THIS WEEK
The Western Michigan volleyball team tries to bounce
back after losing in the Mid-American Conference Tournament at the
Miami Thanksgiving Classic. The Broncos will play No. 15 Dayton on
Friday and Xavier on Saturday. The Flyers and Musketeers played in the
Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament championship game last weekend with
Dayton winning in three.
LAST WEEK
Western Michigan was upset in the quarterfinals of the MAC Tournament by No. 7 seed Eastern Michigan, 3-1.
Michelle Moore led WMU with 23 kills and Caitlin Strimel posted 33 digs.
MAC WEST CHAMPIONS
With a 12-4 mark in the MAC, WMU lived up to
preseason expectations (MAC West favorites in MAC Preseason Poll) and
claimed its first division title since 2000 and the second in school
history. The Broncos' 12-4 league slate is the best since the 2000
squad went 17-1 in conference action.
D?JA VU
For the third time in as many seasons, WMU has
notched 20 wins. The Broncos are 21-10 this season entering the MAC
Tournament after winning 21 matches in 2006 and 20 in 2005.
This is the best stretch for WMU since winning 20 matches in seven consecutive seasons from 1981-87.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
For the first time in school history, a WMU player
was named MAC Defensive Player of the Year when Caitlin Strimel won the
honor in voting by league coaches.
Strimel led the MAC in digs in conference matches
(6.07 dpg) and was second overall and 18th in the country with 5.87
digs per game.
Her 628 digs this season is second at WMU and ninth
in MAC history. Strimel's 1,328 career assists is also second all-time
at WMU.
ALL-CONFERENCE HONORS
Western Michigan had four players named to the MAC All-Conference Teams.
Moore was named First Team All-MAC after leading the
MAC in kills (517) and kills per game (4.79) in all matches and in
conference matches (296-5.10 kpg). Entering this weekend, Moore is 26th
in the country in kills per game. With 517 kills, Moore became only the
fifth Bronco in school history to surpass 500 kills in a season.
Ashley Vogl was named Second Team All-MAC after
finishing 10th in the MAC in attack percentage (.278). She was second
on the team with 354 kills and and third in total blocks with 87.
In addition to being named the league's best defensive player, Strimel was also named Second Team All-MAC.
Allyson Doyle was named to the MAC All-Freshman Team
after posting 274 kills, 351 digs and 89 total blocks in her
first season of collegiate volleyball.
MAC WEST PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
For the fifth time this season, a Western Michigan
player was named MAC West Player of the Week. Katie Eberling won on
10/29 for her performance that included a 21-kill, 24-dig match against
NIU and a career-high five blocks vs. BGSU.
Vogl won the award on 10/15 with 23 kills and a .487
attack percentage in matches against Akron and Buffalo. This is the
second award this season for Vogl and third of her career.
Strimel won the award on 10/1 for picking up 7.70
digs per game (77) in three victories against Illinois-Chicago, Eastern
Michigan and Central Michigan. During the week she became only the
fourth player in school history to reach 1,000 career digs.
For her efforts against Northern Illinois and Miami,
Moore won her first MAC West Player of the Week award on 9/24. She
finished the week hitting .237 with 45 kills for an impressive 5.00
kills per game average and a grand total of 50 points.
Vogl won (8/27) for her performance at the UNI
Invitational when she finished with 37 kills (4.11 kpg), a .448 attack
percentage, 10 digs and five blocks to be named to the all-tournament
team.
QUOTING HEAD COACH COLLEEN MUNSON
“We are very disappointed that our MAC Tournament
run ended in the quarterfinals. As a team we have acknowledged that is
not the way we want to represent our program and although there is
nothing we can do now to change the outcome of the 2007 MAC Tournament,
we have already begun preparing for 2008.
“We have the opportunity to play two very good teams
from the Atlantic 10 and we look forward to playing this level of
competition that will challenge us to compete at a higher level as the
preparations for 2008 continue.”
SERIES INFO
Western Michigan is 3-0 against Dayton with all
three of the previous meetings also coming on a neutral floor and 1-1
against Xavier with the only victory coming on a neutral floor in 1999.
MILESTONE ACHIEVED
Western Michigan head coach Colleen Munson won her
100th career match (115-132) on Sept. 7 vs. Marshall. In her third
season at WMU, Munson has led the Broncos to a 62-34 record, three
20-win seasons and the 2007 MAC West championship. WMU has finished
second or better in the MAC West in every year of her tenure.
