HORNET VOLLEYBALL FACES #3 LOPERS IN FIRST ROUND OF MIAA TOURNEY

Emporia State Hornets (15-17, 7-11 MIAA) vs.
#3 Nebraska-Kearney Lopers (32-1, 17-1 MIAA)
Tuesday, Nov. 15 • 7:00 p.m. • Kearney, Neb. • Health and Sports Center
Series Record: UNK leads 34-10 Last Meeting: #3 UNK 3, at ESU 0 (Oct. 8, 2016)
Up Next: MIAA Tournament • Friday, Nov. 18
Winner of Fort Hays / Central Missouri

POST SEASON PLAY
Eighth seeded Emporia State will face first seeded Neb.-Kearney in the first round of the MIAA Tournament. First serve will be at 7:00 p.m. in Kearney, Neb. at the Health and Sports Center.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Hornets were swept (20-25, 21-25, 13-25) by the #9 Bronchos to fall to 6-11 in the MIAA. Shayla Cotman led with six kills on .316 hitting with no errors and five blocks. Josie Williams, Julia Joseph and Danika Burton each had five kills. Williams also had three service aces and 13 digs following Allie Maloney with 23 digs. Emma Dixon led with 15 assists while Kimberly Bell had 13 assists.
With a season high 18 team blocks, Emporia State defeated Pittsburg State in four sets (25-15, 25-16, 19-25, 25-16) to wrap up the regular season. Williams again led with 12 kills and seven blocks while Cotman, Hauptman and Burton each added seven kills. Cotman had a .389 hitting percentage with no errors and six blocks. Burton tied a career high 11 total blocks with a .500 hitting percentage and no errors. Dixon earned a double-double with 16 assists and 11 digs while Bell had 19 assists and nine digs. Maloney led all players with 24 digs. The Hornets held the Gorillas to a .090 hitting percentage, Emporia State having only 12 hitting errors to Pittsburg State's 35 hitting errors.
 
MIAA TOURNAMENT
Xu has led the Hornets to MIAA Tournament appearances all four of the last seasons there has been a tournament, including the 2012, 2013, 2015 and 2016 seasons. The last time Emporia State advanced to the second round was in 2012 after defeating Truman State in four sets.
 
THE COACHES
Bing Xu is 252-133 (.655) in his 12th year as the head coach at Emporia State and 130-81 (.616) in MIAA play. He has led the Hornets to five NCAA Tournaments and one MIAA Championship. Xu is 0-11 against the Lopers.
Rick Squiers is in his 18th season with Neb.-Kearney and only the third head coach in program history. He has led the Lopers to an NCAA Tournament appearance every year he's been at Neb.-Kearney.
 
SCOUTING THE HORNETS
Emporia State is 15-17, 7-11 in the MIAA and the eighth seed in the MIAA Tournament. The Hornets are fourth in the MIAA averaging 2.20 blocks per set. Burton is second in the MIAA with 1.18 blocks per set, Cotman joining her in tenth with 0.92 blocks per set. Maloney sits second in the conference with 5.09 digs per set. Williams comes in at tenth averaging 2.90 kills per set. The Hornets have an MIAA high 107 digs in a game against Washburn.
 
ABOUT #3 NEBRASKA-KEARNEY
Neb.-Kearney is ranked third in the nation with a 32-1 season record, securing the first seed in the MIAA Tournament with a 17-1 conference record. The Lopers are fourth in Division II with a .299 hitting percentage and second with a .085 opponent hitting percentage. Tara Ziegelbein is fourth in the nation with a .410 hitting percentage. Lindsey Smith comes in at tenth in the nation averaging 11.6 assists per set.
 
LAST TIME AGAINST THE LOPERS
Emporia State was swept at home, 22-25, 16-25, 12-25, by #3 Neb.-Kearney in early October to fall to 2-6 in the MIAA. Williams led with ten kills followed by Taylor Otting with eight kills. Burton was responsible for six of the seven team blocks. Maloney led with 14 digs against the Lopers while Bell led with 17 assists.
 
THE SERIES
This will be the 45th meeting between Emporia State and Neb.-Kearney. The Lopers lead the all-time series 34-10.
 
NEXT SERVE
If Emporia State defeats Neb.-Kearney, they will advance to the second round of the MIAA Tourney to face the winner of Fort Hays and Central Mo. The game will be on Friday, Nov. 18.

FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS
Setter Kimberly Bell (Sr./Allen, Texas) transferred to Emporia State after her freshman year at Texas Woman's where she had 605 assists and 244 digs as a freshman. Bell had a season high 32 assists in a five set win against Missouri Western. She earned a career high 17 digs in a four set match win against Dallas Baptist. She tied her career high 17 digs against Newman at home. Bell had a career high four kills against Southern Nazarene at the MIAA-GAC Challenge, also earning a career high four aces against East Central at the same tournament. Bell has a .308 hitting percentage with 44 kills on 107 attempts and only 11 errors. She has eight double-doubles (assists/digs) on the season.
 
BURNIN' UP
Middle hitter Danika Burton (Sr./Coffeyville, Kan.) is in her second year with the Hornets after transferring from Coffeyville CC. Burton ended the regular season second in the MIAA with 1.20 blocks per set. She had a season high 12 kills on a .435 hitting percentage against Dallas Baptist. To tie her career high 11 blocks, she had one solo block and ten block assists at home against Pittsburg State for the final regular season game. She had two solo blocks at #11 Central Oklahoma and against Fort Lewis. Also against Pittsburg State, Burton had a season high .500 hitting percentage on seven kills and no errors. She also had a career high eight digs against Southwest Baptist. While at Coffeyville CC, Burton was named All-Jayhawk Conference Honorable Mention.
 
