Broncos Return Home to Face Toledo, Ball State

Game Notes

Western Michigan Broncos vs. Ball State Cardinals
Saturday, September 29 // 5 p.m.
Broncos lead series 39-35 // Broncos 21-10 vs. Cardinals at home
Live Stats // Live Video // Live Chat

• This will be the 55th ever meeting between the Broncos and the Rockets, with WMU holding a 45-9 edge in the all-time series, including a perfect 24-0 record at home.
• This will be the 75th meeting between the Broncos and the Cardinals, with WMU holding a 39-35 edge in the rivalry, including a 21-10 record in University Arena.
• WMU is 13-3 against Toledo under Colleen Munson, and 10-4 against Ball State
• Lena Oliver passed Katie Eberling for fourth on the career digs list at Western Michigan, and is now the fourth player in program history to reach 1,600 career digs
• Kaycee Acree has recorded 25 digs in two of her last three matches
• The Broncos recorded 100 team digs against Eastern Michigan on Sept. 21, the first time they’ve broken triple-digits in a match since Oct. 8, 2010, when thay had 128 against the Eagles
• Jessica Brown needs 36 kills to pass Liz Gunn for sixth place on the career kills list at Western Michigan
• Jessica Brown is the only player in the MAC to rank in the top-10 in both kills and hitting percentage
• Ali Gossen is averaging a career-best 2.98 kills/set in 2012
• Stephenee Yancy had a career-high 12 kills against Eastern Michigan
• The Broncos are 48-9 against MAC opponents at home under Colleen Munson
• Kaycee Acree needs four more digs to reach 500 for her career

Oliver To Receive National Award
There will be a special pre-match ceremony before the Broncos take on the Toledo Rockets on Friday evening, as junior libero Lena Oliver will receive her COBRA Magazine National Defensive Player of the Year award for the 2011 season.  Oliver ranked among the national leaders in digs in 2011, tying a program record with 700 digs over the course of the season.

Oliver Hits 1,600
Lena Oliver reached a rare milestone in WMU volleyball history earlier this year, as the junior libero reached 1,601 career digs in the match against Central Michigan.  Oliver is just the fourth player in program history to surpass 1,600 career digs, and with 48 more, she will pass Katy Duffy and Allyson Doyle for second on the career digs list at Western Michigan.

Two Way Player
Terin Norris set a team record with 18 Assists-Digs double-doubles in 2011, and appears to be off to the same kind of start in 2012.  Norris has recorded eight double-doubles already in 2012.

Offensive Attack Among the Best
In the most recent MAC and NCAA rankings, the Broncos’ offense ranks among the very best in the nation.  WMU leads the MAC in both assists and kills per set, figures that rank fourth and 23rd in NCAA Division I, respectively.

Digging to the Century Mark
The Broncos recorded 100 digs against Eastern Michigan on Sept. 21, the first time the Broncos recorded 100+ digs in a match in 59 matches.  The previous time the Broncos broke 100 digs in a match came on October 8, 2010, when WMU had 128 digs against Eastern Michigan.