10/31/14: Hendrix edges #19 Big Blue in 5

Benedictine Classic
#16 Elmhurst, #17 Carthage, Chicago, Dominican, North Central (Ill.), Benedictine, DePauw, Bluffton
#17 Carthage 3, Benedictine 0; Dominican 3, North Central (Ill.) 0; #16 Elmhurst 3, Bluffton 0; Chicago 3, North Central (Ill.) 0; Chicago 3, Bluffton 0; DePauw 3, Dominican 1; #16 Elmhurst 3, Benedictine 0; #17 Carthage 3, DePauw 2.

Washington-St. Louis Invite
#5 Washington-St. Louis, #19 Millikin, Westminster, Transylvania, Hendrix
#5 Washington-St. Louis 3, Westminster 0; Hendrix 3, #19 Millikin 2; #5 Washington-St. Louis 3, Transylvania 0.

Augustana Bash
Augustana, Buena Vista, Simpson, MSOE, Dickinson St.
Augustana 3, Dickinson St. 0; Augustana 3, Buena Vista 0; MSOE 3, Simpson 1; Buena Vista 3, MSOE 0; Simpson 3, Dickinson St. 1.

Illinois Wesleyan Classic
Concordia Wisconsin, Illinois Wesleyan, Central, Lakeland, North Park, Illinois College, MacMurray, Wisconsin Lutheran
Illinois Wesleyan 3, Illinois College 0; North Park 3, MacMurray 2; Concordia Wisconsin 3, MacMurray 0; Illinois College 3, Wisconsin Lutheran 0; Lakeland 3, Wisconsin Lutheran 0; Central 3, Lakeland 1; Illinois Wesleyan 3, Central 1; Concordia Wisconsin 3, North Park 1.

NCCAA Regional
Maranatha, Kuyper, Grace Bible, Northland International, Moody Bible
Maranatha 3, Kuyper 0.

WIAC
• #8 UW-Stevens Point 3, UW-River Falls 0 UWSP’s Emma Brunkhorst hit 16-1-29.
• #25 UW-Whitewater 3, UW-Eau Claire 0 UWW’s Ariel Feiertag hit 12-1-19 with 4 blocks.
• UW Oshkosh 3, UW-Superior 0 UWO’s Katelyn Malcheski hit 15-4-23.
• UW-Stout 3, UW-La Crosse 0 UWS’s Morgan Denny had 10 kills.

MIAC
• Hamline 3, St. Catherine 2 Set 5 ended 15-11; HU’s Gabriella Feldt, Jena Meyer had 14 kills apiece.
• Carleton 3, St. Olaf 0 CC’s Lucy Stevens hit 21-3-36.

UMAC
• Northwestern 3, Martin Luther 1 UNW’s Lindsey Peterson had 14 kills.
• Minnesota Morris 3, St. Scholastica 0 UMM’s Abby Tietz had 14 kills, 5 blocks.
• Crown 3, Northland 0 CC’s Katie Herrmann had 10 kills.
• Bethany Lutheran 3, North Central 0 BLC’s Amanna Berthusen hit 13-1-24.

MWC
• St. Norbert 3, Carroll 1 SNC’s Heidi Spies had 18 kills.
• Lake Forest 3, Ripon 1 LFC’s K.C. Wenson hit 12-3-22 with 4 blocks.
• Monmouth 3, Grinnell 2 Set 5 ended 15-10; MC’s Quincy Merritt had 17 kills.

Nonconference
• Cornell 3, Coe 1 Cornell’s Diamond Boyd hit 29-2-46.
• Aurora 3, Illinois Tech 0 AU’s Peyton McKenzie had 10 kills.

