EMPORIA STATE VOLLEYBALL WRAPS UP SEASON THIS WEEKEND

Women's Volleyball | 11/14/2019 12:07:00 PM

Matches 27 & 28
Emporia State Hornets (7-19, 3-15 MIAA)
at #10 Central Missouri Jennies (20-7, 14-4 MIAA)
Friday, Nov. 15 • 6:00 p.m. • Warrensburg, Mo. • Multipurpose Building
Series Record: UCM leads 54-6 Last Meeting: UCM 3, at ESU 0 (Oct. 19, 2019)
at #19 Northwest Missouri Bearcats (19-7, 12-6 MIAA)
Saturday, Nov. 16 • 6:00 p.m. • Maryville, Mo. • Bearcat Arena
Series Record: ESU leads 43-18 Last Meeting: NWMSU 3, at ESU 2 (Oct. 18, 2019)
Live Stats • Live Video • Complete Notes in pdf
Up Next: End of Regular Season

WRAP IT UP
Emporia State will play their final two matches of the season this weekend and like much of the season they will consist of teams in the national rankings. The Hornets will play at #10 Central Missouri on Friday night and at #19 Northwest Missouri on Saturday night. Emporia State has played half of their matches this season against teams that are or were nationally ranked or receiving votes in the AVCA National Poll.

LAST ROTATION
Emporia State scored four of the last five points in the first set to pick up a win but could not maintain the momentum in a 25-27, 25-19, 25-21, 25-11 loss to Pittsburg State on Saturday afternoon in White Auditorium.
The Hornets were held to just .095 hitting on the day as Jessica Hayes, Yuchen Du and Aliyah Bernard all tied for the team lead with seven kills. Emma Dixon had 16 assists and 12 digs in her final match in White Auditorium. Rylie Fornelli led Emporia State with 19 digs.

THE COACHES
Bing Xu is in his 15th year as head coach for Emporia State. He holds a record of 288-188 and has led the Hornets to five NCAA Tournament appearances. He is 5-20 against Central Missouri 17-7 and against Northwest Missouri.
Amy Woerth is 133-107 in her eighth year at Northwest Missouri. She is 7-4 against Emporia State.
Flip Piontek is 300-71 in his 11th season as head coach at Central Missouri. He is 15-3 against Emporia State.

SCOUTING THE HORNETS
Emporia State is 7-19, 3-15 in the MIAA. A total of 11 of the 19 different schools the Hornets have played have been ranked or received votes in the AVCA National Poll. Emma Dixon is eighth in assists in the MIAA this season and ranks fifth all-time at Emporia State. Aliyah Bernard is fifth in the MIAA in hitting percentage, Rylie Fornelli is seventh in digs and Yuchen Du is seventh in kills.

SCOUTING CENTRAL MISSOURI
The Jennies are 20-7, 14-4 in the MIAA, are ranked seventh in the Central Region and #10 in the AVCA National Poll. They are third in the MIAA in hitting percentage, assists, kills and service aces. Audrey Fisher is hitting an MIAA leading .367 on the season.

SERIES HISTORY
Central Missouri leads the all-time series 54-6. Five of Emporia State's six wins have come under Bing Xu.

LAST TIME VS. THE JENNIES
Playing their second straight top 15 team Emporia State was swept by #9 Central Missouri 25-19, 25-11, 25-15 in White Auditorium. Yuchen Du had a team high 15 kills with three digs but was the only Hornet with more than five kills.  Rylie Fornelli had led Emporia State with 14 digs while Emma Dixon had 21 assists.

SCOUTING NORTHWEST MISSOURI
The Bearcats are 19-7, 12-6 in the MIAA, are ranked eighth in the Central Region and #19 in the AVCA National Poll. They are third in the league in blocks. Hallie Sidney is averaging an MIAA best 4.09 kills per set while Bethany Elkins is second with 1.02 blocks per set.

SERIES HISTORY
The Hornets lead the all-time series 43-18 but the Bearcats have won seven of the last 13  matches.

LAST TIME VS. THE BEARCATS
Emporia State battled 14th ranked Northwest Missouri to a fifth set before falling 3-2 in White Auditorium. Yuchen Du had 17 kills with 13 digs and three aces to lead three Hornets in double figures.  Jessica Hayes had 14 kills and a block assist while Aliyah Bernard had ten kills with two block assists. Emma Dixon had 45 assists while Rylie Fornelli had a team high 19 digs.

UP NEXT
These are the final two matches of the season for Emporia State.