Chippewa Volleyball Hits the Road
10/14/2015 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Cullen Maksimowski, CMUChippewas.com
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. — Ask any member of the Central Michigan volleyball team what the approach on the court has been recently and they will reply, "Just having fun out there."
That approach seems to be working. CMU finished 2-0 last weekend, scoring Mid-American conference victories over Ball State and Toledo at home.
The Chippewas, 8-11, 3-3 in the MAC, will aim to bring that recipe for success to Ohio, as they prepare for a Thursday evening matchup with Miami, 12-7, 4-2, and a Friday match at Bowling Green, 5-14, 1-5.
"They're a good team, second best RPI team in the conference," associate head coach Theresa Beeckman. "They are just kind of experienced and they have some confidence from the MAC tournament last year for sure."
The Redhawks, who fell in the championship game at the MAC Tournament last season, rank fourth in the league in average kills, assists and digs per set and also own a 7-0 record at home this season.
"Our big focus has just been our energy and maintaining emotional control," senior middle blocker Angie White said. "It's the same thing as when we are at home, we have just as many fans as other teams (when we're) away sometimes, and it's even more fun to shut people down in their own gym.
"It doesn't really matter if they haven't lost on their home court at all, it will be their first time."
The Chippewas are third in the conference in hitting percentage (.225) and blocks per set (2.20) and are 1-5 away from McGuirk Arena this year.
"We're not focused on what happened yesterday or the day before that," Beeckman said. "Our record on the road is completely irrelevant honestly. Right now it's all about our mindset, and getting the spirit we can accomplish anything we set out to do."
CMU will remain in Ohio for a matchup with Bowling Green on Friday night. While Miami is tied for second in the MAC East with Kent State, the Falcons are tied for fifth in the East.
The Falcons are in last place in the MAC East with a 5-14 record, 1-5 in the conference. The Chippewas are tied for third place with Eastern Michigan and Ball State in the MAC West.
"The game doesn't know," Beeckman said, quoting former UCLA softball coach Sue Enquist. "The game doesn't know how good you're supposed to be; it doesn't know what your record is or what your opponent's record is.
"They're taking that seriously right now, I think that's a pretty exciting thing."
Jordan Bueter leads the Chippewas with 3.23 kills per set, while Taylor Robertson averages 2.45 and Jessica Meichtry is at 2.29. Bueter also leads CMU with 28 service aces. Setter Kathia Sanchez is averaging 8.90 assists per set, and libero Jamison Wolffis is averaging 4.20 digs per set.
