Women's Volleyball | 11/15/2023 1:32:00 PM
Game 29
Emporia State Hornets (13-15, 7-13 MIAA)
vs. #18 Central Missouri (21-7, 18-2 MIAA)
Thursday, Nov. 16 • 5:00 p.m. • St. Joseph, Mo.
Series Record: UCM leads 61-6 •
Last Meeting: UCM 3, ESU 02 (10/21/23)
Up Next: Winner advances to MIAA Semifinals
Friday, Nov. 17 • St. Joseph, Mo.
FIRST IN FIVE
Emporia State earned their first MIAA Tournament berth in five years as they are set to take on Central Missouri.
LAST TIME OUT
The Hornets traveled to Wichita, Kan. for a matchup with the Jets as Emporia State took down Newman 3-1 in the final match of the regular season.
THE COACHES
Ken Murczek is 13-15 in his first season at ESU. Murczek is coming off great success at NAIA Oregon Tech where he brought the Owls to their first National Tournament in school history. Murczek is no stranger to the big stage, as he has coached at the NCAA Division I level, with head coaching tenures at Wake Forest and North Texas, along with an assistant coaching position at the University of Kansas.
Caitlin Peterson is 40-18 in her second season at UCM. She is 4-0 against the Hornets.
SCOUTING THE HORNETS
Emporia State is 13-15 this season and 7-13 in the MIAA.The Hornets clinched the eight seed in the MIAA Tournament, their first appearance since 2018. As a team, Emporia State ranks sixth in the MIAA in hitting percentage. and seventh in total kills and blocks this season. The Hornet attack is led by
Sandora Sasaki who has 486 kills with 4.81 kills per set. Sasaki has been named the MIAA Offensive Player of the Week five times this season and leads the MIAA in both kills and kills per set.
McKenya Sorrells also has nearly two kills per set with 189 total kills and 1.99 per set.
Brailee Bogle has made a strong impact in her first season with the Hornets as she has 899 assists with 9.08 assists per set which ranks sixth in the MIAA.
SCOUTING CENTRAL MISSOURI
The Jennies are 21-7 on the season and finished 18-2 in the MIAA as they earned the top seed in the MIAA Tournament. Central Missouri clinched their 26th regular season title in MIAA history. The Jennies placed four players on the MIAA First Team, including setter Olivia Olson who was named MIAA Player of the Year. She was joined on first team by Kersti Nix, Elinor Engel, and Rachel Ziesman. Olson recorded an MIAA leading 1163 assists this season to lead the MIAA. Kersti Nix finished second in both kills and kills per set in the MIAA behind Sasaki as she finished the regular season with 386 kills and 3.57 per set.
LAST TIME VS. THE JENNIES
The Hornets hosted the Jennies from White Auditorium in mid-October and Emporia State pushed Central Missouri to five sets.
Sandora Sasaki led the way with 18 kills while
McKenya Sorrells adding 13 kills of her own.
SERIES HISTORY
Central Missouri leads the all-time series 61-6 over Emporia State.
UP NEXT
The winner of the MIAA Quarterfinal match between the Hornets and Jennies will advance to the MIAA Semifinals on Friday, November 17.
