9/30: Griffins eke by IWC, into 3rd in SLIAC

SLIAC
• Fontbonne 3, Iowa Wesleyan 2 Set 5 ended 16-14;  FU’s Taryn Ballmann had 16 kills, 10 digs.

Nonconference
• Mid-Continent 3, Fontbonne 1 MCU is NAIA.
• Mid-Continent 3, Iowa Wesleyan 1

-Ricky Nelson

Ricky Nelson’s 2013 Week 4 top 10

The AVCA Week 4 poll comes out Tuesday.

My rank, (my Wk 3 rank, AVCA), record, last wk results
1 (1, 1). Calvin (15-0) Won 42 consecutive sets. 
2 (2, 5). Cal Lutheran (14-1) W: Claremont-M-S; Occidental. 
3 (3, 2). Hope (15-1) Lost 4 sets all season. 
4 (4, 4). Emory (18-1) W: Cornell; Randolph-Macon. 
5 (5, 3). St. Thomas (13-1) Two conference sweeps. 
6 (7, 6). Elmhurst (16-1) W: Washington-St. Louis; UW-Eau Claire. 
7 (6, 7). Juniata (15-1) W: Chris. Newport. L: UW-Whitewater. 
8 (8, 8). Mount Union (19-0) W: Geneva. 
9 (9, 12). Saint Benedict (14-1) W: Saint Mary’s (Minn.).
10 (NR, 15). Eastern (16-2) W: UW-Whitewater; Chris. Newport.
Dropped out: No. 10 Washington-St. Louis (11-4).

My top 5 matches of the week:
10/2 St. Thomas vs. Saint Benedict
10/4 Nebraska Wesleyan vs. Colorado College
10/5 St. Thomas vs. Elmhurst
10/5 St. Thomas vs. Coe
10/6 Washington-St. Louis vs. Chicago

Opening up the plug bag
Who had 70 assists in a match over the weekend? The regularly updated Standout Stats page has that answer as well as every other Central or Midwest region player to record 10 blocks, 20 kills, 30 digs or 50 assists in a match this season. Past seasons can be found on the right rail.

Which six D-III teams are still undefeated? Find out on the nightly updated Last Team Standing page, which includes links to team schedules and upcoming matches. Past Last Team Standing winners can be found on the right rail.

Who’s atop the standings and what do I think are the most important matches in each of the Central and Midwest conferences this week? The Standings, Matchups page — updated each weekend — will tell you. Past season standings are on the right rail.

This past Saturday marked the six-year anniversary for the blog. Thank you for finding it. If you like it, tell a friend. If your friend works in sports information, tell him or her that I would like an SID position.

Also, anyone have access to the 2013 Pre-Championship Manual? I’d like a copy.

-Ricky Nelson

9/29: Morris improves to 4-0 in UMAC

Morris had been 1-8 against CSS since 2010.

UMAC
• Minnesota Morris 3, St. Scholastica 1 UMM’s Abby Tietz went 16-2-31 with 13 digs.

Top 25 upset watch
• Trinity (Texas) 3, #10 Colorado College 2
• #10 Colorado College, Texas Lutheran

-Ricky Nelson

9/28: #6 Bluejays outlast #9 WUSTL

Christopher Newport Invite
#17 UW-Whitewater, #7 Juniata, #15 Eastern, #19 Christopher Newport, Scranton
#17 UW-Whitewater 3, #7 Juniata 0; #7 Juniata 3, Scranton 0; #19 Christopher Newport 3, Scranton 1; #15 Eastern 3, #17 UW-Whitewater 1; #15 Eastern 3, #19 Christopher Newport 0.

Washington-St. Louis Invite
#6 Elmhurst, #9 Washington-St. Louis, UW-Eau Claire, Millikin
#9 Washington-St. Louis 3, Millikin 2; #6 Elmhurst 3, UW-Eau Claire 1; #6 Elmhurst 3, #9 Washington-St. Louis 2; UW-Eau Claire 3, Millikin 0.

Emory Tourney
Cornell, #4 Emory, Randolph-Macon, Lynchburg, Brenau
#4 Emory 3, Cornell 2; Cornell 3, Brenau 0; #4 Emory 3, Lynchburg 0.

