Pack The Stroh For BGSU's Big Matchups Versus Miami And Western Michigan

Thursday, September 27

Bowling Green, Ohio

6:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

Miami

Pack The Stroh For BGSU's Big Matchups Versus Miami And Western Michigan

September 25, 2018 | Volleyball

By: by Edward Perez, BGSU Athletic Communications

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University volleyball program are back in the Stroh Center for their first pair of conference matchups at home. The Falcons are set to face the Miami RedHawks (10-4 overall, 2-0 MAC) on Thursday, Sept. 27, and the Western Michigan Broncos (10-6, 0-2) on Saturday, Sept. 29.

The Falcons have partnered with GoForTheGoal to help raise awareness for awareness for pediatric cancer; the team will wear gold shoelaces in their match versus Miami in support of this initiative.

Saturday's match against Western Michigan will be Fan Appreciation Day. Tickets for the match will be only $1 when purchased in advance; Hotdogs, popcorn, and soda will also be $1 at the concessions stands.

FOLLOW THE FALCONS
• Live stats throughout the weekend will be provided by BGSU athletics.
• Both matchups will be streamed on ESPN3.
• The Bowling Green Radio Sports Organization (BGRSO) will be in the Stroh Center to provide live coverage of an action-packed week for the Falcons volleyball program.
• All links can be accessed at the top of this page, or by visiting the volleyball schedule page at BGSUFalcons.com.

COACH TOMIC FEATURED ON FALCONS NEST COACHES SHOW
Coach Tomic was featured in Monday evening's edition of the Falcons Nest Coaches Show to preview a big week for the BGSU volleyball program.

On the Akron result
"If you look at the box score, they actually outplayed us, and we were not as disciplined as we needed to be, there was no effort. One [of] the things I told them I told is, 'I don't believe in perfection, but we believe in perfect effort and it starts in the defense; it starts with that attitude that you are going to sacrifice your body and you will go after every ball'."

On Kallie Seimet leading the NCAA in digs per set
"I found out that she is first again in the NCAA, but there are liberos from the MAC in second place and third place, and it tells you about the quality of defense in the MAC, but Kallie is just outstanding… she has a very high standard for herself and she is putting the work in, and she is an ultimate team player."

On Thursday's match against the Miami RedHawks
"A bunch of their players graduated last year, but they are still very good… They run a six-two offense which means they have two setters, and they will always have three attackers in the front row so they put a lot of pressure in their attack. Their two middles have a great defense, so we'll start preparing for them tomorrow. Our team likes playing against Miami, it's a really good rivalry. We were co-champions with them last year, and we didn't like that; we want to be champions."

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SCOUTING THE MIAMI REDHAWKS
• Miami will enter Thursday's completion with an overall record of 10-4. The RedHawks are on a win streak of four matches after going undefeated (2-0) against Akron and Buffalo in the first weekend of MAC play.
• The Falcons were co-champions of the Mid-American Conference Regular Season with Miami in 2017. Both teams went 13-3 in conference last season; Miami were awarded the No. 1 seed in the MAC Tournament. The Redhawks went on to win the tournament, the Falcons fell to Western Michigan in semi-finals.
• In 2017, the Falcons split matches against Miami in the regular season, falling to the RedHawks 3-1 in Oxford, and beating them 3-1 at home.

SCOUTING THE WESTERN MICHIGAN BRONCOS
• The Broncos are 0-2 in conference play after suffering defeats in a pair of home matchups against Ball State (1-3) and Toledo (2-3).
• The Broncos have accumulated 789 kills as a team this season, putting them at No. 15 in the NCAA team kills category.
• Western Michigan sophomore Rachel Bontranger ranks highly in several NCAA categories. Bontranger is 10^th in total attacks (696), 14^th in total kills (244), and 10^th in total points with 279.
• The Falcons defeated Western Michigan in the 2017 regular season (3-1), but fell to Broncos in the MAC Tournament semi-finals (1-3).

STATISTICAL LEADERS FOR THE FALCONS
• Kallie Seimet leads the NCAA in digs per set with an average of 6.28. The libero from Oregon, Ohio is currently at 339 digs this season, putting her in fourth in the NCAA total digs category.
• Isabelle Marciniak continues to lead the team in assists with 480. Having played 52 sets this season, she is averaging 9.23 assists per set.
• Madeline Brandewie's 20 kills against Akron was a season high for the middle hitter, and put her up top as the new leader in kills for the Falcons with 116. Brandewie's swinging percentage for the season is .264.
• Katie Kidwell has been involved in 54 blocks. Kidwell has accumulated nine solo blocks and 45 block assists this season.

FALCONS PICKED TO FINISH SECOND IN MAC EAST
• Bowling Green was picked to finish second in the East Division, as voted on by the conference's 12 head coaches.
• The Falcons received three votes to win the regular season, and one vote to win the 2018 MAC Tournament.
• Ohio was picked to win the East Division, regular-season title, and tournament title. Ball State was picked to win the MAC West.
• Additionally, senior libero Kallie Seimet and sophomore middle blocker Katie Kidwell were selected to the seven-member Preseason East All-MAC Team.
• Seimet averaged 6.81 digs per set last year to lead the country. In fact, it marked the second-straight season that a Falcon led the nation in the category, as Madeline Garda averaged 6.66 digs per set in 2016.

UP NEXT
• Next week, the Falcons will host Kent State (Oct. 5), and Ohio (Oct. 6) for their fourth straight in the Stroh Center.