Top 25 upset watch
• #1 Calvin 3, Olivet 0
• #2 Hope 3, St. Mary’s (Ind.) 0
• #4 Wittenberg 3, #21 Trinity (Texas) 2
• #6 Emory 3, Berry 0
• #6 Emory 3, UMass Boston 1
• #7 Mount Union 3, Otterbein 0
• #12 Eastern 3, Susquehanna 1
• #15 Clarkson 3, Elmira 0
• #15 Clarkson 3, Stevens 1
• #18 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps 3, Redlands 0
• #20 Pacific Lutheran 3, Lewis & Clark 0

-Ricky Nelson

10/30/14: Greenville lengthens SLIAC lead

SLIAC
• Greenville 3, Webster 1

Nonconference
• St. Ambrose 3, Iowa Wesleyan 0 SAU is NAIA.

Top 25 upset watch
• #3 Cal Lutheran 3, #24 La Verne 0
• #10 Christopher Newport 3, Mary Washington 0
• #13 Colorado College 3, Johnson & Wales (Colo.) 0

-Ricky Nelson

2014 regional rankings: Pointers rise to #1 in Midwest

The NCAA released the second of three public rankings today.

Central (Week 1 rank)
1 (1). Nebraska Wesleyan
2 (2). Washington-St. Louis
3 (4). Augsburg
4 (3). St. Thomas
5 (5). Saint Benedict
6 (6). Coe

Midwest (Week 1 rank)
1 (3). UW-Stevens Point
2 (1). Carthage
3 (4). Millikin
4 (2). Elmhurst
5 (5). UW-Whitewater
6 (6). UW Oshkosh
7 (7). Cornell (updated 10/30 @ 9:10 p.m.)
Dropped out (?): (Maybe, perhaps, I don’t know, etc.) No. 7 Cornell.

Top three in other regions (Last week rank)
Great Lakes: Hope (1); Calvin (3); Wittenberg (2).
Mid-Atlantic: Christopher Newport (1); Eastern (2); Juniata (3).
New England: Williams (1); Bowdoin (2); Roger Williams (3).
New York: Clarkson (2); Richard Stockton (1); New Paltz St. (3).
South: Emory (1); Washington and Lee (2); Hendrix (5).
West: Cal Lutheran (1); La Verne (2); Pacific Lutheran (3).

Additional commentary, if any, will come later because Iway amway atway orkway.

Off the top, some Midwest Region teams must have folded their volleyball programs because the Midwest went from seven ranked teams (correct) to six (incorrect).

My predicted Central rankings this week were the same (yay!).

My Midwest order was: Carthage; UW-Stevens Point; Elmhurst; Millikin; Cornell; UW-Whitewater; Chicago.

I considered Millikin over Elmhurst and UWSP over Carthage. The CCIW pair’s results against Wheaton probably tipped the balance. UWSP over Carthage makes sense due to head-to-head, but I thought the RAC would make a wash of Carthage’s loss to Loras and wins over UWO and Wartburg. Guess not.

Sorry, Cornell. I don’t care what the NCAA says, I like your resume.

Anyone else have thoughts on this week’s rankings?

Update (10/30/14 @ 6:15 p.m.): I hope we get to see the PDF’s next week (or later this week). The Week 2 and Week 3 PDF’s are the ones that incorporate the other criteria like records against ranked teams. If we were not going to get PDF’s for a week, I’d much rather it be Week 1 than the other two.

The lack of PDF’s and the omission of a ranked team leaves a lot to be desired. The rankings were also formatted differently and different names were used for some institutions, so I’m not sure what to make of this week’s release. I know the committees don’t post the rankings, so it’s hard to blame them. I hope all of the information was collected and was just not inputted properly. The formatting and institution names are minor, but six ranked teams in the Midwest and no PDF’s are major.

Update (10/30/14 @ 9:10 p.m.): Regional rankings now have PDF’s and a seventh Midwest Region team (Cornell). However, the PDF’s are showing system errors.

Update (10/30/14 @ 11 p.m.): PDF’s are available. Chicago certainly looks like it should be ranked. I need to get used to the trend toward winning percentage.

