OKLAHOMA CITY – The MACU Volleyball team will kick off its five-match road trip with a pair of challenging matchups against the top two teams in the Sooner Athletic Conference as the Evangels head to Fort Worth, Texas on Friday for a 6 p.m. match against Texas Wesleyan at the Sid Richardson Center. The Evangels will follow-up the next day with another conference match-up at Nelson at 1 p.m. inside the Sheaffer Center.
 
SEASON REPORT

• Record: 11-7 (7-4 SAC)
• Last Game: Won vs Oklahoma Panhandle State – 3-0 (25-20, 25-8, 25-18) – Oct. 5, 2024 – Gaukle Activity Center
• Stat Leaders:
  • Kills: Miriam Nardi (192, 3.05 K/S), Alica Obusekova (149, 2.37 K/S)
  • Attack Percentage (%, K-E-A): Natalia Rodriguez (.293, 58-15-147) Sarah Jones-Stafford (.292, 81-17-219)
  • Assists: Casady McKinney (409, 6.49 A/S), Madison Lee (205, 3.80 A/S) 
  • Aces: Ryley Bowden (27, 0.43 SA/S), Casady McKinney (23, 0.37 SA/S) 
  • Digs: Ryley Bowden (244, 4.41 D/S), Alica Obusekova (187, 3.25 D/S)
  • Receive Percentage (RE-R): Alica Obusekova (.934, 23-351), Ryley Bowden (.923, 26-337)
  • Blocks: Sarah Jones-Stafford (40, 0.65 B/S), Miriam Nardi (24, 0.38 B/S)
• Team Notes:
  • Mid-America Christian is coming off a weekend split where it lost its first first five-set match Friday against Wayland Baptist, but closed out the first half of SAC play with a dominant three-set sweep over Oklahoma Panhandle State on Saturday.
  • Despite going up in the match with a 2-1 advantage, MACU ran out of gas as the Pioneers rallied to narrowly win set four 25-23 and ran away with it in set five at a 15-9 finish.
  • However, MACU bounced back with one of its best defensive performances of the season in the win over OPSU as the Evangels held the Aggies to a -.016 attack percentage, the second-lowest hitting clip MACU has held an opponent to this season.
  • As a result of her sensational weekend both offensively and defensively, junior setter Casady McKinney was awarded the SAC Setter of the Week honor after averaging 6.25 assists per set and 3.13 digs per set while also going 3-for-5 (.600 attack percentage) in setter dump kill attempts.

SCOUTING REPORT
Texas Wesleyan

• Record: 13-6 (9-2 SAC)
• Last Match: Lost vs. (RV) Nelson (Texas) – 3-0 (25-19, 25-14, 25-20) – Oct. 8, 2024 – Waxahachie, Texas
• Series vs MACU (2005-): TWU leads 28-0
• Last Match vs MACU: TWU won 3-1 (22-25, 25-22, 25-22, 25-14) – Sept. 7, 2024 – Gaulke Activity Center
• Series Streak: TWU won 28
• Players to Watch:
  • Hanna Rubis – SO – OH
    • 176 Kills (2.63 K/S), .254 ATK%, 7 Aces (0.10 SA/S) 
  •     Ruby O'Brien – SR – S 
    • 403 Assists (6.01 A/S), 137 Digs (2.04 D/S) 
  •     Makenna Dillow – SO –DS 
    • 219 Digs (3.27 D/S), 12 Aces (0.18 SA/S)
  • Sydney Alexander – JR – MB
    • 11 Blocks (0.72 B/S), 161 Kills (2.40 K/S), .272 ATK% 
• Team Notes:
  • Texas Wesleyan was given a tough task with a road match-up against a Nelson squad that was undefeated in SAC play on Tuesday. Facing a team that had not lost since August, the Lady Lions dominated the Lady Rams in the three-set sweep, 25-19, 25-14, 25-20.  
  • Despite getting swept by Nelson, the Lady Rams had been red hot with four consecutive sweeps. Prior to their loss to Nelson, the last time they had even lost a set dated all the way back to Sept. 21 where their only other conference lost came in a 3-2 upset at Wayland Baptist.

•         Texas Wesleyan has done a great job on both sides of the court this year, ranking first in conference in points per set at 17.73, they are just barely outhitting the Evangels with an attack rate of .204         compared to the Evangels .203, which ranks second in the conference. Attached with these solid offense numbers comes a strong Lady Rams defense that ranks first in the conference in limiting         opponents to an average of 10.59 kills per set on a .149 hitting percentage.

•         Offensively speaking, the Lady Rams are very balanced with Hanna Rubis, Sydney Alexander and Makenna Gantt all very close to each other in scoring. Rubis and Gantt step into this match-up with an         even 2.63 kills per set with Alexander right behind at a 2.40 termination per set clip. 
•         It has been a one-sided all-time series as the Evangels will continue to seek their first ever win over Texas Wesleyan. The Evangels were able to take set one in the last match-up on Sept .7 in the Gaulke          Activity Center but the Lady Rams were able to bounce back with a 3-1 victory. 

Nelson

• Record: 16-4 (11-0 SAC)
• Last Match: Won vs. Texas Wesleyan – 3-0 (25-13, 25-21, 25-21) – Sept. 28, 2024 – Waxahachie, Texas 
• Series vs MACU (2003): Nelson leads 42-7 
• Last Match vs MACU: Nelson won 3-1 (20-22, 25-13, 25-21, 25-21) – Sept. 6, 2024 – Gaulke Activity Center 
• Series Streak: Nelson won 6 
• Players to Watch: 
  • Bailee Alexander – SR – OH 
    • 191 Kills (2.77 K/S), .184 ATK%, 22 Blocks (0.32 B/S) 
  • Lilly Hanna – GS – MH/OPP 
    • 180 Kills (2.57 K/S), .414 ATK%, 60 Blocks (0.86 SA/S)
  • Tessa Glick– SR – DS/L 
    • 339 Dogs (4.84 D/S), .971 RCV% 
  • Cassidy Hargesheimer – SO – S
    • 371 Assists (5.54 A/S) 
• Team Notes: 
  • Currently on an 11-match winning streak Nelson has been explosive, with their last five contests all being resulted in clean sweeps. Nelson will round out its match homestand with the visiting USAO Drovers on Friday night and the MACU Evangels Saturday afternoon.  
  • It is no surprise to see where the Lady Lions rank as a team in the SAC as they are second in kills per set at 12.84, first in aces per set at 2.30, and first in hitting percentage at an impressive .233 clip.
  • Senior middle hitter Lilly Hanna has been having herself a great season with 180 kills and 60 blocks, her .414 attack percentage ranks first in the SAC by a wide margin with nobody else hitting even above .300. 
  • Nelson has the all-time advantage over the Evangels with a six-game win streak currently going on as well. In their last meeting inside the Gaulke Activity Center on Sept. 6, 2024, the Evangels Lions won the match 3-1 outnumbering MACU on kills 55-45. The Lions saw four players finish with at least ten kills as the Evangels only had one player reach that mark.