Volleyball Travels to Buffalo and Akron for Crossover #MACtion

Volleyball at Buffalo \| at Akron
Date	Friday Oct. 19, 6 p.m. \| Saturday Oct. 20, 5 p.m.
Venue	Buffalo, N.Y. - Alumni Arena \| Akron, Ohio - James A. Rhodes Arena
Preview Info	EMU Notes
Live Stats	at Buffalo \| at Akron
Video Broadcast	at Buffalo
Twitter	@EMUVolleyball \| @EMUAthletics

BUFFALO, N.Y. & AKRON, Ohio (EMUEagles.com)- The Eastern Michigan University volleyball team returns to #MACtion with a pair of Mid-American Conference Crossover road games, taking on the University at Buffalo Friday, Oct. 19 at 6 p.m. and following that up with a bout at the University of Akron Saturday, Oct. 20 at 5 p.m.
   Friday's match between the Eagles and Bulls will be broadcast on ESPN+, with Matt Mattia bringing play-by-play and Brian Kozial as analyst. Live stats will be available for both matches.

SERIES HISTORY: Eastern has had success against Buffalo in its history, holding a 19-4 overall record and a 10-1 mark in the Bison City. Though a losing record against Akron, EMU narrowly trails the all-time series with a record of 18-20.
   The Eagles split the season series with the Bulls in 2017, losing 3-0 at home and winning 3-1 when it counted most, in the first round of the MAC Tournament.
   EMU made easy work of Akron in the friendly confines of the Convocation Center last season, winning 25-15, 25-22, 23-25, 25-16. The Green and White are 6-10 all-time in the Rubber City, but have won the last two matchups in James A. Rhodes Arena.

THIRD TIMES A CHARM: Senior libero Alyssa LaFace (Allen Park, Mich.-Allen Park) became the first Eagle to be named MAC Player of the Week three times this season when she was announced as the West's Defensive POW Monday, Oct. 15.
   LaFace amassed 60 digs in two matches against MAC East leaders Miami and Bowling Green, averaging 6.67 digs per set. The libero's season average of 6.05 digs per set is good for second in the MAC and third in the NCAA.
   The Allen Park, Mich. native's 33 digs against BGSU marked the fifth time this season the senior has had 30+ digs in a match, and her digs-per-set mark was the highest over the weekend for the MAC West.
   Eastern Michigan has now won a weekly MAC award seven times in 2018, its most since 2015.

STAYING HAUT: Redshirt junior Cassie Haut (Monroe, Mich.-St. Mary Central Catholic) continued her impressive season in Eastern's two setbacks over the weekend, pounding out 30 kills in the two matches and hitting at a .375 clip. The Monroe, Mich. native's 16 kills against Miami were a match-high for the Eagles, while her 14 kills against Bowling Green marked her 12th double-digit effort on the season.
   Haut leads the Mid-American Conference in hitting percentage on the season at .371, and is hitting an outstanding .413 in conference play. She's also third in total blocks (81) and fifth in blocks per set (1.11).

CHASING THE 1,000/1,000 CLUB: Only seven women in the history of Eastern Michigan volleyball have reached 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs for their respective careers. After reaching the 1,000 kill mark against Savannah State, Sept. 8, senior Jordan Smith (Solon, Iowa-Solon) has the chance to become number eight.
   The outside hitter has 865 digs in her career, and would be the first Eagle to join the 1,000/1,000 club since Paige Roback in 2013.

LEADING THE LEAGUE: Eastern Michigan's superb 2018 season has the Eagles ranked near the top in almost every major statistical category in the Mid-American Conference. EMU leads in assists per set (13.08), kills per set (13.78), and opponent hitting percentage (.145), while coming in second in hitting percentage (.228), digs per set (18.57), and blocks per set (2.14). The Eagles' lowest team ranking is in service aces per set, where it is currently ranked eighth (1.28).
   The Green and White's .145 opponent attack percentage and 18.57 digs per set average each rank fifth in the NCAA, while libero Alyssa LaFace's 6.05 digs per set is third nationally.

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK: With the announcement that senior Alyssa LaFace was the Mid-American Conference West Defensive Player of the Week, Oct. 15, Eastern Michigan has earned player of the week honors seven times in 2018, tying the 2015 season for most in a single season in program history.
   EMU has take home multiple MAC weekly awards in the same week twice this season, marking the first time it has been done since 2015. Corynne Smith and then-freshman Cassie Haut were crowned by the conference as Defensive and Offensive Players of the Week, respectively.
   To see the full list of Eastern's Player of the Week honors for 2018, please see page four.

SURGING SMITH: Senior Jordan Smith is clearly saving her best performance for last, as the outside hitter is putting up the best numbers of her career in her final season in the Green and White. The Solon, Iowa native has 272 kills and a hitting percentage of .212, 80 points higher than her career average coming into the season (.132).
   The disparity is even greater when looking at the senior's numbers in Mid-American Conference play, as Smith has 98 kills with a .209 attack percentage in 2018, compared to her .120 MAC career attack average coming into the season.

HOUSTON, WE HAVE LIFT OFF: After having just one double-digit kill performance on the season coming into the weekend, sophomore April Houston (Minneapolis, Minn.-Southwest) put together back-to-back 10+ kill performances against Miami and Bowling Green. The Minneapolis, Minn. native pounded out a season-high 14 against the RedHawks, while finishing with 12 against the Falcons. The middle blocker added four blocks in each match.

ON THE HORIZON: Eastern Michigan returns to the friendly confines of the Convocation Center for a home match against in-state rival Central Michigan University Thursday, Oct. 25, at 6 p.m. for its annual Dig Pink match. The Eagles then hit the road to take on Ohio University Saturday, Oct. 27 at 6 p.m.

Volleyball Travels to Buffalo and Akron for Crossover #MACtion

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Players Mentioned

Cassie Haut

April Houston

Alyssa LaFace

Corynne Smith

Jordan Smith

Eastern Michigan Athletics