-Ricky Nelson

10/29/14: #8 UWSP downs #25 UWW in 5, wins 13th straight

WIAC
• #8 UW-Stevens Point 3, #25 UW-Whitewater 2 Set 5 ended 15-11; UWSP’s Gabby Thomas had 18 kills.
• UW-Eau Claire 3, UW-Stout 0 UWEC’s Kelly Riesgraf hit 8-0-12 with 10 blocks.
• UW-Platteville 3, UW-La Crosse 1 UWP’s Lidia Frias hit 9-1-15 with 5 blocks.
• UW-River Falls 3, UW-Superior 0 UWRF’s Brianna Muetzel had 10 kills, 5 blocks.

MIAC
• #9 St. Thomas 3, Carleton 0 UST’s Jill Greenfield had 17 kills, 15 digs, 4 blocks.
• #22 Augsburg 3, St. Catherine 2 Set 5 ended 15-5; AC’s Ashley Peper had 17 kills, 12 digs.
• #23 Saint Benedict 3, Hamline 0 CSB ouhit HU .230 to .000.
• Bethel 3, Gustavus 0 BU’s Carlee Hoppe had 13 kills.
• Saint Mary’s 3, St. Olaf 0 SMU had 53 kills.
• Concordia-Moorhead 3, Macalester 0 CCM’s Kynndyl Ross hit 9-1-16.

CCIW
• #19 Millikin 3, Illinois Wesleyan 2 Set 5 ended 15-8; MU’s Audrey Krajec had 19 kills, 6 blocks.

IIAC
• Loras 3, Dubuque 1 LC’s Kara Kentner had 22 assists, 10 kills, 9 digs.

UMAC
• St. Scholastica 3, Northland 0 CSS ouhit NC .300 to -.020.
• Martin Luther 3, Bethany Lutheran 0 MLC’s Kira Grev had 10 kills, 13 digs.

MWC
• St. Norbert 3, Lawrence 0 SNC’s Heidi Spies hit 14-2-23.
• Cornell 3, Grinnell 0 CC’s Taylor Dicus hit 10-1-16.
• Carroll 3, Ripon 0 CU’s Caitlin Dolan hit 12-0-18 with 4 blocks.

SLIAC
• Westminster 3, Blackburn 0 WC’s Riley Lawrence hit 13-3-18 with 16 digs.

GPAC
• #14 Nebraska Wesleyan 3, Doane 2 Set 5 ended 15-7; NWU’s Katelyn Walsh had 15 kills.

Nonconference
• Spalding 3, Franklin 0 SU’s Jessica Diehl hit 12-0-20 with 4 blocks.

Top 25 upset watch
• #6 Emory 3, Piedmont 0
• #12 Eastern 3, Misericordia 0

-Ricky Nelson

2014 NCAA stats: Central, Midwest good at terminating volleyballs

The following are Central and Midwest players and teams in the top 10 nationally, according to the seventh 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 Oct. 26.

Aces/Set
1. Courtney Parent, MCLA 1.06
1. New Rochelle 3.80

Total Aces
1. Sarah Palladino, Farmingdale St. 96
1. New Rochelle 395

Assists/Set
1. Jenna Lodewyk, Calvin 11.33
2. Christina Wilson, Dominican 11.32
3. Alexis Hartman, UW-Stevens Point 11.21
5. Taya Kockelman, Saint Benedict 11.10
8. Courtney Lemke, Augsburg 10.95
9. Kim Frei, UW-Whitewater 10.89
1. Hope 13.37
2. Saint Benedict 13.20
6. Coe 12.95
7. UW-Stevens Point 12.92
8. Northwestern 12.84
9. Dominican 12.81
10. UW-Whitewater 12.78

Total Assists
1. Nicole Barringer, Averett 1202
2. Laura Barry, Buena Vista 1174
3. Karen Chin, Carthage 1172
4. Mackenzie Harbaugh, Coe 1121
5. Kim Frei, UW-Whitewater 1100
8. Alexis Hartman, UW-Stevens Point 1087
8. Christina Wilson, Dominican 1087
10. Jenna Smits, UW-Eau Claire 1070
1. Millikin 1453
2. Washington-St. Louis 1425
3. Elmhurst 1401
4. Coe 1399
8. UW Oshkosh 1389
10. Dubuque 1354

