PREVIEW: Volleyball wraps up five match home stand

WEEKEND MATCHES
• Michigan Tech wraps up its five-match home stand this weekend at the SDC Gym.
• The Huskies host Purdue Northwest at 6 p.m. on Friday.
• The weekend wraps up at 3 p.m. on Saturday against Parkside.
• Tech is 5-10 overall and 3-4 in the GLIAC.

ON THE RADIO
• J&J Broadcasting airs select volleyball matches and will carry both weekend matches. Friday's game will be on Mix 93.5 and Saturday on 920 AM WMPL and 107.3 FM
• Mitch Lake will call all the action from the SDC Gym.
• Listen on 93.5 FM or online at Pasty.net or on the TuneIn app.

WATCH THE HUSKIES
• All home and GLIAC matches, will be streamed on FloSports.
• Michigan Tech fans can watch all home and conference games in volleyball, basketball, football, soccer, and hockey with one subscription.
• FloSports provides each subscriber with access to all content and events with the purchase of a monthly or yearly subscription.
• Subscriptions are offered in two different billing packages - monthly and annual.
• Discounts are available for students enrolled at GLIAC member and associate member institutions. You must subscribe with a .edu email address to be eligible.
• FloSports is available on iOS, Android, Apple TV, Roku, Amazon Fire, and Chromecast.

SCOUTING THE PRIDE
• Purdue Northwest is 9-6 overall and 4-3 in the GLIAC. Conference wins are over Lake Superior State, Wayne State, Northern Michigan, and Saginaw Valley State.
• The Pride lead the GLIAC in aces per set (2.32), ranking 10th in the country. They also lead the conference in team assists, team kills, and total blocks.
• PNW was 9-20 overall and 2-16 in the GLIAC last season with wins over Lake Superior State and Wayne State. The GLIAC coaches placed them 10th in the preseason poll.
• The Huskies swept both matches last season and have won all seven meetings all-time.

SCOUTING THE RANGERS
• UWP is 9-6 overall and 4-3 in the GLIAC. The conference wins are over Saginaw Valley State, Michigan Tech, Northern Michigan, and Purdue Northwest.
• The Rangers went 9-20 last season with a 3-15 GLIAC mark, defeating Wayne State, Purdue Northwest, and SVSU. UWP was picked ninth in the GLIAC Preseason Poll.
• Parkside leads the GLIAC in digs per set (15.58).

LAST MEETING
• PNW – Tech defeated Purdue Northwest 3-2 on Sept. 23 with a come-from-behind victory in Indiana. The Huskies trailed 2-1, but the Black and Gold responded on the road winning the fourth set in extra points and snapping the Pride's seven-game winning streak with a 15-10 win in the fifth. Rachel Zurek notched a season-high with 15 kills and hit .379. Lindy Oujiri tallied 14 kills, while Kate Loch added eight, and Tricia Kennedy finished with six. Tess Hayes set the offense with 33 assists and added 17 digs. Alayna Corwin (14 digs) and Brooke Dzwik (12 digs) were also in double figures defensively.
• UWP – Tech fell 3-1 at Parkside on Sept. 22 in the first GLIAC road match of the season. The Huskies won the first set 25-23 before the Rangers took the final three 25-21, 25-18, and 25-20. Lindy Oujiri led the Huskies with 14 kills while Meg Raabe finished with 13. Rachel Zurek (7 kills) and Tricia Kennedy (6 kills) also contributed to the offense. Tess Hayes set the attack with 38 assists while adding 10 digs. Amelia Albers (15) and Brook Dzwik (11) were also in double figures in digs.

GLIAC STATISTICAL RANKING
• Kaycee Meiners – 1st in total blocks (56)
• Kaycee Meiners – 2nd in blocks per set (1.02)
• Lindy Oujiri – 3rd in total kills (184)
• Lindy Oujiri – 4th in kills per set (3.35)
• Tess Hayes – 5th in assists per set (8.87)
• Kaycee Meiners – 10th in hitting percentage (.301)

LAST TIME OUT
• Tech volleyball went 1-2 last week with a loss to Northern Michigan Tuesday, a 3-1 win over Lake Superior State Friday, and a loss to No. 21 Ferris State Saturday.
• Friday's win was the 25th straight victory over the Lakers.
• Meg Raabe (3.7 k/s) led the offense, Tess Hayes (8.9 a/s) set the attack and Alayna Corwin (3.1 d/s) anchored the defense.

ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
• Kaycee Meiners was named to the UP Open All-Tournament Team after averaging 2.29 kills per set while hitting .410 and tallying nine blocks.
• Lindy Oujiri was named to the Up North All-Tournament Team after leading the Huskies with 3.62 kills per set while adding eight blocks.

GLIAC PRESEASON POLL
1    Ferris State - 79 (7)
2    Grand Valley State - 70 (1)
3    Northern Michigan - 67 (2)
4    Michigan Tech - 53
5    Wayne State - 51
6    Davenport - 44
7    Saginaw Valley State - 34
8    Lake Superior State - 24
9    Parkside - 18
10  Purdue Northwest – 10

NEW ASSISTANT
• Mallory Nickelson was named an Assistant Coach with Michigan Tech volleyball in February.
• Nickelson was a four-year starting libero and setter at future GLIAC member Roosevelt University and was recently an assistant coach for two seasons at UW-Stevens Point.

CAPTAINS
Senior outside hitter Lindy Oujiri, redshirt junior middle blocker Kaycee Meiners, and sophomore defensive specialist Alayna Corwin are team captains for 2023.

COACH JENNINGS
• Head coach Matt Jennings is in his 11th season with the Huskies and has won 196 matches overall.
• Jennings is on the NCAA Women's Volleyball National Committee and represents the Midwest Region.
• Under Jennings, the Huskies have gone from last place in the conference to nationally ranked and consistently in the NCAA Tournament.
• Jennings coached the Huskies to four straight NCAA tournament appearances from 2017-21.
• 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.
• The 2021 spring team won a GLIAC Regular Season title for the second time in program history with the 2021 team repeating the feat in outright fashion.

LAST SEASON
• Tech finished the 2022 season 20-10 overall record, winning 20 matches for the fifth consecutive season.
• The Huskies went 11-7 in GLIAC play and advanced to the GLIAC Tournament Semifinal for the sixth straight season.

UPCOMING SCHEDULE
• The annual Midwest Regional Crossover Tournament is next weekend (Oct. 13-14) in Hammond, Indiana to wrap up non-conference play.
• Tech gets back to GLIAC action with a five-match road trip, beginning at Saginaw Valley State (Oct. 20) and Wayne State (Oct. 21).