CAUGHT RED-HANDED
Middle hitter Shayla Cotman (Sr./Wichita, Kan.) leads Emporia State with 17 solo blocks on the season and sits tenth in the conference with 0.92 blocks per set. At home against #17 Washburn, Cotman had a season high 14 kills on a .407 hitting percentage. Against Missouri Western in a five set win, Cotman had a career high eight block assists. At Lindenwood in a three set win, Cotman had a season high .556 hitting percentage with ten kills. She has been named to both the Wasburn Invitational and the MSU Hampton Inn-Vitational All-Tournament teams. She was named to the All-MIAA Second Team during her junior (2015) season.
 
GOTTA KNOW WHEN TO HOLD 'EM
Defensive specialist Kelly Holden (Sr./Allen, Texas) will be a key part of Emporia State's defense in her senior season with the Hornets. Holden had a season high 20 digs against #17 Washburn in a five set loss at home. She tied a career high four assists against Drury University at the Washburn Invitational. For the fifth time in her career, Holden tied a career high three service aces against Cameron University. In her junior season (2015), Holden had 13 matches with 20 or more digs.
 
WHERE THERE'S A WILL THERE'S A WAY
Outside hitter Josie Williams (Sr./Hutchinson, Kan.) leads the Hornets with 2.90 kills per set, good enough for tenth in the MIAA. After tying her career high 19 kills against Southern Nazarene, a record dating back to her freshman year in 2013, Williams beat her own record the next day against Southwestern Oklahoma with 20 kills. Against Lindenwood, she earned a season high .419 hitting percentage with 14 kills. Williams earned a career high seven blocks against Pittsburg State for the final regular season game. She leads the Hornets with 11 double-doubles (kills/digs). This season, she has 17 games with ten or more kills and seven games with 15 or more kills. Williams had 13 matches with ten or more kills during the 2015 season. Williams was named MIAA Honorable Mention as an outside hitter during her junior season.
 
TOMORROW
Middle hitter Logan Morrow (Jr./El Dorado, Kan.) will play in her first season with the Hornets after transferring from Cowley CCC. Morrow had a season high eight kills off the bench against MWSU when she also earned a season high .217 hitting percentage. During her sophomore season at Cowley CCC, Morrow had 276 kills on a .251 hitting percentage with 78 blocks.
 
TOO TALL TATUM
Middle hitter Tatum Graves (So./Shawnee, Kan.) is in her second season as both an Emporia State volleyball player and a Lady Hornet basketball player. Graves had a career high .625 hitting percentage against University of Mary. She tied a career high six block assists against Midwestern State, having a career high eight total blocks against them. At Oklahoma Baptist, Graves earned a career high seven digs. She had a season high 11 kills in a five set win against #16 NWMSU in late October.

OMAHA!
Outside hitter Jamie Hauptman (So./Omaha, Neb.) was named MIAA Hitter of the Week for the week of Oct. 31 after averaging 2.78 kills per set on .328 hitting due to a pair of five set wins against #16 Northwest Missouri and Missouri Southern. Hauptman had a career high 15 kills in a five set win against Fort Lewis at the MSU Hampton Inn-Vitational, tying that career high at Oklahoma Baptist at the MIAA-GAC Challenge. At the same tournament, she had a career high five block assists (and total blocks) in a win against Dallas Baptist. She tied her career high five blocks in a five set win at home against Missouri Western. Hauptman tied a career high .500 hitting percentage against Missouri Southern on Sept. 30.
 
JULIE AND JULIA
Outside hitter Julia Joseph (So./Wichita, Kan.) will help lead the Hornets in her sophomore season. Joseph recorded a career high ten kills in a win against Fort Lewis at the MSU Hampton Inn-Vitational. She tied a career high 17 digs in a five set win against Missouri Western. Joseph had a season high .357 hitting percentage at Lindenwood with five kills. Joseph earned a career high four blocks in a four set home win against Pittsburg State.
 
THE HEART OF DIXIE
Setter Emma Dixon (Fr./Wichita, Kan.) is a 5-9 freshman for Emporia State during the 2016 season running a 6-2 offense with senior setter Kimberly Bell. Dixon had a monster night against #17 Washburn on Oct. 4, earning season highs with both 31 assists and three aces. Dixon also had three aces at Lindenwood. She earned a season high 16 digs in a five set win against #16 Northwest Missouri. Dixon has eight double-doubles (assists/digs) on the season. Dixon was homeschooled and played for the Wichita Volleyball Academy club team. She qualified for the Juniors National Tournament in 2016.
 
MORE MALONEY
Libero Allie Maloney (Fr./Winfield, Ill.) is a 5-6 freshman for the Hornets, currently in second in the MIAA with 5.09 digs per set. Maloney had 27 digs in a three set home win against Missouri Southern on Sept. 30 to average 9.00 digs per set. She then beat her season high with 38 digs in a five set loss to #17 Washburn on Oct. 4, a few days later. Maloney nearly missed a double-double at Pittsburg State in a five set loss with 14 digs and a season high nine assists. Against Southwest Baptist at home on Oct. 1, Maloney had a season high three aces. Maloney has 21 games with 15 or more dig, 13 games with 20 or more digs and six games with 25 digs and up. In 2014, Maloney was named to the AVCA Phenom List playing for the club team Sports Performance.
 
SWIFTLY
Outside hitter Taylor Otting (Fr./Topeka, Kan.) is a 5-9 freshman from Hayden high school. Otting earned a season high 17 kills in a five set win against Missouri Western at home. Against #11 Central Oklahoma, Otting had a season high .421 hitting percentage. Otting earned a season high ten digs against Midwestern State. Otting had a season high three blocks at Washburn and against Missouri Western. She led Hayden high school to a state championship title in 2015 and was named to Kansas Volleyball Association's 4A-Div. II First Team All-State.