The William Woods University volleyball team will host the 2012 Domino's Pizza Triangular on Saturday. The Owls open against NCAA Division III Fontbonne University at 10 a.m., with Fontbonne taking on Missouri Valley College at noon. WWU and Missouri Valley will close out the day with a match at 2 p.m.
The Teams
William Woods comes into this weekend at 18-16 on the year and 11-5 in the American Midwest Conference. Missouri Valley College is 14-11 overall and 3-5 in the Heart of America Athletic Conference. Fontbonne University stands at 9-17 on the season and 5-10 in the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.
Last Time Out
The Owls fell to no. 13 Missouri Baptist 3-1 (14-25, 10-25, 25-23, 25-20) on Wednesday night at Anderson Arena.
Emma Aschenbrenner led the team in kills with 11 and
Sarah Wehmeyer handed out 35 assists on the night.
AMC Winning Season
At 11-5, William Woods has guaranteed itself its first winning season in the AMC since 2009. WWU finished that season with a school-record 13 conference wins. This is the fifth straight year that the Owls have finished at .500 or above in AMC play.
National Rankings
As a team, William Woods ranks in the top 35 of the NAIA in five different categories.The Owls rank eighth in total digs (2,090), 24th in digs/set (17.56), 32nd in both total blocks (218) and total assists (1,240) and 33rd in total kills (1,367).
The Owls have three players ranked in the top 45 of the NAIA across five different categories. Senior libero
Amanda Henley ranks eighth in total digs with 600 and 20th in digs/set with 5.26. Senior setter
Sarah Wehmeyer ranks 15th in total assists with 1,098. Freshman
Emily Becker rounds out the trio ranking 34th in total kills with 370 and 37th in total service aces with 185.
AMC Leaders
The Owls are the top team in the AMC in total digs (2,090) and digs/set (17.6).
Senior libero
Amanda Henley leads the AMC in total digs (600) and digs/set (5.3).
Common Opponents
Lindenwood-Belleville is the only common opponent between the three schools in action on Saturday. Each school has played LU-B twice on the year.
William Woods went 2-0 on the year against LU-B, winning both matches in 3-1 fashion.
Missouri Valley went 2-0 against Lindenwood-Belleville with a pair of 3-0 victories.
Fontbonne University went 0-2 against the Lynx, losing both matches 3-1.
Saturday marks the second meeting between Fontbonne and Missouri Valley this season. The Vikings defeated the Griffins 3-0 (25-15, 25-13, 26-24) in St. Louis on Sept. 1.
A Look At Fontbonne University
The Griffins come into Saturday's matches at 9-17 overall and stand in sixth place in the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference at 5-10.
Offensively they hit .108 as a team, which puts them sixth in the conference, and they are led by Taryn Ballmann with 261 kills.
Defensively they average 16.56 digs/set. Olivia Thurmond leads the team in digs with 533.
A Look At Missouri Valley College
The Vikings come into the weekend at 14-11 on the year and are in seventh place in the Heart of America Athletic Conference at 3-5.
MVC is currently on a season-high five-game winning streak.
The Vikings rank ninth in the NAIA in digs/set with a 18.43 pace. They have five players with over 200 digs led by Jessica Gates' 357.
Offensively, Missouri Valley has a .174 hitting percentage and are led by Ana Jose Calito's 254 kills. Setter Tarrah Sweet leads the HAAC in assists/set with a 9.8 pace.
