ST. JOSEPH, Mo. - The Missouri Western volleyball team (14-4, 5-2 MIAA) will look to carry over last weekend's momentum to the road this weekend against Pittsburg State and Newman in Kansas. MWSU heads into the weekend third in the MIAA standings, only half a game out of second. 
 
Friday's match against the Gorillas is scheduled to start at 6:00 p.m. at John Lance Arena in Pittsburg, Kansas. The weekend will conclude on Saturday against the Jets in Wichita, Kansas, at 3:00 p.m. at Fugate Gymnasium.
 
RECAPPING LAST WEEKEND
The Griffons had a disappointing start last week, losing five sets to Northwest Missouri State. However, they bounced back with a strong four-set victory over Arkansas-Fort Smith before ending the weekend on a high note with a 3-1 win over No. 11 Central Oklahoma. With the weekend wins, Western improved to 4-0 at the MWSU Fieldhouse.
 
Nessa Johnson was named the MIAA Setter of the Week for the second time this season. The senior had an impressive weekend, achieving three consecutive double-doubles by recording 162 assists and 54 digs for the Griffons. She also set a career-high with 63 assists during the upset win over No. 11 Central Oklahoma and has now moved into fourth place all-time in assists at Missouri Western with a total of 2992.
 
Taylor Russell also shined on the offensive side of the court. The sophomore collected 53 kills on the outside, including a season-high 22 against Northwest Missouri State. She finished the weekend hitting .304 over the three-match stint and added an efficient .405 hitting percentage in the upset victory over UCO.
 
Libero Anna Weberg also shined over the weekend. The sophomore totaled 86 digs through 13 sets for 6.62 digs per set, which included a career-high 42 digs in the five-set loss to Northwest.
 
Senior Hailey Crane notched her 1,000th career dig against the Bearcats on Tuesday.
 
RACKING UP THE RANKED WINS
With the win against the Bronchos, MWSU picked up its third-ranked win of the season. They achieved their first-ranked victory of the season by sweeping No. 13 Regis at the Oredigger Classic and followed it with a five-set win over No. 24 Washburn at home.
 
Since week one, Missouri Western has received votes in the AVCA Coaches' Poll.

MIAA STANDINGS
 

School	Conf	CPct.	Overall	Pct.	Streak
Nebraska Kearney	7-0	1.000	19-0	1.000	W19
Central Oklahoma	5-1	.833	18-1	.947	L1
Missouri Western	5-2	.714	14-4	.778	W2
Washburn	4-3	.571	13-4	.765	L1
Emporia State	4-3	.571	12-5	.706	W1
Northwest Missouri	4-3	.571	10-7	.588	W1
Pittsburg State	4-3	.571	9-8	.529	W3
Arkansas-Fort Smith	3-3	.500	11-6	.647	L2
Central Missouri	3-4	.429	7-8	.467	W1
Fort Hays State	1-6	.143	9-7	.562	L6
Missouri Southern	1-6	.143	3-15	.167	L1
Newman	0-7	.000	3-18	.143	L5

 
TOP PERFORMERS
Russell has been great on the offensive side of the net, spearheading the Griffon offense with 196 kills (3.11 per set). Another key contributor to the offensive success is sophomore Holly Heldt, who has notched 191 kills and tops the MIAA with 35 service aces.
 
Johnson has had an outstanding season with 743 assists (11.26 assists per set), ranking second in the MIAA behind UNK's Peyton Neff. The senior has also tallied 204 digs, 39 kills and 21 blocks.
 
Senior Lily Kurz leads the league with 84 blocks (1.29 blocks per set) and has also recorded 100 kills. Weberg has gathered a team-high 319 digs (4.84 digs per set) and 42 assists.
 
ABOUT THE GORILLAS
Pittsburg State (9-8, 4-3 MIAA) has had a rollercoaster start to its season. After finishing non-conference 5-5, PSU struggled to find its footing in the opening stages of league play, going 1-3 on the first two weekends. However, the Gorillas head into tomorrow's game on a three-match winning streak, including a 3-1 victory last weekend against Central Missouri. Last season, they had a 10-19 record and lost both matches to the Griffons.
 
ABOUT THE JETS
Newman (3-18, 0-7) has struggled to find a rhythm this season. They have secured victories against Roosevelt (Illinois), Southwest Baptist and William Jewell. In MIAA play, they have suffered losses in all seven matches and have only managed to win one set against Pitt State. Last season, they had a winless record of 0-28, losing both matches to MWSU in three sets.