OKLAHOMA CITY – The MACU volleyball team is ready for its toughest road trip of the season as the Evangels will head to Waxahachie, Texas on Friday night to No. 24 Southwestern Assemblies of God at 6 p.m. before trekking to Fort Worth to battle No. 20 Texas Wesleyan at 1 p.m. on Saturday.
 
SEASON REPORT

• Record: 6-5 (2-0 SAC)
• Last Match: Lost at College of the Ozarks (Mo.) – 3-0 (25-19, 25-22, 25-17) – Sept. 2, 2023 – Point Lookout, Mo.
• Stat Leaders:
  • Kills: Lena Stockhammer (131), Sawyer Franz (123), Sarah Jones (71)
  • ATK%: Lena Stockhammer (.224), Annabeth Fehrle (.215), Sarah Jones (.211)
  • Assists: Casady McKinney (350), Ludmilla Souza (49)
  • Aces: Casady McKinney (18), Faith Foutch (13), Marlee Hunter (12)
  • Digs: Marlee Hunter (171), Sawyer Franz (116), Casady McKinney (79)
  • Blocks: Sarah Jones (26), Annabeth Fehrle (17), Lauryn Walters (15)
• Team Notes:
  • After competing in eight matches in a nine-day period, which included putting together a four-match win streak, the Evangels will be looking to bounce back from a tough finish to the grueling stretch after dropping a straight-set affair to red-hot College of the Ozarks last Saturday.
  • In the attack, Mid-America Christian still features the top two kills leaders in the SAC in Lena Stockhammer (131) and Sawyer Franz (123) while Stockhammer is one just two players in the league to rank in the top five in kills, kills per set (3.27, 2^nd) and attack percentage (.224, 5^th).
  • Casady McKinney also continues to be the SAC leader in total assists with 350 while ranking second in assists per set at 8.75.
  • As a team, Mid-America Christian enters the weekend as the only team in the conference that's hitting for an above .200 attack percentage at .202.

SCOUTING REPORT
No. 24 Southwestern Assemblies of God (Texas)

• Record: 4-5 (2-0 SAC)
• Last Match: Won vs. Langston (Okla.) – 3-0 (25-7, 25-11, 25-18) – Sept. 2, 2023 – Waxahachie, Texas
• Series vs MACU (2003-): SAGU leads 39-7
• Last Match vs MACU: SAGU won 3-0 (25-22, 25-15, 25-18) – Nov. 11, 2022 – Waxahachie, Texas (SAC Semifinal)
• Series Streak: SAGU won 3
• Players to Watch:
  • Emma Tompkins – SR – MH
    • 87 Kills (2.72 K/S), .274 ATK%, 32 Blocks (1.00 B/S)
  • Riley Burcham – SR – S
    • 233 Assists (7.06 A/S), 60 Digs (1.82 D/S)
  • Lindi Boling – JR – DS/L
    • 112 Digs (4.15 D/S), .943 RCV%
• Team Notes:
  • After a grueling non-conference schedule where SAGU went 2-5 while facing some of the top teams in the country, the Lady Lions put together a pair of dominant performances to begin Sooner Athletic Conference play last weekend, sweeping Central Christian in straight sets to open a five-match home stand.
  • Last year's SAC regular season and tournament champions, SAGU is led in the attack by 2022 SAC Most Valuable Player and Attacker of the Year in senior middle blocker Emma Tompkins, who is currently averaging 2.72 kills per set on the third-highest attack percentage in the league at .274 while also being one of the SAC's leading blockers at the third-best rate of 1.00 per set.
  • The Lady Lions also return another All-SAC First Team honoree in senior setter Riley Burcham, who is currently averaging 7.06 assists per set while also making strong contributions in the back row with 1.82 digs per set. While also returning another All-SAC First Teamer in the back row in Tessa Glick, the team's digs leader so far has been junior Lindi Boling, averaging a team-best 4.15 digs per set.
  • While the Lady Lions are currently on a three-match win streak in the series, the Evangels will be seeking just their third win ever at the Sheaffer Center with MACU's last victory in the venue coming on Nov. 15, 2012. The two squads met up in the SAC Semifinal last year, but the Evangels were unable to slow down red-hot SAGU in a three-set defeat on Nov. 11.

No. 20 Texas Wesleyan

• Record: 7-3 (2-0 SAC)
• Last Match: Won vs. Central Christian (Kan.) – 3-1 (25-15, 16-25, 25-14, 25-14) – Sept. 2, 2023 – Fort Worth, Texas
• Series vs MACU (2005-): TWU leads 24-0
• Last Match vs MACU: TWU won 3-1 (25-19, 25-17, 21-25, 25-19) – Oct. 21, 2022 – Fort Worth, Texas
• Series Streak: TWU won 24
• Players to Watch:
  • Hannah Rubis – FR – MB/OH
    • 93 Kills (3.10 K/S), .185 ATK%
  • Ruby O'Brien – SO – S
    • 182 Assists (5.20 A/S), 14 Aces (0.40 SA/S), 67 Digs (1.91 D/S)
  • Andrea Malek – JR – DS
    • 218 Digs (6.23 D/S), 14 Aces (0.40 SA/S)
  • Carly Unruh – SR – MB
    • 20 Blocks (0.80 B/S), 32 Kills (1.28 K/S), .138 ATK%
• Team Notes:
  • After going 3-3 through a very challenging non-conference schedule, Texas Wesleyan has been getting hot by winning its last four matches, including a pair of dominant victories over Langston and Central Christian last weekend.
  • The Lady Rams are very balanced in their offensive attack as seven players are averaging at least a kill per set, headlined by freshman outside Hannah Rubis. So far this season, Rubis is averaging 3.10 kills per set on a .185 hitting clip.
  • Defensively, TWU is led by one of the nation's best back row players in Andrea Malek. Coming into the weekend, Malek is averaging 6.23 digs per set, which ranks sixth in the entire NAIA.
  • Mid-America Christian is still seeking its first ever win against Texas Wesleyan. In their last meeting at the Sid Richardson Center, the Evangels fought back from two sets down by winning the third set, but MACU was unable to contain one of the top volleyball teams in the country as the Lady Rams pulled out the 3-1 win.