Previews courtesy of Athletic Communications Departments

Ball State Cardinals (11-8, 7-0 MAC)
The Ball State women's volleyball team closes the first half of the 2025 Mid-American Conference season this week with a pair of matches at defending MAC regular season champion Bowling Green ... The Cardinals and the Falcons are slated to square off at 6 p.m. both Thursday and Friday at the Stroh Center.
     
BALL STATE IN THE MAC: With a perfect 7-0 record in MAC play this season, Ball State maintains its status as the winningest program in league play with a 466-225 (.674) all-time MAC mark ... Western Michigan is second on the list, five matches behind the Cardinals at 461-230 (.667), while this week's opponent Bowling Green is currently third at 409-282 (.592).
 
MORE ABOUT THE 7-0 START TO #MACtion: The 2025 season marks the eighth time in program history the Cardinals have won at least its first seven MAC matches of the year ... The last time was in 2023 when Ball State got off to a 9-0 start, on its way to a 15-3 league finish ... The Cardinals have boasted two perfect MAC seasons, going 18-0 in 1993 and 17-0 in 1994 ... BSU also won the first 10 matches of the 1997 campaign, the first nine matches in 2000, the first eight matches in 2002 and the first seven in 2001.
 
SCOUTING BALL STATE:
• The Cardinals enter the week with an 11-8 overall record, including a perfect 7-0 mark in Mid-American Conference play ... The lone remaining undefeated team in #MACtion, Ball State earned a 3-0 sweep at Miami Tuesday, before picking up a pair of home wins over Toledo by scores of 3-2 on Friday and 3-1 on Saturday.
• Thanks to its 3-0 record last week, the Cardinals climbed 26 spots in the latest NCAA RPI Rankings, coming in at 51 this week after ranking 77th in the initial rankings ... Ball State is the highest ranked MAC team, with Bowling Green coming in second at 85.
• Ball State enters the week as one of the nation's top terminating teams, ranking second nationally with 1,053 total kills ... Only Towson has more kills than the Cardinals at 1,087 ... 336 of Ball State's kills, which is third nationally, have come from the arm of sophomore outside Carson Tyler who also ranks first in the MAC and 27th nationally with a 4.36 kills-per-set average.
• In addition, the Cardinals lead the MAC and rank 42nd nationally with a .259 team attack percentage ... Junior middle Camryn Wise is first in the league and 66th nationally with a .373 rate of success, while junior setter Lindsey Green ranks 61st nationally with 586 total assists and owns a 7.71 assists-per-set average.
 

Bowling Green Falcons (12-7, 6-1 MAC)
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University volleyball team will host undefeated Ball State for a pair of matches between the top two teams in the Mid-American Conference. Ball State enters atop the standings with a 7-0 record while Bowling Green follows in second with a 6-1 standing. BGSU and BSU will go head-to-head twice this week, first on Thursday (Oct. 16) and then again on Friday (Oct. 17), both with 6 p.m. first serves inside the Stroh Center. Thursday night will be a Falcon Hour leading up to the match as well as Club Sports Night. As for Friday night, it will be Future Falcon Kids Club Night. 

BGSU Schedule This Week
Thursday, Oct. 16 | BGSU vs. Ball State | 6 p.m. | Falcon Hour | Club Sports Night | ESPN+
Friday, Oct. 17 | BGSU vs. Ball State | 6 p.m. | Future Falcon Kids Club Night | ESPN+
 
First Serve 
 
Toledo Rockets (14-5, 5-2 MAC)
Friday, Oct. 17 / at Northern Illinois / DeKalb, Ill. / 7:00 p.m. / Watch (ESPN+) / Live Stats
Saturday, Oct. 18 / at Northern Illinois / DeKalb, Ill. / 5:00 p.m. / Watch (ESPN+) / Live Stats

Volleyball continues league play, heading to DeKalb, Ill. for a pair of matches against Northern Illinois on Friday, Oct. 17-Saturday, Oct. 18. The Rockets earned a 3-1 victory over Bowling Green last week, the first over the Falcons at Savage Arena since 2015. Toledo then lost a pair of matches to first-place Ball State in Muncie, Ind. over the weekend. Sophomore Olivia Heitkamp is leading the offense with 2.86 kills/set while sophomore Grace Freiberger is second in the MAC in digs, averaging 4.28 digs/set.
 

