Chippewas Welcome Akron For Volleyball Showdown

MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. -- A matchup between the top two teams in the Mid-American Conference headlines an important weekend for the Central Michigan volleyball team at McGuirk Arena.

The Chippewas open the weekend on Friday, Oct. 25 (6 p.m.) against Akron, which is in first place in the MAC East. The Chippewas lead the West. Both teams are 7-1 in conference play.

CMU closes the weekend with a game against Buffalo on Saturday, Oct. 26 (5 p.m.).

Where They Stand
CMU is 17-3 after going 1-1 last weekend on a MAC road trip. The Chippewas defeated Bowling Green and then fell to Miami (Ohio). The loss was CMU's first in the league and it ended the Chippewas' win streak at 12 games.

CMU holds a two-game lead over second-place Ball State in the West; Akron, 14-5 overall, leads the East by one game over Miami (Ohio). The Zips have won three consecutive matches.

Buffalo is 7-13, 3-5 MAC. The Bulls won both of their MAC matches last weekend, topping Western Michigan and then Northern Illinois. The win over Western snapped a four-game losing streak.

Numbers
CMU ranks as one of the best statistical defensive teams in the MAC. The Chippewas are first in the conference in opponent hitting percentage (.150), opponent assists per set (10.91), opponents kills (11.72) and rank third in digs per set (17.48).

Offensively, CMU ranks first in the MAC in kills per set (13.40) and second in assists per set (12.64).

Individually, CMU's Kalina Smith is second in the conference in kills per set (3.41); Lisbeth Rosario-Martinez ranks third in hitting percentage (.352) and is fifth in aces per set (0.33). CMU libero Megan Kern is fourth in the conference in digs per set (5.15).

Battle Of The Best
Friday's matchup with Akron serves as one of the most important matchups of the season for CMU.

While CMU ranks as one of the best defensive teams in the conference, Akron is one of its best offensive squads, ranking first in hitting percentage (.225) and in aces per set (1.64).

"We know they're good, they know we're good, and I think it's going to be a fun matchup," CMU coach Mike Gawlik said. "This isn't the first good team we've played. Miami (Ohio), Bowling Green, WMU, Ball State have all stood out and have separated themselves as teams in the top half of the league.

"In some ways, we're treating this like we're playing other really good opponents. In other ways there's some extra incentive there … We know what's at stake."

Next
The weekend begins a five-game home stand for CMU. They entertain Western Michigan on Thursday, Oct. 31 (6 p.m.) and then welcome Northern Illinois on Saturday, Nov. 2 (5:30 p.m.).

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Players Mentioned

Megan Kern

Lisbeth Rosario-Martinez

Kalina Smith

Central Michigan University Athletics