Wesleyan in non-conference action Friday at 2:30 p.m. (EDT) and 5 p.m. (EDT), respectively. FSU will then square off against tournament host Northern Kentucky and Fairmont State (W.Va) Saturday in 12:30 p.m. (EDT) and 5:30 p.m. (EDT) non-league matches, respectively. Six schools each from the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC), Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) and the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WVIAC) are taking part in the two-day event.

A Look Back – FSU compiled a 1-2 mark in the Grand Valley State Days Inn Classic last weekend (Sept. 5-6) at Allendale, Mich. The Bulldogs claimed their first victory of the 2003 campaign last Friday (Sept. 5) by defeating Alderson-Broaddus (W.Va.), 3-0. Ferris then lost consecutive 3-2 matches versus North Alabama and Wheeling Jesuit (W.Va.) last Friday and Saturday (Sept. 6), respectively. North Alabama (No. 13) and Wheeling Jesuit (No. 24) were both ranked in the latest (Sept. 2) American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division II Top 25 Coaches Poll.

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 advanced to the NCAA Division II Great Lakes Regional Tournament (11/22) before dropping a 3-2 decision to Wheeling Jesuit in Allendale, Mich.

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 653-381 (.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.

Leading The Way – 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) have been voted tri-captains for the 2003 campaign. Green was both a first-team All-GLIAC and AVCA All-Great Lakes Region selection last season while Godlewski attained honorable mention All-GLIAC kudos. Fairbanks ranked second (3.73 kgp) among Ferris’ kills leaders in 2002.

On The Road – Ferris State is 565-270 (.677) overall since 1981 and sports a 372-218 (.631) record in road/neutral site matches during that span.

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 118-50 (.702) 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.

GLIAC Player Of The Week – Karla Fairbanks has been named this week’s (Sept. 8) GLIAC North Division Player of the Week after registering 62 kills, 24 digs and eight total blocks in three matches at the GVSU Days Inn Classic. Fairbanks, who was named to the GVSU Days Inn Classic All-Tournament Team, notched a personal career-high 35 kills versus North Alabama, which presently ranks as the second-best single-match output in school history. She also recorded 14 digs and a .625 attack percentage against the Lions. Fairbanks added 16 kills and 17 digs versus Wheeling Jesuit while totaling 11 kills and seven digs against Alderson-Broaddus. She is seven kills shy of registering her 700th career kill. Fairbanks became the first FSU player to notch 30 or more kills in a single match since Morgan Buckner (1997-00) tallied 30 against Minnesota State-Mankato (10/30/98).

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 269-100 (.730) career mark, is 151-80 (.654) 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.

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.

Bulldog Bites - Brittny Godlewski registered her 300th career dig against North Alabama ........... Sophomore middle hitter Lauren Heine (Ypsilanti) totaled a personal career-high 11 kills while freshman outside hitter Danielle Baucher (Kalamazoo/Mattawan) recorded a personal-best 15 kills against North Alabama ....... Ashley Green notched her 2,400th career assist versus Alderson-Broaddus and presently has 2,552 career assists to date. The 5-9 Green needs 228 more to tie Lisa Chard (2,780; 1998-99) for fifth place on the school's career assists leaders list ....... Ferris head coach Tia Brandel-Wilhelm previously spent three seasons as head coach at West Virginia Wesleyan (1993-1995) in Buckhannon, W.Va., where she led the Bobcats to a fifth-place finish at the 1995 NCAA-II Championships. FSU will face WVWC for the first time this Friday ............. Sophomore middle hitter Becky Thurau (Troy/Birmingham Groves) garnered a personal career-high 17 kills versus Wheeling Jesuit ....... Sophomore setter Emily Clouse (Tiffin, Ohio/Bascom Hopewell-Loudon) recorded a personal career-high 10 digs against North Alabama .......... The Bulldogs’ first home match is slated for Thursday, Sept. 25, against Michigan Tech. The league match is scheduled for a 7 p.m. (EDT) start ...... All five of FSU’s losses this season have came against teams ranked in the latest (Sept. 2) AVCA Division II Coaches Top 25 Poll.

Against The Field - Ferris will take part in the Great Lakes Region Crossover this Friday and Saturday in Highland Heights, Ky.

Southern Indiana: Ferris State holds a 5-1 series edge entering this Friday’s meeting with Southern Indiana and defeated the Screaming Eagles 3-2 at the GLIAC/GLVC Challenge (9/13/02) in Allendale, Mich. The Screaming Eagles are currently 6-2 overall as a result of last Saturday’s (Sept. 6) 3-2 win over Findlay in the GLIAC/GLVC Challenge at Findlay, Ohio. USI compiled a 26-8 overall record in 2002, including a second-place 11-3 GLVC finish. Southern Indiana is coached by second-year head coach Craig Bere.

West Virginia Wesleyan: The Bulldogs will square off against West Virginia Wesleyan for the first time this Friday. WVWC tallied a 12-16 overall record and a fifth-place 9-4 WVIAC mark in 2002. The Bobcats, who are coached by first-year head coach Melissa Klein, are currently 0-4 overall heading into this Wednesday’s (Sept. 10) contest at West Virginia State and this Friday’s (Sept. 12) meeting with Wisconsin-Parkside following last Saturday’s (Sept. 6) 3-0 loss to Southern Illinois-Edwardsville in the Capital City Classic at Charleston, W.Va.

Northern Kentucky: The Bulldogs hold a 5-3 series advantage despite dropping a 3-2 decision to the Norse in the 2000 Fairview Inn Classic (9/9) at Midland, Mich. NKU posted a 22-10 overall record and a second-place 11-4 GLVC mark last season. The Norse, who are coached by third-year head coach Carlos Chia, are currently 3-5 overall heading into this Wednesday’s (Sept. 10) league home match versus Bellarmine (Ky.) and this Friday’s (Sept. 12) matches against Alderson-Broaddus (W.Va.) and Grand Valley State after last Saturday’s (Sept. 6) 3-1 triumph over Hillsdale in the GLIAC/GLVC Challenge at Findlay, Ohio.

Fairmont State: Ferris State holds a 3-0 series edge entering this Saturday’s meeting with Fairmont State and defeated the Falcons 3-0 at the Ferris State Invitational (8/24/01). The Falcons are currently 1-3 overall going into this Monday’s (Sept. 8) league road match at Salem International (W.Va.) as a result of last Thursday’s (Sept. 4) 3-2 non-conference home loss to Waynesburg (Pa.). FSC compiled a 19-13 overall record in 2002, including a sixth-place 8-5 WVIAC finish. Fairmont State is coached by 20th-year head coach Larry Hill.

Bulldog Athletics Luncheon – The initial Bulldog Athletics Luncheon of the 2003-04 athletics season will be held this Wednesday (Sept. 10) from 12-1 p.m. (EDT) at FSU’s Wheeler Pavilion located at Top Taggart Field. Featured speakers include FSU women’s volleyball head coach Tia Brandel-Wilhelm, football head coach Jeff Pierce and first-year women’s soccer head coach Melissa Eging. For more information, please contact the FSU Alumni Office at (231) 591-2345.

Looking Ahead - Ferris State will square off against Findlay in its 2003 GLIAC opener Friday, Sept. 19, at 7 p.m. (EDT) in Findlay, Ohio. The Bulldogs will then face Ashland Saturday, Sept. 20, in a 5 p.m. (EDT) conference tilt at Ashland, Ohio.