Women's Volleyball | 9/1/2023 12:46:00 AM
Games 1-4
Emporia State Hornets (0-0, 0-0 MIAA)
vs Sioux Falls Cougars (0-0, 0-0 NSIC)
Friday, Sept. 1 • 10:00 a.m. • Mabee Fieldhouse • Liberty, Mo
Series Record: USF leads 1-0 •
Last Meeting: USF 3, ESU 0 (8/31/18)
at William Jewell Cardinals (0-0,0-0 GLVC)
Friday, Sept. 1, • 6:00pm • Mabee Fieldhouse • Liberty, Mo
Series Record: WJC leads 6-2 •
Last Meeting: ESU 3, WJC 2 (9/20/22)
vs Kentucky Wesleyan Panthers (0-0,0-0 G-MAC)
Saturday, Sept. 2 • 10:00am • Mason-Halpin Field House • Kansas City, Mo
Series Record: First Meeting •
Last Meeting: First Meeting
at Rockhurst Hawks (0-0,0-0 GLVC)
Saturday, Sept. 2 • 2:00pm • Mason-Halpin Field House • Kansas City, Mo
Series Record: ESU leads 13-8 •
Last Meeting: ESU 3, RU 2 (9/1/18)
Up Next: Missouri S&T Tournament • Sep. 7-9 • Rolla, Mo.
SEASON KICKOFF
Emporia State begins the 2023 season by participating in the Kansas City Classic. The Hornets head into the opening weekend of the season with 11 new players on the roster in addition to a new head coach.
THE COACH
Ken Murczek enters his first season at the helm at Emporia State, 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 I level, with head coaching tenures at Wake Forest and North Texas, and assistant positions at the University of Kansas, Purdue, Western Michigan, and San Diego State. Murzcek looks to bring the same type of success that he has created throughout his career to Emporia State.
SCOUTING THE HORNETS
While Emporia State brings back eight returning players, they will look very different from the team a season ago as they have added 11 new faces that look to make an immediate impact for the Hornets. Emporia State took full advantage of the transfer portal this offseason, adding seven new transfers to their roster. These players come to Emporia State with past college experience and look to bring success to the Emporia State Volleyball program. In addition to transfers, Coach Murzcek wrapped up his first recruiting class by adding four talented freshmen. Key returners are senior
Shelby Ebert who has 444 career kills and junior
Ainslee Stepp, who tallied 391 assists a season ago.
SCOUTING SIOUX FALLS
Sioux Falls looks to build upon their 18-10 winning season in 2022. Heading into the 2023 campaign, Sioux Falls has been selected to finish sixth in the Northern Sun Conference Preseason Poll. The Cougars are led by third year head coach Dan Matthews, who is 35-21 during his time at USF. The Cougars lead the series with the Hornets 1-0, with the lone matchup coming in 2018.
SCOUTING WILLIAM JEWELL
The Cardinals enter the season led by interim head coach Samantha Williams, who was given the reins to the program on August 7 2023. Williams has served as the assistant coach at William Jewell for the last two seasons, after a successful high school coaching career at Park Hill South High School. The Cardinals, who have been picked to finish 13 in the GLVC, bring back junior outside hitter Bella LaPorta who ranked in the top-10 in the GLVC in hitting percentage, attacks, and kills per set a season ago.
SCOUTING KENTUCKY WESLEYAN
Kentucky Wesleyan looks to improve upon their 6-22 record from a season ago. Their improvement is largly dependent on first year head coach Alejandra Jimenez. Coach Jimenez was a standout player at Division I Louisiana Tech, where she is the all-time leader in career digs, digs per set, and digs in a single match. Jimenez has served as an assistant for the Panthers since 2020. The
SCOUTING ROCKHURST
Rockhurst enters the season with high expectations as they have been picked to finish third in the GLVC this season after a conference runner-up finish a year ago. The Hawks will look to follow-up their NCAA Regional appearance from last season. The Hawks are led by fourth year head coach Trent Jones, who is 52-27 in his time at Rockhurst. A player to watch is reigning GLVC Libero of the Year winner Maureen Reilly. Reilly ranked fifth nationally in digs per set with 5.70.
UP NEXT
The Hornets will travel to Rolla, Mo. to take part in the Missouri S&T Tournament which takes places Sep. 7-9. Emporia State is scheduled to take on the host Miners in the first game before matchups against Lake Superior State, Kentucky Wesleyan and Union.
