ST. JOSEPH, Mo. - Griffon volleyball (19-5, 9-3 MIAA) will kick off a four-match home stand against the Central Missouri Jennies and the Missouri Southern Lion this weekend. Fans are encouraged to wear purple for the 'Epilepsy Awareness' theme on both nights.
Action will start on Friday at 7:00 p.m. against the Jennies (9-12, 5-7 MIAA) and conclude on Saturday at 6:00 p.m. against the Lions (4-20, 2-10 MIAA) at the MWSU Fieldhouse.
The matches will be broadcast on the
MIAA Network and
GoGriffons.com/listen, with Tommy Rezac on the call.
LAST TIME OUT
The Griffons went 1-1 last week in the final road matches of the regular season against Washburn and Emporia State. This was the second time the Griffons met WU and ESU this season.
Western lost their opening match of the week in three sets to a strong Ichabod team in Topeka, Kansas. The Griffons had difficulty establishing an offensive rhythm, finishing the match with a hitting percentage of .103.
Noelle Sutcliffe led the team in kills, while
Emma Salker recorded a career-high eight blocks, a feat she matched the following day.
MWSU rebounded the following day in an exciting match against the Hornets on Halloween. Sophomore
Taylor Russell was the standout performer, leading the team with a match-high 17 kills. Senior
Lily Kurz also shined, contributing 10 kills and seven blocks. Johnson orchestrated the offense with 45 assists and added 14 digs, marking her 15th double-double of the season. Furthermore, Johnson reached a career milestone by recording her 100th career block with five total blocks. Libero
Anna Weberg topped the team with 15 digs.
KPI STANDINGS
Missouri Western (.190) remained second in this week's KPI standings behind No. 5 Nebraska-Kearney (.218). Washburn (.180), No. 11 Central Oklahoma (.113) and Northwest Missouri State (.093) round out the top five. The KPI ranking will be used to seed teams in the MIAA Tournament.
MIAA STANDINGS
| School |
Conf |
CPct. |
Overall |
Pct. |
Streak |
| Nebraska Kearney |
11-1 |
.917 |
24-1 |
.960 |
W4 |
| Central Oklahoma |
10-2 |
.833 |
23-2 |
.920 |
W3 |
| Washburn |
9-3 |
.750 |
18-4 |
.818 |
W5 |
| Missouri Western |
9-3 |
.750 |
19-5 |
.792 |
W1 |
| Emporia State |
7-5 |
.583 |
15-7 |
.682 |
L1 |
| Northwest Missouri |
6-6 |
.500 |
12-10 |
.545 |
L3 |
| Pittsburg State |
5-7 |
.417 |
10-12 |
.455 |
L2 |
| Central Missouri |
5-7 |
.417 |
9-11 |
.450 |
W1 |
| Fort Hays State |
4-8 |
.333 |
12-9 |
.571 |
W2 |
| Arkansas-Fort Smith |
4-8 |
.333 |
12-12 |
.500 |
L3 |
| Missouri Southern |
2-10 |
.167 |
4-20 |
.167 |
L1 |
| Newman |
0-12 |
.000 |
3-23 |
.115 |
L10 |
TEAM LEADERS
Heldt leads the offense with 248 kills (2.85 K/S) and is also at the top of the MIAA with 45 service aces. Russell is another significant contributor on offense, averaging 2.94 kills per set after accumulating a total of 247 kills across 84 sets.
Johnson has had an exceptional senior season. With a total of 947 assists, averaging 10.89 assists per set, she ranks second in the MIAA. Furthermore, she has also recorded 277 digs, 53 kills and 32 blocks.
Kurz remains at the forefront of the conference with 114 blocks, averaging 1.35 blocks per set, while Weberg has recorded a team-high 429 digs (4.93 DIG/S) as the libero.
ABOUT THE JENNIES
UCM was picked to win the MIAA with 113 points and five first-place votes in the MIAA Preseason Coaches' Poll. However, they have had a rebuild-type season after losing key players who helped them reach the NCAA Central Regional Semifinal match in 2023. They split matches last weekend after claiming a 3-1 victory in Fort Smith against Arkansas-Fort Smith last time out.
Central Missouri holds an 84-7 all-time record against the Griffons and has won the last 13 matchups. They claimed both matches last year, including a 3-1 win in the MIAA Tournament. MWSU last defeated UCM with a sweep in St. Joseph on October 28, 2017.
ABOUT THE LIONS
Missouri Southern was picked to finish eighth in the MIAA Preseason Coaches' Poll with 49 points. However, MSSU has struggled to find a rhythm this season, having only won against Newman and Arkansas-Fort Smith in league play. Last time out, they dropped a three-set match to No. 11 Central Oklahoma in Edmond, Oklahoma.
The Griffons lead the series with a record of 70-29-2 and have won eight of the last 10 matchups against the Lions. Last season in Joplin, Western defeated Missouri Southern in three.