Western Michigan Broncos (7-13, 4-3 MAC)
KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Western Michigan volleyball team hits the road this weekend for a two-match series at Buffalo.

WMU (7-13, 4-3 MAC) at Buffalo (6-10, 3-4)
Match One: Friday, Oct. 17 | 6 pm | WATCH LIVE | LIVE STATS
Match Two: Saturday, Oct. 18 | 4 pm | WATCH LIVE | LIVE STATS

THE ROAD AHEAD
Western Michigan hits the road this weekend for a two-match series at Buffalo. The Broncos are 2-4 in true road matches this season and 1-2 on the road so far in conference play. 

LAST TIME OUT
WMU is coming off of a split of its two-match home series against Akron last week, having topped the Zips in four on Thursday and falling in five in Friday night's rematch. Mary Clare Brusek recorded double-digit kills both nights for the Broncos, while Leah Richmond picked up her 15th double-double of the season in Thursday's victory. On the defensive side, Western Michigan made it seven straight matches with double-digit blocks, including a season-high 13 on Thursday. Reeghan Boyer anchored the back line with 35 digs (3.89/set) over the course of the two matches.  

LEAGUE-LEADING LIBERO
Elana Erickson has flourished as WMU's new libero this season, having won a pair of MAC Defensive Player of the Week awards and sitting atop the league in both total digs (349) and digs per set (4.53). Her 349 digs rank 11th in all of NCAA Division I, while her 4.53 digs per set are 39th in the nation. As a team, the Broncos rank second nationally in total digs and seventh in digs per set.

BRONCO BLOCK PARTY
WMU has recorded double-digit blocks in each of its first seven conference matches, including a season-high 13 in Thursday's win over Akron. Amanda Glanton has led the way for the Broncos up front, and is pacing the MAC in both total blocks (43) and blocks per set (1.48) in league play.

MC BRINGS THE HAMMER
Mary Clare Brusek has been Western Michigan's most consistent hitter so far in MAC play, recording double-digit kills in all seven contests. In conference matches, the senior is tied for fourth in total kills (97), sixth in kills per set (3.34) and eighth in hitting percentage (.336).

MILESTONE WATCH
After recording a team-high 35 digs in last week's matches against Akron, senior Reeghan Boyer has 979 career digs, just 21 away from 1,000.
 

Northern Illinois Huskies (10-6, 3-4 MAC)
Friday, Oct. 17: vs. Toledo, 6 p.m. – ESPN+ | Live Stats | Buy Tickets
Saturday, Oct. 18: vs. Toledo, 4 p.m. – ESPN+ | Live Stats | Buy Tickets

After playing four of their last five games on the road, the Northern Illinois University Huskies volleyball team (10-6, 3-4 MAC) are set to host the University of Toledo Rockets (14-5, 5-2 MAC) in a pair of games on October 17 and 18 inside Victor E. Court. The Huskies and Rockets will have first serve on October 17 at 6 p.m. before concluding the series on October 18 at 4 p.m. 
 
At the Top of the Pack
Ava Grevengoed leads the Huskies in kills with 185 this season, averaging 2.94 per set. Trailing close behind is Emma McCartney with 3.00 kills per set, a total of 183 this season. A strength for the Huskies this season, Jordyn Tynsky and Autumn Flynn lead NIU with a combined 42 aces. Tynsky is leading dig efforts for the Huskies with 215 this season, an average of 3.52 per set. Ella Strausberger is 76 assists away from surpassing the 1,000 career assist mark in her career. Strausberger has seen action in 61 sets this season and averages 5.26 assists per set.
  

Miami RedHawks (9-10, 3-4 MAC)
Thur, Oct. 16 vs. Kent State, 6:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
Fri., Oct. 17 vs. Kent State, 6:30 p.m. (ESPN+)

The Red and White continue conference play at home with two matches versus Kent State. The first match of the weekend will take place on Thursday, Oct. 16 at 6:30 p.m., and the second match will happen on Friday, Oct. 17 at 6:30 p.m. 

UP NEXT: The RedHawks continue conference play with a pair of matches at Toledo on Friday, Oct. 24 at 6 p.m. and Saturday, Oct. 25 at 4 p.m.

