PREVIEW: Volleyball Opens NCAA Regional at Lewis Thursday

NCAA REGIONAL QUARTERFINAL
The volleyball team will make its ninth all-time appearance in the NCAA Division II Tournament as the Huskies are the No. 8 seed in the Midwest Region. The Huskies will play No. 1 seeded Lewis in the quarterfinal at Lewis. Match time is set for 8:30 p.m. (Eastern) Thursday at the Neil Carey Arena.

FOLLOW THE HUSKIES
• Lewis will live stream all the matches at: http://www.glvcsn.com/lewis/
• Live stats of the matches will be available at: http://www.sidearmstats.com/lewisu/wvball/

SERIES HISTORY
Tech is 5-9 all-time versus Lewis. The Flyers have won five straight in the series. The Huskies last defeated the Flyers on October 17, 2008 with a five-set win in Indianapolis. Tech last won at Lewis in August 2006.

LAST MEETING
Tech played at Lewis to begin the 2016 season at the Lewis Flyer Festival. The No. 18-ranked Flyers won 3-0. Mariah Sherman (8) and MacAulay Petersen (5) led in kills and Elle Heinonen dug up 11 balls.

NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY
• The volleyball team will make its ninth all-time appearance in the NCAA Division II Tournament. Tech last qualified for the NCAA Tournament in 2009.
• Tech is 2-8 all-time in the NCAA Tournament. The Huskies last won a match in 1995 with a 3-0 sweep of Gannon in the Great Lakes Regional in Marquette.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENT
• Lewis is 31-2 and has won 11 straight matches.
• The Flyers are ranked No. 4 in the AVCA national poll.
• Lewis earned the GLVC's automatic and 12th consecutive bid to the NCAA Tournament, following a five-set, come-from-behind win over Rockhurst in the GLVC Tournament Championship.
• Lewis' streak of 12 consecutive NCAA trips is the longest of all women's volleyball teams in the Midwest Region and longest ever of any Lewis program since the Flyers joined the NCAA Division II ranks in 1981.
• Head coach Lorelee Smith is in her 11th season at Lewis. She has been named GLVC Coach of the Year three times.
• Three Flyers were named to the All-GLVC First Team: Abby Becker, Setter, Jr., Elizabeth Hyland, Attacker, Jr., Aly Schneider, Attacker, Sr.,
• Two others were named to the All-GLVC Second Team: Alexandra Preuss, Attacker, So., Maddie Seliga, Attacker, Sr.,

GLIAC COACH OF THE YEAR
Matt Jennings was named the 2017 GLIAC Coach of the Year in his sixth season as head coach of the Huskies. He is the third Tech volleyball coach to earn the honor after leading his team to the NCAA Tournament, a tie for second place in the GLIAC standings, and to their third straight GLIAC Tournament appearance. Tech finished 18-9 in the regular season and won nine of its final 10 conference matches. Tech leads the GLIAC in kills per set, hitting percentage, and assists per set, and is second in the league in service aces per set, digs per set, and points per set. Jennings has won 89 matches as the leader of the Huskies, including 54 over the last three seasons.

GLIAC FRESHMAN/SETTER OF THE YEAR
Laura DeMarchi was named GLIAC Freshman of the Year, Setter of the Year, and to the All-GLIAC First Team. DeMarchi led the GLIAC and was seventh in the nation with an 11.9 assist per set average. The native of Milan, Italy also leads the GLIAC in services aces per set at 0.39. She has totaled 1,178 assists, 308 digs (second on the team), 65 kills, and 33 total blocks while hitting .342 at the net. She has posted more than 40 assists in 16 matches and has tallied 20 double-doubles.

NATIONAL STATISTICAL RANKINGS
• Tech is 10th in the nation in assists per set as a team, averaging 13.55.
• The Huskies are 17th in kills per set, averaging 14.13.
• In hitting percentage, Tech is 31st nationally at .239.

OTHER HUSKIES ON ALL-GLIAC TEAMS
• Junior outside hitter Mariah Sherman was named All-GLIAC First Team. She is second on the team in kills (310) and kills per set (3.01).
• Sophomore outside hitter MacAulay Petersen earned a spot on the All-GLIAC Second Team after leading the Tech offense all season with 364 kills, averaging 3.47 per set. She is fourth in the GLIAC in kills and fifth in kills per set.
• Senior libero Elle Heinonen was an All-GLIAC Honorable Mention after leading the Huskies with 551 digs to rank second in the GLIAC.

OTHER REGIONAL MATCHUPS
• Rockhurst (3) and Bellarmine (6) open the tournament at 1 p.m.
• Hillsdale (2) and Findlay (7) play at 3:30 p.m.
• Ferris State (4) and McKendree (5) play the final match before Tech and Lewis at 6 p.m.

SEMIFINALS & CHAMPIONSHIP
• The two semifinals are at 6 and 8 p.m. (Eastern) Friday, Dec. 1.
• The NCAA Midwest Regional Championship is set for 8 p.m. (Eastern) Saturday, Dec. 2.