Eagles Hit the Road for a Pair of Conference Matches

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) - The Eastern Michigan University volleyball team opened up Mid-American Conference play by going 1-1 at home last weekend, Sept. 27-28. Eastern (11-6) first dropped a match against the Mid-American Conference West Division leading Ball State Cardinals in straight sets, before knocking off the Rockets of Toledo in a four set match at the Convocation Center.

The Green and White hits the road for MAC play away from Ypsilanti this week. The Eagles first travel to DeKalb, Ill. for a matchup with Northern Illinois University Friday, Oct. 4. First serve is slated for 7 p.m. (CT) at the NIU Convocation Center Friday evening. Saturday, Oct. 5, EMU will come back east to take on Western Michigan University. The match in Kalamazoo, Mich. is scheduled for 7 p.m. at University Arena.

FOR THE 34TH TIME: Eastern Michigan has been a member of the Mid-American Conference for 33 years. The 2013 conference slate will serve as EMU's 34th season as a member of the MAC, including the Eagles' first place MAC West finish in 2005, when they totaled a 14-2 record.

ALL-TIME AGAINST THE OPPONENTS: EMU has played in 122 matches combined against this week's opponents.

The Eagles' first opposition this weekend is Northern Illinois. Eastern will travel to DeKalb, Ill. Friday, Oct. 4, for a tilt with its MAC West Division challenger. The Huskies hold a slight, 26-21, edge over the Green and White. The last time these two teams squared off, the Eagles got the best of NIU with a four set win last season, Oct. 26, 2012.

Following its quick stint in Illinois, EMU will travel back to the Great Lakes State for a match with in-state rival Western Michigan, Oct. 5. The match in Kalamazoo will be the 76th time these two teams have seen each other on the court. Western holds a 55-20 advantage over Eastern in the all-time series, picking up a three set win in their last matchup, Oct. 27, 2012.

TIME TO WRANGLE THE BRONCOS: Eastern Michigan has had a hard time keeping the Broncos in the stable as of late. WMU has knocked off the Green and White in five straight matches dating back to Oct. 8, 2010. Actually, the Eagles have only taken three sets from the Broncos since they defeated Western Michigan in five sets in 2010.

In the last 10 matches, Eastern has only won one time. Those last 10 tilts date back to Nov. 16, 2007 and the Green and White have not completed a season sweep of the Broncos since the 2005 season when the Eagles went 14-2 in MAC matches, while winning the MAC West title.

IN THE NATIONAL SPOTLIGHT: The Eagles are not only leading the MAC in a few categories, but they are ranked in the top-50 nationally in a pair of them as well. EMU is ranked 21st overall in aces per set at 1.73, while it is 38th overall in digs per set with 16.10.

Individually, redshirt-sophomore middle blocker Kelsey Jones is posting 1.31 blocks per set ,which ranks at the 37th best total in the nation. Corynne Smith is currently ranked 42nd overall in the county in digs per set. The sophomore is averaging 4.81 digs in her first season starting at libero for the Green and White.

LEADING THE LEAGUE, AS USUAL: Over the last few years, EMU has been near the top of the Mid-American Conference in digs and this season is no different. The Eagles are currently leading the league in total digs with 1,014. The next closest is Northern Illinois who has notched just 953 in two less sets, while the Green and White is currently posting 16.10 digs per set and Ball State is second in that category with over one and a half digs less per game, 16.07.

Corynne Smith is third in the conference with 4.81 digs per set, but is leading the conference in overall digs. She has totaled 303 digs in 63 sets, while the leaders in the conference, Kelly Svoboda (Buffalo) and Jenna Coates (Central Michigan), are averaging 5.90 and 5.29 digs, respectively.

SERVING UP VICTORY: After finishing last season as the eighth best serving team in the Mid-American Conference, the Eagles have made themselves known as a force from behind the service line. The Green and White is leading the conference in service aces, posting 109 so far this season. Ball State ranks second in overall aces at 82. EMU is averaging 1.73 aces per set which is 0.25 more than the next closest as Buffalo averages 1.48 per game.

Individually, Natalie Folk and Stacey Perinar have each looked stellar serving for the Eagles. Folk is ranked seventh in the conference, posting 0.33 aces per set, while Perinar is tied for 10th overall in the MAC notching 0.29 aces per frame.

MOVING UP THE RANKS: Senior Paige Roback has accumulated 150 kills this season to up her career total to 1,010. That amount ranks as the 12th most in Eastern Michigan laurels. Alyssa Davis has added 332 assists to her total from a year ago, making her total of 989 assists the 13th most in EMU history. The sophomore has a good chance of moving up the list with over two seasons of eligibility remaining.

CARDINALS CLIP EAGLE WINGS: The Cardinals won the first battle of the birds this season, Sept. 27, in straight sets. The Eagles were held to just 20 kills, just 6.67 per set, while hitting only .047 in the match. Both of these were the Green and White's lowest offensive outputs of the 2013 campaign.

REVERSING THE TREND: The EMU volleyball team had lost seven straight matches against IPFW heading into last Tuesday's Sept. 17 matchup. Eastern not only turned things around against the Mastodons but knocked off the formindable squad very easily. The Eagles topped the IPFW in three sets, 25-21, 25-20 and 25-16.

Eastern Michigan Athletics

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