CAN YOU DIG IT: Freshmen outside hitter Molly Creech ranks inside the top 10 for digs per set in the MAC. Entering this weekend, Creech holds the ninth spot (3.38 digs/set) in the conference. Redshirt junior libero/defensive specialist Anna McClure stands just outside of the top 10 in digs per set, as she averages 3.18 per set.

FRESHMEN IMPACT: Freshmen Molly Creech, Lauren Coyne, Grace Kreutz and Lindy Radaszewski have seen significant action at the start of the 2025 season. Creech has recorded 2.24 kills per set (second on the team), 3.38 digs per set (first on the team), 0.34 blocks per set (fifth on the team) and 0.14 service aces per set (fifth on the team). Coyne has put down 2.16 kills per set (third on the team) and 0.77 blocks per set (tied for second on the team). Radaszewski is fourth on the team with in service aces per set (0.15) and Kreutz ranks third in service aces per set (0.16).

NUMBERS WATCH: Gentry Warrick is currently tied for fourth all-time in Miami history with 1.00 career blocks per set. She holds a total of 79 career solo blocks (tied for fifth all-time in Miami history). Warrick also ranks third in the nation in total blocks (99) and 17th in blocks per set (1.43). Warrick currently leads the MAC in both total blocks and blocks per set. The Red and White stand at 14th in the country in team total blocks (176.5) as well. Senior Lindsay Kahren has 997 digs in her career heading into the weekend.
 

Buffalo Bulls (6-10, 3-4 MAC)
BUFFALO, N.Y. – The University at Buffalo women's volleyball team (6-10, 3-4 MAC) are back home for a weekend slate against the back-to-back MAC Champion Western Michigan Broncos (7-13, 4-3 MAC). The MACtion will begin on Friday at 6 p.m. followed by a match on Saturday at 4 p.m. 

The Broncos and Bulls faced off three times last year including in the MAC Tournament. In the regular season, the Broncos took the first match of the weekend, but the Bulls followed it up with a sweep over Western Michigan. Buffalo handed the Broncos their first regular season conference loss since 2022 as the Broncos went 18-0 in MAC play in 2023. In the MAC Quarterfinals, the Broncos defeated the Bulls, 3-1. The Broncos lead the all-time series, 30-6. Under Head Coach Scott Smith, Buffalo is 3-9 against the Broncos.

The Bulls went 2-1 last week with wins over Akron and Central Michigan. The Chippewas eventually snapped the Bulls' three-game win streak with a 3-0 win on Saturday.

In Friday's 3-1 win over Central Michigan, three Bulls recorded double-doubles. Emerson Matthews finished the night with a match-high 20 kills and 10 digs, Manoela Forlin had 11 kills and 13 digs, as Maddie Mitchell tallied 38 assists and 12 digs. Mitchell now has a team leading six double-doubles on the year.

Sydney Bell saw her first action in six matches as she finished with eight kills and two block assists. Keira Kleidon had a match-high 23 digs.

From the service line, Eve Adams had a pair of aces as Matthews, Kleidon and Mitchell each had one.

ABOUT THE BULLS
 • Junior Manoela Forlin has 10+ kills in 11 of the 16 matches this season.
• In just conference play, Emerson Matthews is second in aces per set (0.46), tied for second in total aces (12), third in kills per set (3.73) and points (118.0), and tied for third in points per set (4.54) and total kills (97).
• Preseason All-MAC honoree Manoela Forlin and freshman Emerson Matthews have been the Bulls' one-two punch on the offensive attack. The duo has combined for 378 kills, which is 54.2% of the Bulls' total kills on the season. This is the second-highest rate in the MAC behind Ball State's Carson Tyler and Noelle VanOort who make up 54.8% of the Cardinals' kills.
• Maddie Mitchell has six double-doubles on the season. Mitchell has recorded double-doubles in three of the last four matches against Ohio (10/4), Akron (10/7) and Central Michigan (10/10).
• The Bulls currently have the fifth-best hitting percentage in the MAC at .197.
• The Bulls are 16-4 in sets where they reach 15 first, but are 5-34 when the opposition gets to 15 first.
 

