VB OPSU Pregame - 11/7/22

Women's Volleyball Adam Stanek - MACU Sports Information

Volleyball Prepared to Host Oklahoma Panhandle State in First Ever Home SAC Quarterfinal

OKLAHOMA CITY – For the first time in program history, the Mid-America Christian volleyball team will be hosting a Sooner Athletic Conference Quarterfinal match. The fourth-seeded Evangels will take on No. 5 seed Oklahoma Panhandle State at 7:30 p.m. inside the Gaulke Activity Center.
 
MACU SEASON REPORT
  • Record: 18-13 (12-8 SAC)
  • Last Match: Won at Langston (Okla.) – 3-0 (25-15, 25-11, 25-21) – Nov. 3, 2022 – Langston, Okla.
  • Stat Leaders:
    • Kills: Lena Stockhammer (350), Cloie Mitchell (250), Miriam Nardi (250)
    • ATK%: Vanessa Moreira (.334), Miriam Nardi (.248), Lena Stockhammer (.175)
    • Assists: Casady McKinney (668), Lena Stockhammer (516), Marlee Hunter (120)
    • Aces: Casady McKinney (53), Faith Foutch (42), Sydney Martin (41)
    • Digs: Marlee Hunter (619), Sydney Martin (336), Casady McKinney (287)
    • Blocks: Vanessa Moreira (63), Sarah Jones (59), Lena Stockhammer (56)
  • Team Notes:
    • Mid-America Christian is coming off a dominant three-set sweep at Langston to wrap-up the regular season. The win was able to secure the No. 4 spot in the Sooner Athletic Conference standings as well as the host bid after holding the head-to-head sets won tiebreaker over Oklahoma Panhandle State (4-3)
    • It is the second straight year that the Evangels finished tied for fourth in the conference standings at the end of SAC play, however, last year MACU needed to play its quarterfinal matchup at Wayland Baptist after losing the tiebreaker.
    • By going 12-8 in league play, Mid-America Christian has finished .500 or better against Sooner Athletic Conference competition for the fourth straight year.
    • The Evangels will be seeking to advance to their first ever SAC Semifinal, which will be hosted by Southwestern Assemblies of God in Waxahachie, Texas on Friday, Nov. 11.
SCOUTING REPORT
Oklahoma Panhandle State
  • Record: 20-10 (12-8 SAC)
  • Last Match: Won at Oklahoma City – 3-0 (25-20, 25-22, 25-14) – Nov. 5, 2022 – Oklahoma City
  • Series vs. MACU (2008-): OPSU leads 8-7
  • Last Match vs. MACU: MACU won 3-0 (25-20, 25-23, 25-21) – Oct. 7, 2022 – Gaulke Activity Center
  • Players to Watch:
    • Essence West – SR – OH
      • 309 Kills (3.25 K/S), .198 ATK%, 301 Digs (3.17 D/S)
    • Lesly Galarza – SR – S
      • 624 Assists (6.50 A/S), 232 Digs (2.42 D/S)
    • Gracie Soza – JR – L
      • 476 Digs (4.81 D/S), 46 Aces (0.46 SA/S)
    • Ebony Dykes – SR – MB
      • 89 Blocks (0.90 B/S), 94 Kills (0.95 K/S), .166 ATK%
  • Team Notes:
    • In a battle of two teams that were tied for fifth in the SAC standings, Oklahoma Panhandle State came away with a huge 3-0 road sweep at Oklahoma City on Nov. 5 to lock up the No. 5 seed in the SAC Tournament.
    • The Aggies feature a pretty strong defense, ranking third in the SAC in digs per set (18.77) while holding the fifth-most kills per set (11.58) on the fifth-best team hitting percentage (.174).
    • OPSU is led in the attack by senior outside hitter Essence West, who ranks third in the SAC in kills per set (3.25) while Lesly Galarza ranks fifth in the conference in assists per set (6.50).
    • The match will also feature the two best players from the service line going head-to-head as OPSU's Gracie Soza is recording a 0.46 aces per set clip while MACU's Casady McKinney is averaging 0.45 aces.
    • Mid-America Christian has had some recent success against Panhandle State inside the Gaulke Activity Center. In their last two home meetings against the Aggies, the Evangels have put together a pair of three-set sweeps. In their meeting on Nov. 5, three MACU players recorded double-digit kills with Lena Stockhammer leading the way with 12 while Miriam Nardi and Vanessa Moreira chipped in 10 apiece as the Evangels notched 48 kills as a team in the sweep.
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