Attacks/Set
1. Katie Heard, Whittier 33.00 (Huh?????)
2. Tess Rountree, Principia 14.08
10. Maren Loe, Chicago 12.17
1. UC Santa Cruz 41.88

Total Attacks
1. Tess Rountree, Principia 1422
2. Maren Loe, Chicago 1400
4. Klaudia Basierak, Dubuque 1289
5. Maddie Bardole, Buena Vista 1278
8. Audrey Krajec, Millikin 1224
10. Kersten McDonough, Fontbonne 1218
1. Dubuque 4593
4. UW Oshkosh 4395
5. Loras 4355
8. Chicago 4255

Blocks/Set
1. Alyssa Stanek, Nebraska Wesleyan 1.66
2. Emma Brunkhorst, UW-Stevens Point 1.39
1. Nebraska Wesleyan 2.57
3. Rockford 2.45
4. Cornell 2.38
6. UW-Whitewater 2.33

Total Blocks
1. Presleigh Watson, Austin 146
6. Melissa Nava, Elmhurst 123
1. Austin 311.5
3. UW Oshkosh 260
7. Webster 242.5
8. UW-Whitewater 240.5
9. UW-Platteville 239
10. Elmhurst 236

Digs/Set
1. Amber Aguiar, Pacific Lutheran 7.31
7. Dzenita Bahtic, Central 6.26
7. Camille Benson, Carleton 6.37
8. Caleigh Galvan, Lakeland 6.26
9. Camille Benson, Carleton 6.21
10. Jamie Schollenbruch, Greenville 6.19
1. Southwestern 21.52
6. UW-Stevens Point 19.82
8. Augsburg 19.61

Total Digs
1. Victoria Lohman, Penn St. Abington 760
2. Mandy Trautmann, UW Oshkosh 678
10. Caleigh Galvan, Lakeland 588
1. Southwestern 2389
5. Loras 2065
6. Aurora 2057
8. Chicago 2042
9. UW Oshkosh 2039

Hitting Percentage
1. Katrina Pisch, Eastern .459
1. Calvin .304
4. Millikin .274
9. Northwestern .260
10. UW-Whitewater .257

Kills/Set
1. Tess Rountree, Principia 5.39
4. Audrey Krajec, Millikin 4.71
9. Maddie Bardole, Buena Vista 4.54
1. Calvin 14.31
3. Coe 14.07
4. Saint Benedict 14.05
5. Northwestern 14.02
7. UW-Whitewater 14.01
8. UW-Stevens Point 13.84
10. Millikin 13.80

Total Kills
1. Sarah Szybist, Rochester Tech 591
3. Tess Rountree, Principia 544
4. Audrey Krajec, Millikin 528
5. Maddie Bardole, Buena Vista 490
7. Maren Loe, Chicago 467
8. Kersten McDonough, Fontbonne 455
10. Jade Schaap, Buena Vista 428
1. Millikin 1587
2. Washington-St. Louis 1532
4. Elmhurst 1521
5. Coe 1520
6. UW Oshkosh 1497
9. Carthage 1468

Points/Set
1. Tess Rountree, Principia 6.36
5. Audrey Krajec, Millikin 5.42
10. Maddie Bardole, Buena Vista 5.06

Winning Percentage
1. Nebraska Wesleyan 1.000
5. Carthage .900

-Ricky Nelson

10/28/14: Coe wins IIAC outright

CCIW
• #16 Elmhurst 3, North Central 1 EC’s Melissa Nava hit 14-2-21 with 4 blocks.
• #17 Carthage 3, North Park 0 CC had 54 kills.
• Wheaton 3, Augustana 1 WC’s Andy DeMoss had 12 kills, 23 digs.

IIAC
• Coe 3, Luther 1 CC’s Mackenzie Harbaugh hit 8-0-20 with 49 assists.
• Wartburg 3, Buena Vista 2 Set 5 ended 15-7; WC hit .462 in Set 5.
• Central 3, Simpson 0 CC’s Emily Stoakes had 7 kills.