Ohio Bobcats (5-14, 3-4 MAC)
Oct. 16 / vs. Eastern Michigan / Athens, Ohio / Convocation Center / 6 p.m. ET / YouTube / Watch / Live Stats / Digital Guide / Tickets
Oct. 17 / vs. Eastern Michigan / Athens, Ohio / Convocation Center / 3 p.m. ET / ESPN+ / Watch / Live Stats / Digital Guide / Tickets

Ohio is coming off a commanding three-win week that saw Ohio sweep Kent State and Miami, before finishing the weekend sweep with a 3-1 win over the RedHawks on Saturday in Athens. 

On Friday in Athens, Junior Emily Waddell had a stellar night against the RedHawks. Waddell recorded a career-high 14 kills and no errors on 18 total attacks. That resulted in a career-high .778 attack percentage for the junior. Senior Kendall White distributed a team-high 46 assists. Junior Gentry Brown and freshman Bailey Blair contributed 12 and 10 kills, respectively. Brown also tallied seven digs. On Saturday, Ohio finished with a .272 attack percentage, 60 kills, six aces, 12 blocks, 55 assists and 64 digs. Miami finished with a .112 attack percentage, 40 kills, three aces, six blocks, 38 assists and 57 digs.
 

Akron Zips (9-9, 2-5 MAC)
AKRON, Ohio - Akron stays on the road as it travels to Mount Pleasant, Mich., to battle the Chippewas for a pair of Mid-American Conference matches on October 17 and 18.

How To Follow The Action
Friday: Stats | Video
Saturday: Stats | Video

Zips At A Glance
Akron comes into the series with Central Michigan holding a 9-9 overall record and a 2-5 record in the MAC. The Zips recently went 1-2 the past week with a five-set victory at Western Michigan to split a two-game series and a five-set defeat to Buffalo at the JAR.

Delaney Gash led the Zips with 48 kills while recording a pair of double-doubles. Lyndi Wolf was close behind with 45 kills while recording 12 blocks. Chidera Ozoh recorded 17 blocks and 31 kills while recording a hitting percentage of .500 or better in two of the three matches last week. Martina Villani led the Zips in assists with 157 while recording nine kills, five aces and 12 blocks.

Gash leads the Zips so far this season in kills (273) and points (295.5). Villani is the leader in assists (726) while Vanessa Del Real leads the Blue and Gold in aces (33) and digs (262). Ozoh serves as the leader in blocks (78).

Leaders In The MAC
Akron ranks in the top-five in the MAC in total points (2nd - 1282), points per set (1st - 17.00), hitting % (3rd - .216), fewest opp assists (5th - 825), fewest opp assists per set (4th - 11.25), total assists (2nd - 917), assists per set (2nd - 12.39), fewest opp kills(5th - 902), fewest opp kills per set (5th - 12.19), total kills (2nd - 992), kills per set (2nd - 13.41), fewest opp digs per set (4th - 13.58), and total digs (5th - 1039).

Individually, the Zips see Lyndi Wolf rank 10th in hitting percentage (.283). Delaney Gash ranks 2nd in total kills (273), 4th in kills per set (3.90), 3rd in total points (295.5) and 5th in points per set (4.22). Maureen Mathews is 7th in total kills (229), 8th in kills per set (3.22), 6th in total points (238.5) and  9th in points per set (3.57). Martina Villani ranks 2nd in total assists (726) and 1st in assists per set (9.81). Vanessa Del Real ranks 1st in total aces (33), 2nd in aces per set (.48), 6th in total digs (262) and 5th in digs per set (3.80). Chidera Ozoh ranks 5th in total blocks (78) and 8th in blocks per set (1.05).

What's Next?
The Zips return to James A. Rhodes Arena to host Northern Illinois on October 24 (6 p.m.) and 25 (4 p.m.) for a pair of conference matches.

Eastern Michigan Eagles (10-10, 2-5 MAC)
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) -- Winners in two of its last three matches, the Eastern Michigan University volleyball team is set to travel to Athens, Ohio, for two matches against Ohio University Thursday-Friday, Oct. 16-17, 3 p.m., 6 p.m. 

GOING FOR THREE STRAIGHT IN THE MAC
Eastern has the opportunity to claim its third consecutive MAC win in Thursday's match against the Bobcats. The occasion would mark the first time with three consecutive MAC wins since 2018, Sept. 29-Oct. 6, when EMU beat Toledo, Northern Illinois, and Western Michigan. The Eagles' could win four straight for the first time since 2017-18, when they won the last four MAC games of the 2017 season and first two of the 2018 campaign.
 
