No daily recaps this weekend

I have plans outside of volleyball this weekend, so I’ll post an abridged weekend recap on Monday. Until then use the links on the right rail for scores and news.

-Ricky Nelson

9/28: Cobbers, Pointers, Auggies, Knights big winners

Will update as scores are posted.

WIAC
• No. 22 UW-Whitewater 3, UW-La Crosse 1. UWW outhit UWL .271 to .072. UWW outside Sophia Sanchez went 17-1-37. UWW is 3-1 in the WIAC. UWL is 1-2.
• UW-Stevens Point 3, RV UW Oshkosh 2. Listened online. UWSP beat UWO for the second time this season. UWO hit .084. UWSP outsides Sarah Wildish and Christina Brinkman combined to go 38-10-89 with 38 digs. UWSP middle Morgan Bartkowiak had 13 total blocks as the Pointers had 19 blocks as a team. UWSP is 3-1 in the WIAC. UWO is 1-1. Every WIAC team now has at least one loss.

MIAC
• No. 12 Concordia-Moorhead 3, No. 11 St. Thomas 0. Watched online. The CC defense answered the bell. UST hammered from the outside, but CC was up to the challenge with incredible digging and solid blocking. UST hit .078. The difference between the two defenses tonight was remarkable. UST made late pushes, but CC controlled all three sets for the most part. CC middle Katie Vohnoutka went 11-3-21 with seven blocks. Both teams are now 3-1 in the MIAC.
• Augsburg 3, RV Bethel 2. Set 5 ended 18-16 on a BU attack error. AC outside Colleen Ourada went 27-9-66 with seven blocks. AC had 17 blocks as a team. BU had 13 blocks. Both teams hit below .115. Both teams are now 3-1 in the MIAC. Every MIAC team now has at least one loss.
• Gustavus 3, Carleton 0. GAC outhit CC .278 to .030. GAC middle Angela Ahrendt went 10-2-20. GAC is 2-1 in the MIAC. CC is 1-3.
• St. Catherine 3, Hamline 0. St. Kate’s outhit HU .284 to .093. St. Kate’s is 2-2 in the MIAC. HU is 0-4.
• St. Olaf 3, Saint Mary’s 1. Two sets went extras. SOC had 10 blocks. SOC middle Ariel Carlson went 15-3-32. SOC is 2-2 in the MIAC. SMU is 1-3.
• Saint Benedict 3, Macalester 0. CSB outhit MC .297 to .000. CSB outsides Alexa Rinde and Lexi Alm combined for 22-3-41. CSB is 3-1 in the MIAC. MC is 0-3.

IIAC
• RV Wartburg 3, Cornell 0. Tried to watch online, but my connection wouldn’t allow a good flow. WC outhit CC .250 to .060. WC had nine blocks. WC is 4-1 in the IIAC. CC is 1-2.
• Luther 3, Loras 0. Watched online. Beautiful production, by the way. Luther won its eighth straight match. The quick pace of the Luther offense caused problems. Luther hit .356. Luther outside Hannah Walker went 17-3-26. Luther setter Amanda Dietel was impressive. Luther is 1-2 in the IIAC. Loras is 3-2.
• Dubuque 3, Simpson 0. UD is 1-2 in the IIAC. Simpson is 0-4.

Around the country
No. 1 Calvin 3, No. 13 Hope 0. Listened online. CC responded from a late first-set HC run with one of its own to take it, 26-24. The champs settled in from there. It sounded like neither team could stop the other when in system. CC hit .273. HC hit .175. A rough third set held down HC’s percentage. CC starting outside Megan Korber was injured on match point.

-Ricky Nelson

Handbook is overdue

If anyone has an ETA for the 2011 D-III Volleyball Handbook, please let me know. Last year’s Handbook was released online in early September.

-Ricky Nelson

Best rivalry renewed tonight

There are many great D-III volleyball rivalries. We all have our favorites. Some of mine are Washington/Emory, Washington/Juniata, Juniata/Eastern, Oshkosh/Whitewater, Wartburg/Loras, Greenville/Webster, St. Thomas/St. Olaf, Whitworth/Pacific Lutheran, Heidelberg/Ohio Northern and La Verne/Cal Lutheran.

But I don’t think any of those approach Calvin vs. Hope, who renew their rivalry at 5:30 p.m. central tonight (Wednesday) in Grand Rapids, Mich., home of the national champion Knights. The MIAA teams will play in Holland, Mich., on Oct. 28. Here’s the link to tonight’s live coverage. There’s nothing like hearing 1,000+ fans at a D-III volleyball match.

Other top matches tonight in the Central region include (with links to possible coverage):
St. Thomas (13-2, 3-0) at Concordia-Moorhead (13-3, 2-1), 7 p.m.
Wartburg (12-4, 3-1) at Cornell (11-1, 1-1), 7:30 p.m.