Wheaton Invite
#24 Carthage, Wheaton, UW-Platteville, UW-Stout, Carroll, North Central (Ill.), Rockford, Mount St. Joseph, Kalamazoo, Trinity International
Carroll 3, Rockford 1; UW-Platteville 3, North Central (Ill.) 0; #24 Carthage 3, UW-Stout 0; Wheaton 3, Kalamazoo 0; Trinity International 3, Rockford 0; UW-Stout 3, North Central (Ill.) 1; Mount St. Joseph 3, UW-Platteville 0; Carroll 3, Trinity International 0; Wheaton 3, Mount St. Joseph 0; #24 Carthage 3, Kalamazoo 1.

IIAC-NACC Challenge
Wartburg, Edgewood, Coe, Dominican, Benedictine, Simpson, Lakeland, Central, Luther, Buena Vista, Marian, Dubuque, Loras, Concordia Wisconsin, Wisconsin Lutheran, Aurora
Loras 3, Edgewood 2; Benedictine 3, Dubuque 0; Wartburg 3, Dominican 0; Coe 3, Lakeland 0; Central 3, Marian 0; Buena Vista 3, Wisconsin Lutheran 1; Concordia Wisconsin 3, Luther 2; Simpson 3, Aurora 0; Edgewood 3, Dubuque 1; Wartburg 3, Lakeland 0; Coe 3, Dominican 2; Benedictine 3, Loras 0; Wisconsin Lutheran 3, Central 0; Luther 3, Aurora 2; Simpson 3, Concordia Wisconsin 1.

Gallaudet Tourney
North Park, Gallaudet, Bridgewater, Marymount, Messiah, Catholic, Whittier, Mary Washington
Bridgewater 3, North Park 2; Catholic 3, North Park 1.

Moody Bible Invite
Maranatha, Moody Bible, Indiana-Northwest, Grace Bible, Kuyper, Northland International
Maranatha 3, Northland International 0.

MIAC
• #3 St. Thomas 3, St. Olaf 0 UST’s Paige Brimeyer had 10 kills.
• #21 Augsburg 3, Hamline 1 AC’s Ashley Peper had 20 kills.
• Concordia-Moorhead 3, Saint Mary’s 2 Set 5 ended 15-9; CCM’s Kynndyl Ross had 14 kills.
• Bethel 3, St. Catherine 0 BU’s Carlee Hoppe went 13-1-21.
• Gustavus 3, Macalester 1 GAC had 5 with 8+ kills.

UMAC
• St. Scholastica 3, Crown 0 CSS hit .384.
• Northwestern 3, Martin Luther 2 Set 5 ended 15-10; UNW’s Krista Stoltz had 70 assists, 13 digs.
• Minnesota Morris 3, Northland 0 11 UMM players had at least 1 kill.
• Bethany Lutheran 3, North Central 0 BLC outhit NCU .315 to -.035.

MWC
• Grinnell 3, Knox 0 GC’s (1-17) first win of the year.

SLIAC
• Iowa Wesleyan 3, Blackburn 1
• Greenville 3, Principia 0 GC’s Corinne Coon had 16 kills.
• Westminster 3, Spalding 0 WC’s Riley Lawrence had 10 kills.

GPAC
• Nebraska Wesleyan 3, Briar Cliff 2 Set 5 ended 16-14; NWU had 4 with 10+ kills.

Nonconference
• Viterbo 3, UW-La Crosse 2 Set 5 ended 15-8; VU is #24 in NAIA.
• UW-Superior 3, Crown 0 UWS’s Jessica Zimmerman went 9-0-13.
• Crown, Lakehead (Canada)
• Waldorf 3, Grinnell 0 WC is NAIA.
• William Penn 3, Grinnell 0 WPU is NAIA.
• Alverno 3, Mount Mary 0 AC’s Emily Ortner went 11-2-21 with 12 digs.
• Iowa Wesleyan 3, Robert Morris-Springfield 0
• Blackburn, Robert Morris-Springfield

Top 25 upset watch
• #5 Cal Lutheran 3, #22 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps 1
• #8 Mount Union 3, Geneva 0
• #8 Mount Union 3, Bluffton 0
• #10 Colorado College 3, Schreiner 0
• #10 Colorado College 3, Southwestern 1
• #11 Wittenberg 3, Rose-Hulman 0
• #11 Wittenberg 3, Transylvania 0
• #13 Otterbein 3, John Carroll 0
• #16 Pacific Lutheran 3, Willamette 0
• #20 Stevenson 3, Carnegie Mellon 2
• #20 Stevenson 3, York 0
• #23 Roger Williams 3, Coast Guard 1
• #25 Salisbury 3, Virginia Wesleyan 0

-Ricky Nelson

9/27: IIAC 11, NACC 6 after Day 1 of Challenge

Christopher Newport Invite
#17 UW-Whitewater, #7 Juniata, #15 Eastern, #19 Christopher Newport, Scranton
#7 Juniata 3, #19 Christopher Newport 0; #15 Eastern 3, Scranton 0; #17 UW-Whitewater 3, Scranton 0; #17 UW-Whitewater 3, #19 Christopher Newport 0.

