ST. JOSEPH, Mo. - The No. 23 Missouri Western volleyball team (18-4, 8-2 MIAA) will conclude its regular season road schedule with midweek rematches against Washburn and Emporia State. MWSU is entering these matches on a six-game winning streak and is currently second  
in the MIAA and KPI standings.
 
Action will commence on Wednesday at 6:00 p.m. against Washburn (16-4, 7-3 MIAA) at Lee Arena in Topeka, Kansas. The two teams faced each other earlier this season when the Griffons defeated the No. 24 Ichabods in a thrilling five-set match at the MWSU Fieldhouse. Since that encounter, Washburn has won seven out of their last eight matches, with their only loss occurring on the road against No. 3 Nebraska-Kearney.
 
The week will conclude with a Halloween showdown against the Hornets (14-6, 6-4 MIAA) at 5:30 p.m. from White Auditorium in Emporia, Kansas. Western previously swept Emporia in the conference opener earlier this season. Since then, ESU has achieved a 6-3 record, with two five-set match losses to Washburn and a 3-0 loss on the road to the UNK Lopers.
 
RACKING UP MIAA HONORS
For a second time this season, two Missouri Western volleyball players collected MIAA Athlete of the Week honors.
 
Nessa Johnson earned the MIAA Setter of the Week title for the third time this season, while middle hitter Lily Kurz received MIAA Defender of the Week honors for the first time in her career.
 
Johnson led the Griffon offense with 65 total assists, averaging 10.83 assists per set. She also gathered 25 digs, reaching her milestone of 1,000 career digs during the match against William Jewell. With double-doubles in both matches, she now has 13 this season. Additionally, she contributed five kills and three blocks.
 
Kurz played a crucial role defensively in the sweeps against both William Jewell and Northwest Missouri State during the week. The senior middle hitter achieved 15 blocks (2.50 blocks per set) across six sets. During Western's three-set victory at home against the Bearcats on Saturday, Kurz matched a career-high with 10 blocks, reaching the milestone of 300 career blocks. In addition, she contributed eight kills on offense.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Missouri Western secured its sixth straight win and achieved its first victory against Northwest in St. Joseph since 2017. The Griffons evened the regular season series with Northwest after a defeat in five sets in Maryville on October 8.
 
The Griffons quickly took charge against the Bearcats, racing ahead with an 8-2 run in the first set to establish a 15-5 lead. Western promptly secured the first set, winning 25-15.
 
Northwest put up a strong effort in the second set, which included 12 ties and five lead changes. They were ahead by two points at 18-16, prompting a timeout from Missouri Western. Afterward, Western went on a 7-4 surge to take a 23-21 lead and ultimately claimed the second set 25-22.
 
Set three began similarly to the first. After Northwest jumped to a 2-0 lead, Missouri Western quickly responded with a 7-0 run, eventually taking a 9-4 advantage early on. Northwest managed to narrow the gap, but the Griffons maintained a comfortable lead at 17-11 and kept control as they secured the set with a score of 25-18.
 
Taylor Russell led the Griffons offensively with 11 kills. She also assisted on six blocks. Emma Salker had nine kills and two solo blocks. Anna Weberg had a match-high 24 digs. Johnson had 33 assists to go with 10 digs and three kills, giving Johnson her 13th double-double this season. Holly Heldt had seven kills and 12 digs.
 
MIAA STANDINGS
 

Nebraska Kearney	9-1	.900	22-1	.957	W2
Central Oklahoma	8-2	.800	21-2	.913	W1
Missouri Western	8-2	.800	18-4	.818	W6
Washburn	7-3	.700	16-4	.800	W3
Emporia State	6-4	.600	14-6	.700	L1
Northwest Missouri	6-4	.600	12-8	.600	L1
Pittsburg State	5-5	.500	10-10	.500	W1
Arkansas-Fort Smith	4-6	.400	12-10	.545	L1
Central Missouri	4-6	.400	8-10	.444	W1
Fort Hays State	2-8	.200	10-9	.526	L1
Missouri Southern	1-9	.100	3-18	.143	L4
Newman	0-10	.000	3-21	.125	L8

 
TEAM LEADERS
Heldt tops the offense with 230 kills (averaging 2.91 kills per set) and also leads the MIAA with 41 service aces. Russell is another key contributor, boasting a team-high average of 2.97 kills per set, totaling 226 kills over 76 sets.
 
Johnson has had an outstanding senior season. With 873 assists (averaging 11.05 assists per set), she stands second in the MIAA, following UNK's Peyton Neff. Additionally, she has accumulated 250 digs, 50 kills and 26 blocks.
 
Defensively, Kurz leads the league with 104 blocks (1.35 blocks per set), and Weberg has tallied a team-high 397 digs (5.03 digs per set) at libero.