OKLAHOMA CITY – The Mid-America Christian volleyball team will look to wrap-up the first half of Sooner Athletic Conference play on a high note this weekend as the Evangels will host Langston on Friday at 7 p.m. before taking on Central Christian at 1 p.m. on Saturday.
 
MACU SEASON REPORT

• Record: 10-9 (4-4 SAC)
• Last Match: Lost at Oklahoma Wesleyan – 3-0 (25-19, 25-19, 25-22) – Sept. 24, 2022 – Bartlesville, Okla.
• Top Performers:
  • Kills: Lena Stockhammer (196), Lauryn Walters (162), Cloie Mitchell (142)
  • ATK%: Vanessa Moreira (.329), Miriam Nardi (.297), Lauryn Walters (.174)
  • Assists: Casady McKinney (381), Lena Stockhammer (343)
  • Aces: Faith Foutch (33), Casady McKinney (28), Marlee Hunter (24)
  • Digs: Marlee Hunter (376), Sydney Martin (190), Lena Stockhammer (176)
  • Blocks: Lena Stockhammer (36), Vanessa Moreira (35), Miriam Nardi (35)
• Team Notes:
  • Mid-America Christian will be looking to bounce back from a tough road trip last week as the Evangels went 1-3 with a win at Science & Arts before dropping matches at John Brown as well as both tri-match games against Sterling (Kan.) and Oklahoma Wesleyan in Bartlesville, Okla.
  • If the Evangels can take both matches, they will enter the midway point of conference play with a winning record for the second straight year.
  • MACU is one of just three teams in the Sooner Athletic Conference that is averaging an attack percentage above .170 (.178) as well as averaging more than 18 digs per set (18.15).
  • Despite suffering a 3-2 loss to Sterling last Saturday, the Evangels put together a near record-setting offensive performance, tallying the third-most kills in a match in the NAIA Era (68) while also breaking the record for most attack attempts (230). MACU's 114 digs in the match also set the fifth-highest mark in a single match in the same time frame.
  • It will be a festive weekend for MACU volleyball. On Friday, the Evangels will be hosting Noche Columbiana as the Evangels will be celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month with the serving of free Columbian iced coffee, horchata lattes and horchata ice cream, a free t-shirt giveaway to the first 100 fans in attendance as well as a performance by Clips N' Hips between the second and third set.
  • On Saturday, Mid-America Christian will be holding a reunion for the 2001 NCCAA Division II Volleyball National Championship team. Members of that team will be honored before the start of the match.

SCOUTING REPORT
Langston (Okla.)

• Record: 8-9 (1-7 SAC)
• Last Match: Won vs. Dallas Christian – 3-0 (25-17, 25-15, 25-19) – Sept. 27, 2022 – Langston, Okla.
• Series vs. MACU (2013-): MACU leads 10-3
• Last Match vs. MACU: MACU won 3-0 (25-11, 25-21, 25-16) – Nov. 5, 2021 – Gaulke Activity Center
• Players to Watch:
  • Brieanna Owens – SO – MB/OH
    • 146 Kills (2.47 K/S), .132 ATK%, 36 Blocks (0.61 B/S)
  • Finehika Uhatafe – GR – S
    • 280 Assists (5.60 A/S), 16 Aces (0.32 SA/S), 85 Digs (1.70 D/S)
  • Samantha Clements – SR – DS
    • 264 Digs (4.26 D/S), 20 Aces (0.32 SA/S)
  • Braelyn Spence – SR – MB/OH
    • 56 Blocks (0.95 B/S), 135 Kills (2.29 K/S), .219 ATK%
• Team Notes:
  • Langston has had a tough showing in Sooner Athletic Conference play, going just 1-7 in league play with their lone win coming in a 3-2 decision at Southwestern Christian on Sept. 15.
  • The Lions have struggled in the attack, hitting the third-lowest hitting percentage in the SAC at .125 while defensively averaging a league-worst 13.13 digs per set.
  • One area Langston has excelled in is its defensive presence at the net, ranking fourth in the conference in total blocks with 112.
  • The focal point of the Langston offense will be sophomore Brieanna Owens and Braelyn Spence, who are each averaging 2.9 points per set.
  • Since Langston joined the Sooner Athletic Conference in 2016, Mid-America Christian has dominated the series, winning nine straight matches. In that same time frame, the Evangels have only lost one set to LU.

Central Christian (Kan.)

• Record: 6-13 (1-7 SAC)
• Last Match: Lost vs. Wayland Baptist (Texas) – 3-0 (25-17, 25-16, 25-22) – Sept. 24, 2022 – McPherson, Kan.
• Series vs. MACU (2011-): MACU leads 11-0
• Last Match vs. MACU: MACU won 3-0 (25-7, 25-13, 25-12) – Nov. 6, 2021 – Gaulke Activity Center
• Players to Watch:
  • Amanda Dotter – JR – OH
    • 179 Kills (2.63 K/S), .138 ATK%, 76 Digs (1.12 D/S)
  • Kamryn Vanatta – FR – OH
    • 146 Kills (2.25 K/S), .174 ATK%, 152 Digs (2.34 D/S), 16 Aces (0.24 SA/S)
  • McKenzie Cook – SR – S
    • 551 Assists (7.87 A/S), 194 Digs (2.77 D/S)
  • Ashanti Sampsell – JR – MH
    • 24 Blocks (0.36 B/S), 68 Kills (1.03 K/S), .111 ATK%
• Team Notes:
  • With a 6-13 record, Central Christian has already a highly improved record, boasting the most wins in the program since the 2017 season.
  • Despite the improved record, the Tigers are still holding the second-lowest team attack percentage in the SAC at .108
  • While CCCK has put together a solid back row that is averaging 15.31 digs per set, the Tigers have struggled at the net, recording a league-low 0.85 blocks per set, ranking 213^th in the NAIA in that category.
  • Central Christian has seen a slight improvement in its attack with the addition of Otero Junior College transfer Andrea Dotter, as her 179 kills is already higher than the Tigers kills leader from a season ago (Zola Moore and Aijha Sampsell – 124).
  • Since the two squads started facing each other in 2011, the Evangels have dominated the series. MACU has recorded nine three-set sweeps and have only dropped two sets, the last coming in 2017.