Washington-St. Louis Invite
#9 Washington-St. Louis, UW-Eau Claire, Millikin, Fontbonne
Millikin 3, Fontbonne 0; #9 Washington-St. Louis 3, UW-Eau Claire 0.

Emory Tourney
Cornell, #4 Emory, Randolph-Macon, Lynchburg, Brenau
Cornell 3, Randolph-Macon 0; #4 Emory 3, Brenau 0; Cornell 3, Lynchburg 0; #4 Emory 3, Randolph-Macon 2.

Wheaton Invite
#24 Carthage, Wheaton, UW-Platteville, UW-Stout, Carroll, North Central (Ill.), Rockford, Mount St. Joseph, Trinity International
North Central (Ill.) 3, Trinity International 0; Wheaton 3, Rockford 0; #24 Carthage 3, Carroll 1; Mount St. Joseph 3, North Central (Ill.) 1; UW-Stout 3, Rockford 2; UW-Platteville 3, Carroll 2; Mount St. Joseph 3, #24 Carthage 0; UW-Stout 3, Trinity International 1; Wheaton 3, UW-Platteville 0.

IIAC-NACC Challenge
Wartburg, Edgewood, Coe, Dominican, Benedictine, Simpson, Lakeland, Central, Luther, Buena Vista, Marian, Dubuque, Loras, Concordia Wisconsin, Wisconsin Lutheran, Aurora
Buena Vista 3, Marian 0; Dominican 3, Loras 0; Wartburg 3, Edgewood 1; Buena Vista 3, Aurora 1; Simpson 3, Wisconsin Lutheran 0; Dominican 3, Dubuque 0; Lakeland 3, Loras 2; Coe 3, Benedictine 0; Lakeland 3, Dubuque 1; Concordia Wisconsin 3, Central 1; Luther 3, Marian 0; Wartburg 3, Benedictine 0; Coe 3, Edgewood 0; Simpson 3, Marian 0; Concordia Wisconsin 3, Buena Vista 2; Central 3, Aurora 2; Luther 3, Wisconsin Lutheran 1.

Gallaudet Tourney
North Park, Gallaudet, Bridgewater, Marymount, Messiah, Catholic, Whittier, Mary Washington
Gallaudet 3, North Park 1; Marymount 3, North Park 0.

Moody Bible Invite
Maranatha, Moody Bible, Indiana Northwest, Grace Bible, Kuyper, Northland International
Maranatha 3, Indiana Northwest 1; Maranatha 3, Grace Bible 0.

UW-Superior tri
UW-Superior, Finlandia, Lakehead (Canada)
UW-Superior 3, Lakehead 0; UW-Superior 3, Finlandia 0; Lakehead 3, Finlandia 1.

MIAC
• #12 Saint Benedict 3, Saint Mary’s 0 CSB’s Mary Franz went 11-0-24.
• Concordia-Moorhead 3, Carleton 0 CCM’s Kynndyl Ross had 16 kills.
• Bethel 3, Macalester 0 BU’s Nicole Ackatz went 12-0-21.

UMAC
• Northwestern 3, Bethany Lutheran 0 UNW’s Lizzy Potratz had 10 kills.
• Crown 3, Northland 0 CC had 11 aces.
• Martin Luther 3, North Central 0 MLC’s Heather Danell went 12-1-15.

MWC
• Ripon 3, Lake Forest 0 RC’s Karlye Wehner had 12 kills.
• Monmouth 3, Grinnell 2 Set 5 ended 15-13; MC’s Lorin Pedersoli had 13 kills.

GPAC
• Nebraska Wesleyan 3, Dordt 0 DC is #19 in NAIA; NWU’s Alyssa Stanek had 8 kills, 5 blocks.

Top 25 upset watch
• #5 Cal Lutheran 3, Occidental 0
• #8 Mount Union 3, Marietta 1
• #14 Puget Sound 3, Lewis & Clark 1
• #20 Stevenson 3, Rowan 0
• #20 Stevenson 3, Penn State Abington 0

-Ricky Nelson

9/26: Alverno wins program-record 8th match

SLIAC
• Fontbonne 3, MacMurray 1 FU’s Madeline Stadler had 16 kills, 16 digs.