-Ricky Nelson

NCAA stats: Midwest, Central regions well represented

The following are the Midwest and Central region players and teams in the top 10 nationally in each statistical category, according to the latest NCAA stat report. Stats are through matches of Sept. 25.

Aces/Set
(None)

Assists/Set
1. Ashley Maher, St. Thomas 11.92
2. Marilee Fisher, Washington 11.36
5. Ali Sikic, UW-Platteville 11.04
6. Krista Stoltz, Northwestern 11.03
9. Emily Ryan, Coe 10.79
1. Washington 13.19
2. St. Thomas 12.73
7. UW-Whitewater 12.28
8. UW-Platteville 12.13

Blocks/Set
7. Morgan Bartkowiak, UW-Stevens Point 1.42
3. Blackburn 2.91
9. UW-Stevens Point 2.64

Digs/Set
3. Catherine Guido, St. Norbert 6.80
5. Megan Boschert, Westminster 6.67
6. Kayla Birdsell, Illinois College 6.64
2. Westminster 22.55
3. St. Norbert 21.80
5. UW-Whitewater 21.06

Hitting Percentage
2. Heidi Spies, St. Norbert .473
4. Danielle Remy, St. Norbert .431
7. Lauren Budde, Washington .419
2. Washington .318
5. Maranatha .305
8. St. Norbert .288

Kills/Set
1. Torey DeLozier, Maranatha 7.24
9. Kelsy England, Millikin 4.32
1. Washington 14.24
5. St. Thomas 13.64
9. Maranatha 13.14
10. Concordia-Moorhead 13.13

Points/Set
1. Torey DeLozier, Maranatha 8.18
10. Kelsy England, Millikin 5.04

Winning Percentage
1. Washington 1.000

Here is my post with top-10 Midwest and Central region players and teams from last week and the week before that.

-Ricky Nelson

9/27: Carthage, Millikin remain atop CCIW

Running recap. I will fill it in as results trickle in.

CCIW
• No. 7 Carthage 3, No. 24 Elmhurst 1. Watched it online. Not much separated the two teams, but CC is a top-10 team for a reason. The Lady Reds were very consistent while the Bluejays got a little shaky in stretches, resulting in a rather comfortable win for CC. CC is 3-0 in the CCIW. EC is 1-2.
• RV Millikin 3, Wheaton 2. Listened to it online. That was a barnburner. MU stormed back from a 10-point deficit late in Set 4 and eked out a seesaw, 15-13 win in Set 5. WC has now lost tense, five-set matches to MU and Carthage. MU is 3-0 in the CCIW. WC is 1-2. The CCIW is very, very strong this year.
• Illinois Wesleyan 3, Augustana 0. Both are now 1-2 in the CCIW.
• North Central 3, North Park 1. NCC is 2-1 in the CCIW. NPU is 0-3.
IIAC
• RV Coe 3, Central 2. Watched the end online. Coe won Set 5 comfortably. Coe won the kills column 63-47. Coe is 4-0 in the IIAC. Central is 3-1.
NAC
• Wisconsin Lutheran 3, Lakeland 0. WLC is 2-2 in the NAC. LC is 1-2.
• Dominican 3, Alverno 0. DU is 4-0 in the NAC. AC is 0-3. DU outhit AC .235 to .034.
• Benedictine 3, Concordia Wisconsin 2. BU’s Candice Cuppini went 20-7-34. BU is 2-1 in the NAC. CUW is 1-3.
• Edgewood 3, Marian 1. EC is 3-1 in the NAC. MU is 2-1. EC outside Mallory Palmer went 20-4-45. EC outhit MU .211 to .025.
• Concordia Chicago 3, MSOE 1. CUC is 3-1 in the NAC. MSOE is 0-3.
SLIAC
• Webster 3, Greenville 2. WC is 6-1 in the SLIAC. GC is 4-2.

-Ricky Nelson

AVCA Week 4: Midwest, Central teams gaining traction

I’m liking this week’s AVCA poll. Some of the chaff was removed and a some wheat got recognized. I’m still not on board with where many of the West Region teams are ranked, but I like it overall.

The top nine teams remained the same while Concordia-Moorhead dropped from 10th to No. 12 after its loss to Bethel. Juniata’s first foray into non-top-10-land was short-lived as the Eagles moved up a spot to No. 10. Fair enough. Here’s my Week 4 top 10 if you didn’t see it. Potato, potahto. But again, why are those West teams ahead of Chicago, which sits at No. 16?

My takeaway from the latest poll is that every team that received votes deserved those votes. That’s the first time that has been the case this season, in my opinion, although I have my doubts about McMurry. But if you’re undefeated like McMurry is, it’s hard to argue. Then again Clarkson was undefeated (but lost to fellow undefeated Cortland tonight) against what I consider a better schedule than McMurry and doesn’t make the poll.

