PREVIEW: Tech is No. 1 seed at GLIAC Tournament

GLIAC TOURNAMENT
• Michigan Tech is the No. 1 seed in this weekend's GLIAC Tournament hosted by Saginaw Valley State.
• The Huskies will play at 4 p.m. Friday in the quarterfinal round against the winner of the No. 8 SVSU versus No. 9 Parkside matchup.
• Other seedings are No. 2 Northern Michigan, No. 3 Grand Valley State, No. 4 Ferris State, No. 5 Northwood, No. 6 Ashland, No. 7 Davenport, No. 10 Lake Superior State, and No. 11 Purdue Northwest. Wayne State is not participating in the tournament.

WATCH THE TOURNEY
• SVSU and the GLIAC will be streaming all the matches.
• Fans can purchase a day pass for $11.99 or a tournament pass for $19.99.

GLIAC REGULAR SEASON CHAMPS
• For the second time in program history, Michigan Tech won the GLIAC Regular Season Title.
• Tech shared the title with NMU. The two teams also shared the title in 1994 when Tech last won a regular-season championship.

IN THE AVCA POLL
• Tech is ranked No. 21 in this week's AVCA Division II Coaches' Poll for the second straight week.
• The Huskies were ranked No. 21 last week, No. 20 on March 24, No. 22 on March 17, No. 23 on February 25, and received votes in the preseason poll.
• Tech was ranked in the Top 25 in eight polls in 2019 and climbed as high as No. 20 on November 5.

RECENT GLIAC TOURNAMENT RESULTS
• 2019 – GLIAC Tournament Runner Up
• 2018 – GLIAC Semifinalist
• 2017 – GLIAC Tournament Runner Up
• 2016 – GLIAC Tournament Quarterfinalist
• 2015 – GLIAC Tournament Quarterfinalist

LAST TIME OUT
• Tech split its weekend against No. 19 Northern Michigan to wrap up the regular season.
• The Huskies won 3-1 Friday in Houghton to defeat the Wildcats for the eighth straight time.
• NMU won 3-2 Saturday in Marquette.

GLIAC NORTH PLAYER OF THE WEEK
• Anna Jonynas is the GLIAC North Division Player of the Week.
• She led the Huskies with 45 kills last weekend against NMU, averaging 5 per set while hitting .397. She tallied a career-high 23 kills Saturday in a five-set loss while notching 22 kills Friday in a 3-1 victory.
• Jonynas added 33 digs, averaging 3.7 per set. She also tallied four aces and a pair of blocks.
• Jonynas is third in the GLIAC in kills per set (3.98), 10th in hitting percentage (.268), and 15th in digs per set (3.7).

ALL-TIME ASSIST LEADER
• Laura De Marchi became Michigan Tech's all-time leader in assists on Friday when she notched her 4,092nd assist in the second set.
• She also tallied her 1,000th career dig in the match.
• De Marchi is also the program leader in assists per set (11.8).

NATIONAL STATISTICAL RANKINGS
• Tech is third in NCAA Division II in assists per set (14.40)
• The Huskies rank fourth in kills per set (15.13)
• Tech is third in hitting percentage (.268)
• Laura De Marchi is second nationally in assists per set (12.53)
• Olivia Ghormley is 19th in kills per set (4.03)

ALL-GLIAC HONOREES
The GLIAC will be releasing its 2021 all-conference award winners on Thursday evening.

GLIAC STATISTICAL RANKINGS
• Laura De Marchi leads the GLIAC in assists per set (12.53)
• Olivia Ghormley leads the GLIAC in kills per set (4.03)
• Janie Grindland is second in the GLIAC in blocks per set (1.13)
• Anna Jonynas is third in the GLIAC in kills per set (3.98)
• Megan Utlak is fourth in the GLIAC in digs per set (5.09)
• Janie Grindland is fourth in the GLIAC in hitting percentage (.327)
• Lindy Oujiri is fifth in the GLIAC in hitting percentage (.318)

GLIAC NORTH PLAYER OF THE WEEK
• March 22 – Olivia Ghormley
• March 15 – Olivia Ghormley
• April 5 – Anna Jonynas

MILESTONES MARKS
• Laura De Marchi – 4,177 assists (First in program history)
• Olivia Ghormley – 1,419 kills (4th in program history)
• Megan Utlak – 1,535 digs (3rd in program history)
• Anna Jonynas – 1,291 digs (6th in program history)

COACH JENNINGS
• Head coach Matt Jennings is in his ninth season and has won 144 matches overall.
• Under Jennings, the Huskies have gone from last place in the conference to nationally ranked and consistently in the NCAA Tournament.
• Jennings has coached the Huskies to three straight NCAA tournament appearances and the program's first NCAA win since 1995.
• He was named the GLIAC Coach of the Year in 2019 and 2017 and led the team to a program record of 10 straight wins to start the 2016 season.

PRESEASON GLIAC POLL
• In the 2021 Preseason Coaches' Poll, the Huskies led the North Division with 60 points. Ferris State was eight points back while also taking a pair of first-place votes. Northern Michigan (38), Saginaw Valley State (34), Northwood (20), and Lake Superior State (12) rounded out the North.
• Ashland was the top choice in the South Division with 56 points and eight first-place votes. Grand Valley State was six points back. Wayne State (43) was third followed by Davenport (34), Parkside (21), and Purdue Northwest (12).

LAST SEASON
The Huskies finished last season with a 24-8 overall record, winning the most matches since 1996. They went to the NCAA Tournament for the third straight season and advanced with the first NCAA win since 1995.

RETURNING ALL-AMERICANS
• Laura De Marchi and Olivia Ghormley were named American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) NCAA Division II Honorable Mention All-Americans in 2019. Both were honored by the organization for the second year in a row. Ghormley also added All-America Honorable Mention honors from the Division II Conference Commissioner's Association (D2CCA).
• De Marchi led the GLIAC in assists per set at 11.59 to rank seventh in the nation and sixth in program history. She also tallied 260 digs, 81 kills, 40 blocks, and 20 service aces.
• Ghormley finished third in the GLIAC in kills per set (4.03) and points per set (4.4). She tallied double-digit kills 25 times in 2019, including seven matches with 20 kills.

ALL-GLIAC RETURNEES
• Laura De Marchi – 3-time GLIAC Setter of the Year, 3-time All-GLIAC First Team
• Olivia Ghormley – 2-time GLIAC Attacker of the Year, 2-time All-GLIAC First Team
• Megan Utlak – 2-time All-GLIAC Honorable Mention