Nonconference
• Alverno 3, Silver Lake 0 AC’s Cali Trepp had 16 kills.
• William Penn 3, Iowa Wesleyan 0 WPU is NAIA.
• Northland International 3, Mount Mary 0 MMU (0-11) hasn’t won a set this season.

Top 25 upset watch
• #13 Otterbein 3, Mount Vernon Nazarene 0

-Ricky Nelson

9/25: UWSP overcomes 0-2 hole against UWW

WIAC
• UW-Stevens Point 3, #17 UW-Whitewater 2 Set 5 ended 15-10; UWSP won last 3 sets; UWSP’s Krista Loos had 18 kills.
• UW-Eau Claire 3, UW-River Falls 0 UWEC’s Katrina Raskie had 9 kills.
• UW-La Crosse 3, UW-Platteville 2 Set 5 ended 15-12; UWL’s Crystal Ziegler, Lauren Probst had 18 kills apiece.

MIAC
• #3 St. Thomas 3, St. Catherine 0 UST had 47 kills.
• #10 Saint Benedict 3, Carleton 0 CSB’s Lexi Rinde had 14 kills.
• #21 Augsburg 3, St. Olaf 0 AC’s Ashley Peper had 13 kills.
• Hamline 3, Gustavus 0 HU had 47 kills.

MWC
• Carroll 3, Lawrence 0 CU’s Emily Cecka went 9-0-15.

Nonconference
• #18 Chicago 3, Lake Forest 0 UC hit .447.
• UW Oshkosh 3, Dominican 0 UWO had 5 with 6+ kills.
• UW-Superior 3, Northland 0 UWS’s Brooke Vonasek went 12-0-18.
• Finlandia 3, Northland 0 FU’s Emma Cole had 10 kills.
• Benedictine 3, Illinois Wesleyan 2 Set 5 ended 17-15; BU’s Candice Cuppini had 21 kills.
• North Park 3, Concordia Chicago 0 NPU’s Shelby Switzer, Neisha Bolian combined to go 30-3-52.
• Franklin 3, Spalding 0 FC outhit SU, .322 to .067.

Top 25 upset watch
• #1 Calvin 3, Adrian 0
• #2 Hope 3, Kalamazoo 0
• #13 Otterbein 3, Kenyon 1
• #16 Pacific Lutheran 3, #14 Puget Sound 1
• #23 Roger Williams 3, Western New England 1
• #25 Salisbury 3, Washington College 1

-Ricky Nelson

2013 NCAA stats: National leaders at CSB, Prin, NWU

The following are Central and Midwest players and teams in the top 10 nationally, according to the second stats release of the season. The national leader is listed regardless of region. Players and teams not from the Central or Midwest regions are listed in italics.

Stats are through Sept. 22.

Aces/Set
1. Sarah Durocher, Daniel Webster 1.21
1. Manhattanville 3.84

Assists/Set
1. Taya Kockelman, Saint Benedict 11.92
5. Emily McCourt, Augsburg 11.40
1. Saint Benedict 13.73
2. Nebraska Wesleyan 13.41
4. Augsburg 13.22

Blocks/Set
1. Andrea Williams, Johnson St. 1.83
2. Alivia Holman, UW-Whitewater 1.60
3. Megan Reynolds, Elmhurst 1.60
8. Cari Miller, Northwestern 1.31
1. Richard Stockton 2.94
4. UW-Stevens Point 2.77
7. Carroll 2.56
8. UW-Whitewater 2.53
9. Webster 2.53
10. Elmhurst 2.50

Digs/Set
1. Morgan Buterbaugh, Penn State Berks 7.18
4. Camille Benson, Carleton 6.57
6. Kylea Weber, Cornell 6.41
1. Principia 21.22
3. Cornell 20.65
7. Edgewood 20.24
8. MacMurray 20.06

Hitting Percentage
1. Katrina Pisch, Eastern .498
4. Megan Reynolds, Elmhurst .429
7. Bridget Bucher, Nebraska Wesleyan .409
1. Eastern .303
6. Nebraska Wesleyan .286
9. Elmhurst .277