HIGH IN MAC/NAT'L RANKINGS
Eastern ranks in the top four in the MAC in seven categories. Eastern ranks 32nd in the country in attacks per set (36.59) and 50th in digs per set (15.49). By volume, it ranks 11th in the county in total attacks (2,744), 13th in the nation in team total blocks (177.0), 15th in the nation in team digs (1,162), 22nd in team assists (870), 23rd in team kills (942), and 37th in team service aces (122). Eastern Michigan has three players who rank inside the conference top five in various per-set categories. In the national standings, Hatteras Welker slots 49th in blocks per set (1.29) and eighth in total blocks (94). Ava Siefke ranks 14th in total attacks (786), 18th in total points (320.0), and 32nd in total kills (268). Additionally, Ashlynn Belcher stands 23rd in the nation with 646 total assists. In the national standings by volume, Welker's 11 blocks in a four-set match slot fifth, while Belcher's 41 dimes in a three-set match are the ninth most. Grasson's five aces tie for fifth in three-set matches.
 
UP NEXT
Eastern returns home for two matches against Buffalo Thursday-Friday, Oct. 23-24. Admission is free at the George Gervin Game Above Center and fans can stream both games live on ESPN+.
 

Kent State Golden Flashes (7-11, 2-5 MAC)
The Kent State volleyball team looks to close the first half of the Mid-American Conference schedule strong this weekend with two matches at Miami. The Golden Flashes and RedHawks will battle on Thursday and Friday with first serve at 6:30 p.m. both nights

WEEKEND SCHEDULE
Thursday, October 16 | 6:30 p.m. | Kent State at Miami
Friday, October 17 | 6:30 p.m. | Kent State at Miami

PREVIEWING THE FLASHES
Kent State (7-11, 2-5 MAC) was unable to maintain momentum from a pair of victories during the home-opening weekend and dropped three conference contests last weeks, first at home again Ohio and then two at Eastern Michigan. Despite the setbacks, the Golden Flashes enter the weekend just one game out of a tie for fifth in the MAC standings. Senior Mackenzie McGuire has been among the conference's best offensive players and ranks second in kills per set (3.94) and third in points per set (4.43). McGuire is No. 45 nationally with 256 total kills. She has recorded at least 10 kills in 15 of 18 matches. A trio of newcomers have made immediate impacts to Kent State's attack, as junior Mercedez Brown (108), freshman Macie Moreland (107) and redshirt sophomore Adalynn Ginley (96) are the next three kills leaders. Ginley ranks second in the MAC in hitting percentage (.332) and fifth in blocks per set (1.12). Junior Christina Vigil ranks fifth in the MAC at 9.14 assists per set and also leads the team at 2.60 digs per set.

MCGUIRE MAKING HER MARK
The only four-year member of the program, outside hitter Mackenzie McGuire officially entered the Kent State record book on Sept. 6 against Morgan State as the 17th member of the 1,000 kills club. She also tallied the 500th dig of her career during the match. McGuire claimed the No. 7 spot on the Flashes career list during Friday's match at Eastern Michigan, passing Rebecca Yarish (1988-91), and enters the weekend with 1,171 kills. The Broken Arrow, Oklahoma native has been one of the most productive attackers in program history in terms of kills per set. McGuire's average of 3.44 is the third highest all-time.

BLOCK PARTY
With an average of 2.12 blocks per set, Kent State is having its most successful blocking season since 2021. Middle blocker Adalynn Ginley has made an immediate impact this fall after arriving to campus for the spring semester after transferring from Marshall. Ginley ranks fifth in the MAC with 1.12 blocks per set, which is the eighth highest average in Flashes history. The block has picked up during conference play, as Kent State is averaging 2.52 per set against MAC competition while limiting opposing attackers to a .167 hitting percentage. Over the past five matches, the Flashes have totaled at least 13 blocks three times. Ginley leads the way with 1.25 blocks per set in league play, with middle blocker Nadia Miller (1.25 bps) and setter Christina Vigil (1.00 bps) close behind.

Central Michigan Chippewas (5-14, 2-5 MAC)
Preview coming soon…
 

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