Confident Chippewa Volleyball Team Opens MAC Play

MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich -- The Central Michigan volleyball team, off to its best start in recent memory, opens Mid-American Conference play this weekend with a pair of road games.

CMU will start the weekend in DeKalb, Ill. against Northern Illinois on Friday, Sept. 27 (7 p.m.). The second game of the weekend is in Kalamazoo against Western Michigan on Saturday, Sept. 28 (5 p.m.).

Last Weekend
CMU is 10-2 after defeating Eastern Illinois, Robert Morris, and Youngstown State at the Youngstown State Red & White Invitational. The Chippewas have won five consecutive games and nine straight sets after dropping their first two sets in the tournament to Eastern Illinois.

Confidence, But Starting From Scratch
"It's kind of like a double edge sword because you want to use the momentum that we've gained from pre-conference, and yet everybody is now 0-0," CMU coach Mike Gawlik said. "I feel like I've been trying to harp on that to our team. These 10 wins are good, and we have to use the lessons to start over.

"The 10 wins don't necessarily help us achieve most of the goals that we had in the preseason, which were a lot of MAC goals, like being stronger in the MAC West, or winning the MAC, or making a (league) tournament run. I feel like the lessons we learned are great, and the experience we gained is important. But, we're still at the base of the mountain."

Western Weekend
The volleyball team won't be the only CMU team to play on the Saturday in Kalamazoo. Before Saturday's game, the CMU football team will take on the Broncos at Waldo Stadium. The game kicks off at noon.

This provides fans with the unique opportunity to experience the Chippewas-Broncos rivalry twice in one day.

"I think it's a cool weekend for our fans," Gawlik said. "It's a cool weekend for the rivalry for both sports to be on the same campus at the same time. I think our football team is much improved from a year ago, and I am a fan of the team. I think our team is much improved from a year ago as well. It will be a unique opportunity for fans to see both games."

Scouting
The Broncos are 9-3 and last weekend went 1-2 in their own Delta Hotel by Marriott Kalamazoo Conference Center Tournament. Western defeated IUPUI and fell to Auburn and to Michigan State in the tournament. The Broncos won their first eight matches of the season, claiming two tournament titles.

NIU is 3-11 and is coming off losses to South Dakota and Bradley at the Bradley Tournament. The Huskies have lost four consecutive games.

Numbers
The Chippewas are holding their opponents to a .156 hitting percentage, which is the best in the MAC. CMU is hitting .217 as a team, fifth in the league.

The Chippewas are second in the conference in kills per set (13.23) and assists per set (12.56), and third in digs per set (16.42).

Western ranks second in the MAC in hitting percentage (.225).

Individually, CMU's Kalina Smith ranks third in the conference in kills per set (3.37) and points per set (3.73). The Chippewas' Lisbeth Rosario-Martinez is third in the MAC with 17 aces, while libero Megan Kern is third in the league in digs per set (5.16).

NIU's Jasmine Kemp is second in the league in hitting percentage (.389). Western's Rachel Bontrager leads the MAC in kills per set (3.71) and points (4.24).

Next
The Chippewas will go on the road on Thursday, Oct. 3 (7 p.m.), for a league match at Eastern Michigan, and then will finally return home to play their first match in McGuirk Arena since Sept. 7 when they entertain Kent State on Saturday, Oct. 5 (8 p.m.).

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Players Mentioned

Megan Kern

Lisbeth Rosario-Martinez

Kalina Smith