Kills/Set
1. Allie Frappier, Pomona-Pitzer 5.26
3. Shelby Switzer, North Park 4.92
5. Ashley Peper, Augsburg 4.76
6. Audrey Krajec, Millikin 4.72
7. Tess Rountree, Principia 4.65
1. Nebraska Wesleyan 14.48
2. Saint Benedict 14.45
4. Augsburg 14.20

Points/Set
1. Allie Frappier, Pomona-Pitzer 5.71
2. Tess Rountree, Principia 5.64
3. Audrey Krajec, Millikin 5.50
3. Shelby Switzer, North Park 5.50
10. Ashley Peper, Augsburg 5.03

Winning Percentage
1. Seven tied (after 9/24) 1.000

-Ricky Nelson

9/24: Scots move into 4th-place MIAC logjam

MIAC
• Macalester 3, Saint Mary’s 1 MC’s Laura Avena, Brooke Hunter had 22 kills apiece.

CCIW
• #6 Elmhurst 3, North Central 0 EC’s Marci Novak, Kaitlyn Wilks combined to go 28-4-47.

IIAC
• Wartburg 3, Loras 0 WC’s Ramey Sieck went 8-0-13 with 22 assists, 10 digs.
• Coe 3, Central 0 Coe’s Katelin Langel had 12 kills.
• Buena Vista 3, Dubuque 2 Set 5 ended 15-10; BVU’s Maddie Bardole had 23 kills, 17 digs.

MWC
• Knox 3, Illinois College 1 KC’s Lauren Metcalf had 15 kills.

NACC
• Benedictine 3, Alverno 0 BU’s Candice Cuppini had 16 kills.
• Wisconsin Lutheran 3, Marian 1 WLC’s Erin Greenfield, Kelli Johnson had 15 kills apiece.
• Concordia Chicago 3, Rockford 0 CUC’s Jenna Boggs had 32 assists, 14 digs.

SLIAC
• Webster 3, MacMurray 0 WU’s Sam Kersting went 12-1-25.
• Greenville 3, Fontbonne 0 GC’s Corinne Coon had 15 kills, 10 kills.
• Principia 3, Westminster 2 Set 5 ended 15-13; PC’s Tess Rountree had 20 kills, 25 digs, 7 blocks.

GPAC
• Midland 3, Nebraska Wesleyan 1 MU (21-0) is #5 in NAIA.

Nonconference
• Augustana 3, Monmouth 0 AC’s Emily Leazer had 11 kills, 15 digs.
• Aurora 3, Maranatha 0 AU’s Andrea Kappelman had 12 kills.
• Lincoln Christian 3, Eureka 1 LCU is NCCAA.

Top 25 upset watch
• #5 Cal Lutheran 3, Pomona-Pitzer 2
• #7 Juniata 3, Indiana (Pa.) 0
• #11 Wittenberg 3, Ohio Wesleyan 0
• #15 Eastern 3, DeSales 0
• #20 Stevenson 3, Johns Hopkins 0
• #22 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps 3, La Verne 0

-Ricky Nelson

AVCA 2013 Week 3 poll: Auggies ranked for first time

Calvin was already No. 1 last week with 46 of 48 first-place votes. Sweeping No. 2 Hope made the Knights unanimous in the AVCA Week 3 poll. Hope stayed at No. 2, followed by St. Thomas, Emory and Cal Lutheran.

No. 6 Elmhurst, Juniata, Mount Union, Washington-St. Louis and Colorado College round out the top 10.

Other Central and Midwest teams in the Week 3 top 25: No. 12 Saint Benedict; No. 17 UW-Whitewater; No. 18 Chicago; No. 21 Augsburg; No. 24 Carthage.

Augsburg, the only new team in this week’s top 25, is ranked for the first time program history. No. 24 UW-Stevens Point exited the top 25.

Central or Midwest teams receiving votes: Nebraska Wesleyan; Cornell; UW-Stevens Point; Concordia-Moorhead; Edgewood; Coe.

Can’t say I disagree with the top of the 48-voter collective. If you forgot, have a look at my Week 3 top 10.

It’s great to see who votes for whom (see Voter Ballots). The most interesting part to me is how each voter sets the hierarchy within his or her own region and the volume of teams from those regions.

Unrelated to my most interesting part of published ballots, here’s the top portion of my favorite published AVCA ballot from Week 3:
1. Calvin
2. Juniata
3. Colorado College
4. Mount Union
5. Stevenson
6. Roger Williams
7. Springfield
8. Hope
9. Saint Benedict
10. CMS
11. Nebraska Wesleyan
12. Stevens

-Ricky Nelson