Nov. 7, 2013
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. - The Western Kentucky University volleyball team (22-5, 12-1) begins the home stretch of the 2013 regular season this weekend, as it concludes the season with five-straight home matches. The homestand begins this weekend with Louisiana-Lafayette (18-10, 8-6) on Friday, November 8 at 7 p.m. prior to Sunday, November 10's contest with UALR (19-7, 11-3) at noon.
Game Information
• Friday, November 8; Louisiana-Lafayette at 7 p.m.; E.A. Diddle Arena
• Sunday, November 10; UALR at noon; E.A. Diddle Arena
Viewing Information
• Gametracker for both matches available at WKUSports.com
• Live video broadcast for both matches available at WKUSports.tv
Promotions
• Friday vs. ULL
o Red Out--All fans are asked to wear their best red attire, as one fan and one student will win a gift card to the WKU Store.
o Girl Scouts Day--All Girl Scouts will receive one free ticket while friends and family can purchase unlimited $3 tickets.
• Sunday vs. UALR
o Faith and Family Day--All fans will receive free admission with a church bulletin.
Versus ULL/UALR
WKU holds the series advantage 22-5 over the Ragin' Cajuns; however, ULL already has a leg up on WKU this season, as the team handed WKU its only SBC loss with a five-set win in Lafayette. WKU had won the previous 16 meetings, dating back to 1999, with the last 10 coming in straight sets. The loss broke a 38-match win streak against league opponents and was WKU's first SBC loss since 2011. In the match, WKU dominated most statistical categories, including a season-high 72 kills with Janee' Diggins, Paige Wessel and Noelle Langenkamp having 16 kills each.
Against UALR, WKU leads the overall series 25-12, including a sweep this season in Little Rock. WKU has now won five-straight meetings with the last loss coming in 2008. In the previous contest, Wessel, Haley Bodway and Heather Boyan had double-figure kills while WKU held one of the nation's best offensive players, Edina Begic, to her lowest numbers of the season.
Clinching Scenario
With wins over both Louisiana-Lafayette and UALR this weekend, WKU would clinch a share of the Sun Belt Conference regular-season title as well as the No. 1 seed in the league tournament later this month in Troy. It would be WKU's 11th SBC title in program history and 10th under 19-year head coach Travis Hudson.
A win the following game against Georgia State, or one of the following two if needed, would give WKU the outright SBC regular-season championship.
Offensive Efficiency
WKU's 2013 squad has an all-around offensive attack. With the ability to practically go to anybody for the swing, WKU currently has three .400 or higher hitters this season. Paige Wessel leads the team with a .436 hitting mark followed by Noelle Langenkamp's .410 and Heather Boyan's .404. WKU is the only team in the nation with three .400 hitters while the trio all rank in the top 25 in the NCAA. Schools with two .400 hitters include Florida, Stanford and Penn State.
As a team, WKU's .310 hitting mark ranks fifth in the nation while leading the Sun Belt Conference.
Melanie Stutsman Hits 5,000 Career Assists
With 78 assists after last weekend's matches at Texas State and UT Arlington, senior setter Melanie Stutsman now has over 5,000 career assists in her time on The Hill. She is one of three active players in Division I to have over 5,000 assists in their career and the second Lady Topper to hit the milestone. The Floyds Knob, Ind., native is currently fifth in the SBC career assists record while second in career assists during the rally-scoring era behind MTSU's Leslie Clark's 5,692.
Depending on the number of sets played and, of course, her stats in the coming weekend's matches, Stutsman could become WKU's all-time record holder, as she is now 103 assists away from tying Sara Noe's record of 5,172 assists. Her assists combined from the previous ULL and UALR matches is 101, just two shy of tying the record.
Stutsman's 11.72 assists per set this season has her ranked seventh in the nation while first in the SBC.
Ashley Potts Named Senior CLASS Award Finalist
WKU defensive specialist Ashley Potts was named one of 10 national finalists for the prestigious Senior CLASS Award, given annually to student-athletes who excel both on and off the court. With her achievements in the award's four areas of excellence--community, classroom, character and competition--Potts will now face a nationwide vote to determine one-third of the final result. Fans can vote once a day at seniorCLASSaward.com now until Dec. 9.
Potts is the first WKU student-athlete to be named a finalist since baseball infielder Matt Payton was selected in 2010.
The Louisville, Ky., native is up against nine other finalists, including Jennifer Cross (Michigan), Natalie Hagglund (USC), Emily Hartong (Hawaii), Caroline Jarmoc (Kansas), Chloe Mann (Florida), Ariel Scott (Penn State), Bailey Webster (Texas), Lauren Wicinski (Michigan State) and Carly Wopat (Stanford).
To view full games notes, click here.
For all the latest news and information on WKU volleyball, visit WKUSports.com or follow the program on Twitter via @TravisHudsonWKU and @WKUVolleyball.
