Bowling Green State University Athletics
Friday, September 19
Rochester, Mich.
5 PM
Bowling Green State University
at
Oakland
Falcons Conclude Pre-MAC Slate This Weekend
September 16, 2014 | Volleyball
Complete Game Notes (.pdf)
Tournament Central
PRE-CONFERENCE CAMPAIGN CLOSES OUT THIS WEEKEND
BGSU will look to build some momentum this weekend at the Oakland Invitational to conclude the pre-conference season. At 2-7 on the year, the Falcons compete three times over the weekend before beginning conference play the following weekend at Buffalo and at Akron.
FOLLOW THE FALCONS
All three matches during the weekend can be followed via live stats, courtesy of www.ougrizzlies.com. BGRSO will be on-hand to provide flagship audio coverage of all three matches as well and there will be live video of the Oakland match available. Links to all are located at BGSUFalcons.com. Follow along on Twitter via @BGSUVolleyball.
ABOUT OAKLAND
The Oakland Golden Grizzlies enter the Oakland Invitational riding a four-match winning streak, which includes an Army Tournament sweep of Binghamton, Holy Cross, and Army. In the three tournament victories, Ciara Schultz led the way with 47 assists vs. Binghamton, 38 vs. Holy Cross, and 52 vs. Army. Schultz is currently 24th in the nation in total assists with 412. Oakland has been a successful serving team, ranking 23rd in the country in service aces, with Allia Knight leading the way. Head Coach Rob Beam is in his eighth season as head coach of the Golden Grizzlies, with an all-time record of 105-108.
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ABOUT UC IRVINE
At the conclusion of play in last weekend's MCM Elegante Lobo Invitational in Albuquerque, the UC Irvine Anteaters had a record of 6-4 before facing Eastern Michigan in Ypsilanti Thursday night. The Anteaters were 2-1 in that tournament, sweeping the first two matches over Bethune-Cookman and Montana State, before falling to New Mexico in four sets. Outside hitters Allison Lee and Cassidy Pickrell shared the team lead in kills in the loss to New Mexico, adding to the team total of 555, which ranks 22nd in the country. Pickrell will also look to extend her service ace total beyond her current total of 19, which ranks 21st in the NCAA. Head Coach Paula Weishoff, a three-time Olympian, is in her sixth season with the Anteaters, holding an overall record of 71-91.
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ABOUT ROBERT MORRIS
After being swept in three matches by Butler, Colorado, and Idaho State at the Omni Invitational last weekend, the Robert Morris Colonials held a record of 1-9 prior to a Wednesday night visit at Mid-American Conference foe Akron. The Colonials were swept in three sets in each contest of the tournament, despite Melissa Bograd showing some promise with 14 digs against Butler, and Sydney Sizemore posting 20 digs and three kills against Idaho State. The Colonials look to get back on the winning track behind Head Coach Dale Starr, who is in his fifth season with the team.
LAST TIME OUT
BGSU went 0-3 at the Bluejay Invitational over the weekend, losing a wild five-set match to Wichita State before three-set losses to Creighton and Pepperdine. Kelsey Bates was named to the all-tournament team after posting 2.36 kills and 1.27 blocks per set. In a crazy loss to Wichita State to open the tournament, the Falcons scored 124 points, the most in NCAA history by a losing team in the 25-point era (since 2008). BGSU's 35-33 fourth-set win was the highest scoring set in program history in the 25-point era.
FALCONS PICKED THIRD IN MAC EAST
BGSU Volleyball was picked to finish third in the Mid-American Conference East Division, as voted on by the league's 12 head coaches. Ohio was picked to win the East, followed by Buffalo. Miami was chosen fourth, followed by Kent State and Akron.
SUNJIC NAMED PRESEASON ALL-MAC EAST
BGSU sophomore outside hitter Jelena Sunjic was named to the Preseason All-MAC East Division Team. After starting 20 times as a freshman a year ago, Sunjic was third on the team with 299 kills, averaging 2.79 kills per set. She also posted 66 blocks and was named to the All-MAC Freshman Team in 2013. She had a career-best 22 kills in a home win over Miami and posted double-digit kill totals 16 times.
AGE IS JUST A NUMBER
In just one year, the Bowling Green volleyball team goes from being one of the most experienced programs in the country to one of the least. Eleven of the team's 13 players are either freshmen or sophomores and seniors Erica Fullenkamp and Kelsey Bates are the only remnants from a squad that won the MAC Championship just two years ago.
SLIMKO HITS THE MAGIC NUMBER
Freshman outside hitter Nicole Slimko posted 31 kills in the team's five set victory over Wright State on Sept. 6, the most for a BGSU player since Oct. 8, 1999. Slimko recorded 10 kills in the first set to set the tone for the match and added eight more in the second. Her 31 kills are the most for a player in the MAC this year. There have been just 11 30-kill matches this year, with Oral Roberts' Laura Milos leading the way with a 38-kill performance.
AMONG THE BEST FRESHMEN IN THE COUNTRY
With 3.39 kills per set, Nicole Slimko ranks 18th nationally among all freshmen. Oral Roberts' Laura Milos is pacing the country's freshmen at 4.67 kills per set, 10th-best among all players in the nation. Slimko ranks 140th in the country among all players.
BLOCK PARTY
Senior Kelsey Bates and sophomore Alyssa Maloney have spearheaded a strong defensive effort at the net this year. As a team, the Falcons rank second in the MAC in blocks and Bates is third individually at 1.14 per set, ranking 78th nationally. The Falcons have recorded at least 10.0 blocks in a match four times this year, peaking with a conference-best 17.0 against Bakersfield.
MARATHON MATCH
Bowling Green and Wichita State combined to set a pair of NCAA records in their match at the Bluejay Invitational. Wichita State's 127 points were the most ever for a match in the 25-point era (since 2008) and Bowling Green's 124 points were the most for a losing team in the 25-point era. In fact, BGSU's 35-33 fourth-set win was the program's highest scoring set in the same 25-point era.
NOT AN UNCOMMON START
A 2-7 start to the season may not sound like a comfortable position to be in, but the Falcons are pretty familiar with this type of beginning and have rebounded well. The 2012 team started the year 2-6 and the 2013 squad was just 2-8. Both squads rebounded well with the 2012 team going 13-3 in the MAC and advancing to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The 2013 team was 2-8 before winning seven of its next eight contests and going 10-6 in the MAC.
GETTING TO .200
Bowling Green is 2-0 this year when hitting at least .200 and 0-7 when attacking below that number.
THE TOMIC FILE
BGSU volleyball coach Danijela Tomic is one of the winningest coaches in NCAA Division I, posting a career winning percentage of .681. At 196-95 overall, she is just four wins shy of 200 for her career. Tomic helped the Falcons to a 22-11 mark in her initial season at Bowling Green in 2012 and has guided BGSU to a 23-9 record in the Mid-American Conference over the past two seasons.
CHAMPIONS IN THE CLASSROOM
BGSU Volleyball has been recognized by the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) for 14 consecutive years for posting a team cumulative grade point average of 3.30 or higher. The string is the second-longest in the country among NCAA Division I institutions.
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