OKLAHOMA CITY – After picking up a season-opening sweep over Tabor on Tuesday night, the MACU Volleyball team will hit the road for the first time in 2025 on Thursday as the Evangels are set to compete against Friends (Kan.) and William Woods on the opening day of the WWU Invitational in Fulton, Mo. The Evangels will open against the Falcons at 5 p.m. before taking on the host Owls in the 7 p.m. slot inside Anderson Arena.
 
SEASON REPORT

• Record: 1-0
• Last Match: Won vs. Tabor (Kan.) – 3-0 (25-10, 25-21, 30-28) – Aug. 19, 2025 – Gaulke Activity Center
• Stat Leaders:
  • Kills: Marcela Nalin (10, 3.33 K/S), Three Tied (7)
  • Attack Percentage (%, K-E-A, Min 10 Att.): Seyi Atolagbe (.538, 7-0-13), Marcela Nalin (.350, 10-3-20)
  • Assists: Madison Lee (20, 6.67 A/S), Casady McKinney (13, 4.33 A/S)
  • Aces: Casady McKinney (2, 0.67 SA/S), Three Tied (1)
  • Digs: Kaetlen Schier (11, 3.67 D/S), Ryley Bowden (10, 3.33 D/S)
  • Receive Percentage (%, RE-R, Min. 10 Rec.): Sydney Martin (.923, 1-13), Ryley Bowden (.909, 1-11)
  • Blocks: Seyi Atolagbe (3, 1.0 B/S), Marcela Nalin (3, 1.0 B/S)
• Team Notes:
  • Mid-America Christian opened up its 2025 campaign on a high note as the Evangels swept Tabor for the first time in program history by scores of 25-10, 25-21, and 30-28 inside the Gaulke Activity Center on Tuesday night.
  • It was a tale of two halves for MACU in its season opener as the Evangels downright dominated the opening set and held a commanding 16-6 lead at one point in the second set. Tabor eventually battled back to tie it at 21-all late before MACU scored the final four points to secure the 25-21 win. The two squads jostled back-and-forth in the final set with it going to extra points. MACU survived four game points before eventually scoring the final three points to secure the 30-28 victory.
  • The Evangels featured a balanced offensive attack with four players finishing with at least seven kills. Junior right side Marcela Nalin led the MACU attacking efforts with 10 kills on a solid .350 hitting percentage while Alica Obusekova along with newcomers Seyi Atolagbe and Karlee Siegfried notching seven terminations each.
  • Atolagbe played a massive role in her MACU debut as her seven terminations came on a currently NAIA-leading .538 attack percentage and tallied three blocks along with Nalin in the victory.

SCOUTING REPORT
Friends (Kan.)

• 2024 Record: 15-15 (4-9 KCAC)
• Last Match: Lost vs. Tabor (Kan.) – 3-1 (25-23, 21-25, 25-21, 25-18) – Nov. 9, 2024 – Wichita, Kan.
• Series vs MACU (2007-): FRND leads 3-1
• Last Match vs MACU: MACU won 3-0 (25-19, 25-17, 25-18) – Sept. 22, 2020 – Wichita, Kan.
• Series Streak: MACU won 1
• Players to Watch:
  • Sofia Mekelburg – SO – RS/S
    • 181 Kills (2.45 K/S), .182 ATK%, 62 Digs (0.84 D/S), 17 Blocks (0.23 B/S)
• Team Notes:
  • Friends enters the 2025 season after going 15-15 during the 2024 campaign, but struggled against Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference competition, finishing 4-9 in league play.
  • The Falcons bring in almost a completely brand new roster from last year as the team lost its top two attackers, its two leading setters and its defensive leaders. The top returner for Friends is sophomore right side and setter Sofia Meckelburg, who finished third on the team with 181 kills, averaging 2.45 kills per set on a .182 attack percentage.
  • Mid-America Christian and Friends will be facing each other for only the fifth time in program history and just the second time in the last 15 years. The last meeting between the two squads came on Sept. 22, 2020 inside the Garvey Center. MACU came away with the three-set sweep as Hanna Foecker finished with a double-double, notching 19 kills on a .436 hitting clip to go with 10 digs while Maegan Plunk shoveled 24 digs for an incredible 8.0 per set average in the back row.

William Woods (Mo.)

• 2024 Record: 25-12 (8-3 AMC)
• Last Match: Lost vs. (RV) Missouri Baptist – 3-0 (25-17, 25-18, 25-22) – Nov. 15, 2024 – St. Louis, Mo. (AMC Semifinal)
• Series vs MACU (2011-): WWU leads 1-0
• Last Match vs MACU: WWU won 3-0 (25-17, 25-12, 25-16) – Sept. 10, 2011 – Springfield, Mo.
• Series Streak: WWU Won 1
• Players to Watch:
  • Luciana Paiva Pereira – SR – RS
    • 2024 Stats: 296 Kills (2.60 K/S), .284 ATK%, 37 Blocks (0.32 B/S)
  • Erin Treis – SR – S
    • 2024 Stats: 670 Assists (5.23 A/S), 335 Digs (3.32 D/S)
  • Pamela Durazo – SR – MH
    • 2024 Stats: 115 Blocks (0.93 B/S), 160 Digs (1.29 D/S), 284 Kills (2.29 K/S), .418 ATK%, 46 Aces (0.37 SA/S)
• Team Notes:
  • William Woods will be looking to put together another solid season under its brand new head coach Aubrey Wilson after completing the 2024 campaign with a 25-12 overall record and finished fourth in the American Midwest Conference with an 8-3 league mark. Wilson will be leading the Owls after spending the last two seasons as the head coach at Seward County Community College.
  • The Owls bring back a wellspring of experience from last season, including the team's second-leading attacker in Luciana Paiva Pereira, who averaged 2.60 kills per set on a very effective .284 hitting clip. Pamela Durazo is also a very potent middle hitter, hammering 2.29 kills per set on a blistering .418 attack percentage while also averaging nearly a block and a dig per set on the defensive end. Senior Erin Treis will look to lead the offense as the team's leading setter last year dished out 5.23 assists per set.
  • Thursday night's match will mark only the second time the Evangels and Owls have faced each other. The only other meeting between the two programs came on Sept. 10, 2011 in Springfield, Mo. where WWU pulled out the three-set sweep by scores of 25-17, 25-12, and 25-16.