MWC
• Knox 3, Monmouth 1 KC beat MC for first time since 1997.
• Carroll 3, Lake Forest 0 CU outhit LFC .368 to -.049.

SLIAC
• Principia 3, Fontbonne 2 Set 5 ended 15-12; PC’s Tess Rountree had 19 kills, 25 digs.
• Webster 3, Westminster 0
• Greenville 3, Blackburn 0 GC had 11 aces.

NCCAA Regional
North Central (Minn.), Faith Bible, Providence (Canada)
Faith Bible 3, North Central (Minn.) 0.

Nonconference
• UW Oshkosh 3, Marian 1 UWO’s Katelyn Malcheski had 9 kills.
• Maranatha, Illinois Tech
• Mount Mary, Northland International

Top 25 upset watch
• #1 Calvin 3, Alma 0
• #2 Hope 3, Kalamazoo 0
• #3 Cal Lutheran 3, Caltech 0
• #7 Mount Union 3, John Carroll 0
• #24 La Verne 3, Whittier 0

-Ricky Nelson

2014 AVCA Week 9 poll: Calvin ascends to #1

Calvin took over the top spot in this week’s AVCA poll.

Calvin, which claimed 38-of-63 first-place votes, defeated previous No. 1 Hope in four sets last week. Calvin has also lost to No. 2 Hope, No. 4 Wittenberg and No. 5 Washington-St. Louis.

Hope retained 20 first-place votes, while Cal Lutheran received two and one apiece went to Wittenberg and Washington-St. Louis.

I’m praying the RAC’s have longer memories than the weekly voters. It’s hard to believe that the stated selection criteria would allow room for the RAC’s to agree with this week’s AVCA voters. You never know, but I’m an optimist. Come in and restore sanity, RAC’s.

Other Central and Midwest region teams in this week’s top 25: No. 8 UW-Stevens Point; No. 9 St. Thomas; No. 14 Nebraska Wesleyan; No. 16 Elmhurst; No. 17 Carthage; No. 19 Millikin; No. 22 Augsburg; No. 23 Saint Benedict; No. 25 UW-Whitewater.

Central and Midwest teams receiving votes this week: UW Oshkosh; Coe; Cornell; Chicago.

My Week 9 top 10

-Ricky Nelson

10/27/14: Relax

Nothing going on in the Central, Midwest or top 25. See you tomorrow.

-Ricky Nelson

Ricky Nelson’s 2014 Week 9 top 10

The AVCA poll comes out on Tuesday.

My rank, (my Wk 8 rank, AVCA Wk 8 rank), record, key results last week
1 (1, 1). Hope 25-1 L: Calvin.
2 (3, 15). Nebraska Wesleyan 20-6 None.   
3 (2, 2). Cal Lutheran 23-2 L: Claremont-Mudd-Scripps.
4 (4, 5). Washington-St. Louis 27-4 Idle.
5 (6, 4). Wittenberg 21-3 W: Hiram. 
6 (7, 3). Calvin 23-3 W: Hope.
7 (5, 6). Emory 27-3 Idle.
8 (9, 11). Wisconsin-Stevens Point 24-4 W: Coe; UW-Stout; North Central (Ill.). 
9 (10, 14). Carthage 26-3 W: UW Oshkosh; Wartburg; Augustana. L: Loras. 
10 (8, 7). St. Thomas 20-6 L: Augsburg.

My top 5 matches of the week:
10/29 #11 UW-Stevens Point vs. #23 UW-Whitewater
10/31 Coe vs. Cornell
11/1 #5 Washington-St. Louis vs. #18 Millikin
11/1 #12 Elmhurst vs. Chicago
11/1 Cornell vs. Wartburg

The Conference Tourneys page is starting to take shape. The Standout Stats page is updated nightly.

-Ricky Nelson

10/26/14: #22 TU secures SCAC #1 seed

Top 25 upset watch
• #22 Trinity (Texas) 3, #8 Colorado College 0
• Southwestern 3, #8 Colorado College 2
• #22 Trinity (Texas) 3, Austin 0

-Ricky Nelson