GETTING STINGY
The Broncos weren't very generous in allowing points
to the opposition in October. Starting with game four against Toledo
(10/6), the Broncos didn't allowed 20 points or more in seven straight
games, a new school record. The old record was four against Loyola
(Ill.) and Niagara on Sept. 12, 2003.
WMU finished the season on an equally defensive note
by winning six straight games against Toledo and Ball State without
allowing 20 points.
Overall, WMU held opponents under 20 points in 29-of-108 games or 26.9 percent of the time this season.
ALMOST PERFECT
Vogl almost broke a national record with 18 kills in
20 attempts and no errors for a .900 attack percentage against Eastern
Kentucky (8/31). That is tied for second nationally for players with 20
or more attempts (.955, 21-0-22 is the record). It's also the
second-best overall mark in WMU history and tied for seventh in MAC
history behind the current record holder, former WMU standout Shaylen
Jackson (11-0-11, 1.000, 2004 vs. Maine).
MOORE KILLS, MOORE PROBLEMS
Moore has been the top offensive weapon for WMU
throughout much of the season with double-figure kills in all but one
match, including a career-high 28 at Miami (9/22), 25 at Northern
Illinois (10/25), 24 vs. Eastern Michigan (9/28), 23 at Toledo (10/6)
and vs. Eastern Michigan (11/16), 22 vs. Kent State (10/20) and 20 vs.
IPFW (9/1) and at Eastern Michigan (11/3). Her 25 kills in a four-game
match at NIU is fifth all-time, as are her 20 kills at EMU for a
three-game match.
DIGGING MACHINE
In a win over UIC (9/25), Strimel had 27 digs,
second all-time in a three-game match, to reach 1,000 career digs. She
is only the fourth player in school history to achieve that feat and
has moved to second all-time with 1,328 digs career digs and 628 digs
this season.
Strimel also had 32 digs vs. Northern Illinois
(9/20) and 31 digs vs. EMU (9/28) and Kent State (10/20) to rank third
and fourth all-time in a four-game match and 29 at Eastern Michigan
(11/3) and 24 vs. Wright State (8/25) to rank first and fifth in a
three-game match.
As a team, Strimel has paced the Broncos to 31st
nationally and third in the MAC with 18.89 digs per game. The Broncos
have also had two of the best four-game matches in school history with
117 digs vs. KSU (second all-time) and 97 vs. IPFW (fifth all-time).
EBS AND FLOWS
Eberling had a match to remember at Buffalo on 10/12
when she set a new school record with seven service aces. The 2006 MAC
All-Freshman Team member is second in digs (352) after notching a
career-high 24 vs. Northern Illinois (9/20) and at NIU (10/25) and 22
vs. Kent State (10/20) and third in kills (325) after hitting 23 vs.
IPFW (9/1), 21 at NIU (10/25), 19 at EMU (11/2) and 18 at Miami (9/22).
She is tied for the team lead with 12 double-doubles and her 30 career
double-doubles is fourth all-time.
SETTING THE TABLE
The setting combination of sophomore Jillian
Mitchell and freshman Sam Viox have positioned WMU as one of the top
attacking teams in the nation. Nationally, WMU is 24th in assists per
game (15.31) and 29th in kills per game (16.36). Both of those marks
are second in the MAC.
Viox leads the team with 962 assists and is fourth
in the MAC with 12.02 assists per game, including 56 at EMU (11/2),
second-best in a three-game match.
Mitchell has set WMU to four MAC victories and a win
over 2006 NCAA Tournament team Kentucky (8/25). Mitchell is seventh in
service aces per game in conference play (0.41) after a career-high
five against Akron (10/13).
BLOCK PARTY
Freshman Jaime Gotham was the M.C. for the Broncos'
block party against Central Michigan (9/26). She tied the school record
with eight block assists against the Chippewas and the team tied the
school recod with 26 block assists. Over the weekend of Oct. 25-27, she
had a career-high two solo blocks in both matches and a career-high
nine total blocks at NIU (10/25). Gotham is third in the MAC with 1.15
blocks per game and fifth in attack percentage (.294). She recently set
a new career high in kills with 16 vs. Toledo (11/9).
OH, DOYLE RULES
Doyle had her best match of the season with 19
kills, 16 digs and .487 attack percentage vs. Indiana (9/8). Against
Kent State (10/20), she racked up a career-high 24 digs. She's tied for
the team lead 12 double-doubles and is second in total blocks (89),
third in digs (351) and fourth in kills (274).
