BGSU Volleyball to Host Alumnae Match on Saturday at 1 p.m.

Saturday, August 22

Bowling Green, Ohio

1:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

Alumnae Match

Photo by: BGSU Strategic Communications

August 21, 2015 | Volleyball

By: by Kevin Davis, Assistant Director for Athletic Communications

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Bowling Green, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University women's volleyball team will continue its preseason preparation with an Alumnae Match this Saturday, Aug. 22, at 1 p.m. in the Stroh Center. The match is open to the public with free admission and free parking for the event.

The 2015 Falcons will play against a number of former Falcon volleyball players with the match set to start at 1 p.m. The BGSU volleyball program will host an informal meet and greet with the players and alumnae at the conclusion of the match. All parents and season ticket holders are invited to the post match event.

The alumnae roster includes Danielle Tonyan, Kelsey Bates, Ashley Dunn, Leah Shaw, Erica Fullenkamp, Cassie Berning (Zerkle), Lindsey Butterfield, Kaitlyn Skinner and Laura Avila.

"We are very excited to welcome back our alumnae and have a chance to play an exhibition match against them. This will be homecoming for the members of our historic 2012 MAC Championship team and it will be great to see them play in the Stroh Center again," stated head coach Danijela Tomic. "Tomorrow is also our first opportunity to introduce to the Falcon fans our 2015 team and showcase all the hard work that our players have put in over the last two week of practice. It will give us coaches a chance to play different lineups and give our freshmen their first real collegiate experience. Every time our players put on their BGSU orange and brown uniforms this year, they will be rehearsing for the MAC Championship match. Saturday will be our first rehearsal and we can't wait for it."

Coach Tomic, who is in her fourth year at BGSU, has a young team in 2015 with four juniors, two sophomores and five freshmen. However, the 2015 squad returns five starters from last year's team and six letterwinners overall.

Junior libero Madeline Garda and junior defensive specialist Delaney Arkeilpane headline a group of defensive specialists that includes freshmen Ryann Cox and Kallie Seimet. Last season, Garda led the MAC in digs in conference play with an average of 5.88 per set and finished second overall in the MAC with 4.89 digs per contest on the year. She also led the team with a total of 513 digs and ranked third with 14 service aces on the season. Arkeilpane, who started in 27 matches for BGSU last season, posted a team-best .953 serve receive percentage and ranked third on the team in digs with 197 in 2014.

Cox and Seimet, who both hail from Oregon, Ohio, will add depth on the backline for the Falcons. Cox led her Toledo St. Ursula Academy team to a combined record of 82-4 over her final three seasons, winning a trio of Three Rivers Athletic Conference (TRAC) Championships, while Seimet was named to the All-District and All-League Teams as a senior in 2014 when she helped her Clay High School team to a second-place finish in the TRAC.

Sophomore Katie Scholten will take over at the setter position for the Falcons in 2015 after battling injuries for part of her freshman campaign in 2014. Scholten played in 20 matches last season, where she was fourth on the team with 12 service aces and was one of five players with at least 100 digs on the year. Arkeilpane could also see time at the setter spot throughout the season.

On the outside, the Falcons return a 2014 All-MAC First-Team selection in junior Jelena Sunjic and sophomore Nicole Slimko, and add freshmen Isabel Kovacic to a complete a talented group of outside and right side hitters. Despite missing almost the entire non-conference slate and two league matches due to injury last year, Sunjic still earned All-MAC recognition with 168 kills overall and an average of 3.00 kills per set in just 15 matches in 2014. She posted a team-best .246 attack percentage in 2014 and was fourth on the team with 37 total blocks.

In her freshman season last year, Slimko led the Falcons with 340 kills overall and an average of 3.24 kills per set. She recorded at least 10 kills in a match 15 different times on the season and posted a career-high 31 kills in a five-set win over Wright State which were the most kills by a single player in the MAC in a single match on the season. In 2014, Slimko was also second on the team with 22 service aces and fourth with 192 digs.

Kovacic will look to make an immediate impact for the Falcons, as the 2015 newcomer totaled 226 kills, 73 blocks and 68 digs as a senior in 2014 in which she led her team to a 25-3 overall record, a league championship and a state runner-up finish.

Coach Tomic will have a trio of players at the middle of the net in junior Alyssa Maloney and the freshmen duo of Mahlia Blair and Madeline Brandewie. Maloney, the most experienced player of the trio, returns after playing in all 28 matches for the Falcons in 2014. Last year, she was second on the team with 86 blocks and fifth in kills with an average of 1.48 per set.

Blair and Brandewie, who both played club volleyball for Mintonette Sports, bring a lot of athleticism to the middle for the Falcons. A two-time all-conference selection, Blair led her Dublin Coffman High School team to four Ohio Capital Conference Championships and four district championships. Brandewie, who was named to the All-Central Catholic League First-Team and the All-District Second-Team as a senior last year, led her Bishop Hartley team to a 21-4 overall record. She was also a key player on her high school teams that were the 2013 regional runner-up, 2012 district runner-up and state champions in 2011.

Fans can still purchase season tickets for the 2015 season online at BGSUFalcons.com/tickets, by phone at 877-BGSU TICKET, or in person at the BGSU Ticket Office, located in the Stroh Center. Season ticket renewals can be completed by calling or visiting the BGSU Ticket Office.

Season tickets at the Stroh Center for the 2015 volleyball season start as low as $48 for general admission and just $75 for courtside seating. Volleyball season ticket holders receive exclusive benefits such as chalk talk sessions hosted by head coach Danijela Tomic, a ticket exchange program, exclusive ticket discounts to other BGSU sporting events, complimentary parking and complimentary video board messages.

The Falcons will open up the 2015 regular season at the Blue Raider Bash hosted by Middle Tennessee State University on Aug. 28-29. On Aug. 28, the Falcons will take on Indiana at 1 p.m., before playing the host Blue Raiders in the night cap at 6:30 p.m.

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