FULTON, Mo.—The William Woods University volleyball team will look to pick up a big win on Friday night inside Anderson Arena, as the Owls host No. 13-ranked Columbia College. First-serve is set for 7 p.m.
The Owls (14-10; 5-1 AMC), are coming off a three-set (25-15, 25-12, 25-19) sweep over Stephens College on Tuesday night. The Owls totaled 30 kills in the match and were led by freshman
Abbi McKnelly totaling a team-high nine.
Freshman setter
Brittney Engelbrecht added another double-double, having 22 assists and 10 digs, while
Abbie O'Mara led the Owls with a team-high 11 digs.
On the season, the Owls are led by McKnelly having 235 kills, an attack percentage of .234 and is fourth on the team with 165 digs.
Emily Becker has contributed 212 kills for second-best on the team, but does lead WWU in attack percentage (.240), service aces (34) and blocks (70).
Senior
Kristen Bauer also just eclipsed the 200 kill mark on the year, as she has totaled 202, while
Abby Ferguson has added 158.
Engelbrecht, meanwhile, has earned 840 assists in 24 matches, which ranks her eighth in the NAIA, while also having 305 digs, which is second on the team to senior O'Mara, who has a team-high 416 digs, which is 18th best in the NAIA.
As a team this year, the Owls continue to put up fantastic numbers, which has consistently moved them up in the NAIA ranks, as WWU is sixth in total service aces (174), eighth in digs (1,614), 14
th in kills (1,093), 17
th in digs per game (17.74), 21
st in service aces per game (1.91), 24
th in total assists (976) and 31
st in blocks (170).
Those impressive numbers, however, rank the Owls even higher in the American Midwest Conference (AMC), as they rank third in service aces, first in digs, second in kills, first in digs per set, fifth in service aces per set, second in assists and first in blocks.
After running through its opponents throughout the regular season thus far, for the first time this year, the Cougars (20-4; 4-2 AMC), have dropped two games in a row, as they have fallen to No. 12-ranked Missouri Baptist in four sets and No. 4-ranked Park University in three.
"We have to stick to our game plan and play as a team in order to win," said head coach
Monica Herschelman. "They just got beat by Park, so we know that we can win and will have a great crowd here supporting us. We are really looking forward to executing our game plan and having fun playing some volleyball," she added. Â
On the offensive side of the net, the Cougars are led by Brooke Simpson, having a team-high 268 kills, which is 24
th best in the NAIA. Paula Rosa has totaled 272 kills, while Polina Severina has added 240, but does own a respectable .320 attack percentage.
Lydie van Deursen leads CC in the assist category, as she ranks fourth in the NAIA, having 915 assists on the year. On the defensive side of the net, Columbia has totaled 1,441 digs and are led by Sarah Schwentker, earning a team-high 302 digs. Simpson has added 294 digs, while Rosa and van Duersen have contributed 271 and 219 digs respectively.
"I think the biggest thing for us to get a win is to play together," said Herschelman. "I don't think one player can take over our game, as we depend on the nine or 10 players that step out on the court every night. Our bench and players are always great, so we are just ready to compete and put our best foot forward."
The game against the Cougars will also be the Owls annual Bright Out game. All donations will be taking at the door for the Super Sam Foundation for Pediatric Cancer Research. The more money you donate to the Super Sam Foundation, the more opportunity you will have to win gift cards.
There will be a $150 gift card to BestBuy, $100 gift card to Walmart and $50 gift card to Archies available to win. The winners will be announced between sets two and three during Friday night's game.
The first 150 fans that arrive at the game will receive a free Bright Out t-shirt at the door, along with the first 100 fans to attend, will receive a free pizza.
The William Woods University women's volleyball team encourages as many fans to come and cheer on the Owls to victory, as they host the Cougars in a key AMC match-up. Also, to come out and support a good cause by donating to the Super Sam Foundation for Pediatric Cancer Research.
Fans make sure to stay updated on wwuowls.com tomorrow night for a full recap and scores from Anderson Arena.