I’m pleasantly surprised that Alma made the poll with two votes. But I only quibble with where some teams are slotted (for example, Coe should be higher, Cal Lutheran lower). It’s a good poll when that happens.

As far as missing teams, I think Nebraska Wesleyan has been forgotten since it went into the NAIA portion of the schedule. The P-Wolves (5-3 vs. D-III) have wins over Wartburg and St. Olaf when those teams were top-25. Their losses are to St. Thomas, Concordia-Moorhead and St. Scholastica (don’t forget the Saints, either). I also think Northwestern (14-2) should get a look. The Eagles have played a good schedule with losses to UW Oshkosh (five sets) in the season opener and a four-set loss to St. Thomas. They have a good win over Bethel and two over Saint Benedict. There are others around the country that are on the cusp, but those two and a few eastern teams (Clarkson, Trinity-CT, Amherst, etc.) stick out the most.

Central/Midwest region teams that received Week 4 votes:
2. Washington
7. Carthage
11. St. Thomas
12. Concordia-Moorhead
16. Chicago
22. UW-Whitewater
23. UW-Platteville
24. Elmhurst
Receiving votes: Bethel (No. 26), Wartburg (No. 28), UW Oshkosh (No. 29), Millikin (No. 34), Coe (No. 35).

-Ricky Nelson

And this week in DeLozier news …

So, Maranatha played last weekend. That must mean MBBC junior outside Torey DeLozier put up crazy numbers. Sure enough.

DeLozier’s Crusaders (10-2) played 10 sets on their way to three wins. In those 10 sets DeLozier’s combined hitting line was 88-8-152. Included in those video-game numbers was a four-set stat line of 41-5-78 to go along with 21 digs and seven blocks. Her 41 kills in four sets was the most of any D-III player since 2003 and is good for fourth best of all time. Rockford’s Sarah Mosher holds the record with 47 kills in a four-set match.

DeLozier was named the NAC Player of the Week for the third time in four weeks. For the season DeLozier has gone 304-56-599, hitting .414, leading the nation with 7.24 kills per set and 8.2 points per set, and leading her team with 3.76 digs per set.

You can see more of DeLozier’s and others’ work on the Standout Stats page. You can also watch the Crusaders online on Friday and Saturday. Speaking of which, if you’re looking for live, online volleyball coverage, the Live Audio/Video/Stats page is a good place to start.

-Ricky Nelson

Ricky Nelson’s Week 4 top 10

The AVCA Week 4 poll comes out on Tuesday. I don’t expect much to happen near the top of the poll, but there are some teams getting votes that have proven themselves unworthy. There are plenty of underrepresented teams that are more than worthy of filling those vacated spots.
1. Washington 14-0 (1, 2)
2. Calvin 14-0 (2, 1)
3. Wittenberg 12-1 (3, 3)
4. Emory 17-1 (4, 4)
5. Eastern 15-1 (5, 5)
6. Christopher Newport 14-2 (6, 6)
7. Carthage 13-2 (7, 7)
8. Southwestern 12-2 (8, 9)
9. St. Thomas 13-2 (9, 12)
10. Heidelberg 13-2 (NR, 8)
Dropped out: No. 10 Concordia-Moorhead (13-3).
Just missed: Concordia-Moorhead (13-3), Chicago (15-1), Juniata (10-4).

-Ricky Nelson

Pages ready to go

The Last Team Standing page shows seven finalists. The top two teams in the country – Calvin and Washington – are two of the contenders. Click the link to see the other five, complete with their schedules through Oct. 15 and links to their complete schedules. The page will be updated daily until we have a winner.

The Standout Stats page has a few holes to fill from the weekend matches, but it’s updated as much as possible. Among the leaders in blocks are Greenville’s Sydney Cooper, Aurora’s Emilee Mitchell and Bethel’s Amy Werner. Kills standouts include Maranatha’s Torey DeLozier, Principia’s Tess Rountree and Wheaton’s Megan McKinley. Digs leaders include Westminster’s Megan Boschert, Dubuque’s Kristin Mortensen and Illinois College’s Kayla Birdsell. Assists standouts include UW Oshkosh’s Morgan Liebetrau, Carthage’s Drewann Pancratz and St. Thomas’s Ashley Maher. See those and more daily at the link above or on the right rail.

The Standings, Big Matchups page got its weekly update like it does every Sunday night. The UAA gets into its first round of pool play this weekend. Other highlights this week include the MIAC, IIAC and WIAC getting together for several great nonconference matches. But there are also some top-notch conference matches in both regions. Here are my top five matches of the week.
1. St. Thomas vs. Concordia-Moorhead (9/28)
2. Chicago vs. Emory (10/1)
3. Carthage vs. Elmhurst (9/27)
4. Wartburg vs. Cornell (9/28)
5. Wartburg vs. St. Thomas (9/30)

-Ricky Nelson