Lourdes Volleyball Preview - 13abc.com Toledo (OH) News, Weather and Sports

Lourdes Volleyball Preview

Upcoming in Gray Wolves Volleyball: Lourdes will play its final match before opening Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference play next week as the Gray Wolves travel to Richmond, Ind. on Wednesday evening to face 23rd-ranked, and undefeated, Indiana-East.  The Gray Wolves won one of three matches last weekend at the Rio Grande Quad, and look to avenge an earlier defeat this season at the hands of the Red Wolves.

On the Air: Live stats and video are available for the match through the front page of the Lourdes website, www.lourdesathletics.com courtesy of Indiana-East. 

Head Coach Greg Reitz: In his third season on the Lourdes bench, Greg Reitz has a 38-46 (.452) record at the helm of the Gray Wolves.  In his fifth season overall as a women's head coach, Reitz has a 58-81 (.417) career mark.  He is the only head coach in Lourdes program's history.

Series Notes: Indiana-East has won all three previous meetings against Lourdes, winning all three contests in straight sets, and all on neutral courts.  The first two matches took place during the Gray Wolves inaugural 2010 season.  The Red Wolves also downed Lourdes earlier this season on Aug. 24 at the Michigan-Dearborn Earlybird Challenge.

Wrapping Up Last Week: The Gray Wolves opened last week with a tough five-set loss at Siena Heights on Wednesday in non-conference action.  After falling in set one, Lourdes won sets two and four by scores of 26-24 each while the Saints won the third set by the same score.  The fifth set also went extra points before Siena Heights prevailed 16-14.  On Friday Lourdes traveled to Rio Grande and was swept in three sets by the Redstorm.  The Gray Wolves battled back on day two of the quad event, defeating Union (Ky.) in a five-set thriller, winning 15-12 in the fifth.  Lourdes fell in the final match of the weekend though, losing in four sets to Cincinnati Christian.

Scouting Indiana-East: The Red Wolves have dropped just one set this season on the way to a 9-0 start to the year.  Sarah Shilling leads the way for Indiana-East with 95 kills and is hitting .319 on the season.  Brianna Strete has added 85 kills while hitting at a .400 rate on the year for the Red Wolves, which are hitting .294 as a team.  Kristin Waechter leads Indiana-East with 128 digs while Caitlin Burroughs has 24 total blocks.

Earlier This Season vs. IUE: The Red Wolves swept Lourdes 25-17, 25-10, 25-12 in the first meeting between the two schools this year on Aug. 24 at the Michigan-Dearborn Earlybird Challenge.  Katie McKenty led Lourdes with seven kills as the Gray Wolves hit just .062 as a team.  Brianna Strete hit .929 with 13 kills for the Red Wolves, which were ranked #25 in the nation at the time.

Lourdes vs. Ranked Foes: The Gray Wolves are looking for their first win ever against a NAIA-ranked opponent when Lourdes takes on #23 Indiana-East on Wednesday.  The Gray Wolves are 0-4 all-time against ranked opponents, falling 3-0 each time.  Lourdes faced Indiana Tech when the Warriors were ranked #14 in 2010 on the road and again at home when they were ranked #11 in 2011.  The Gray Wolves also faced #16 Madonna on the road last season.  Earlier this year Lourdes fell to Indiana-East when the Red Wolves were ranked #25.

Wrapping Up a Long Road Trip: Lourdes is finishing up its 14-match road trip to start the season on Wednesday evening at Indiana-East.  The Gray Wolves will finally open at home next Wednesday (Sept. 12) with the WHAC opener against Madonna at Tam-o-Shanter before hosting the Gray Wolf Classic Sept. 14-15.  Lourdes has played in three weekend tournaments in addition to three Wednesday night road contests thus far this year.

Going the Distance: Lourdes has already gone the full five sets in three matches this season, including a pair last week.  The Gray Wolves are 2-1 in five-set contests, with the lone loss coming at Siena Heights, 16-14 in the fifth.

McKenty Second in the Nation in Kills: Katie McKenty ranks second in all of NAIA with 176 kills on the season (3.74 kills per set).  The freshman has registered double figure kill totals in 11 of the 13 matches this season.

Double Trouble: Five different Gray Wolves have posted double-doubles on the year, with Shelby Schuster joining the party with 15 kills and 13 digs against Cincinnati Christian on Saturday.  Michi Jimenez has a team-high five double-doubles while Katie McKenty has accomplished the feat four times.  Shayna Lindley and Ali Mass each have one this year as well.

Horton Efficient at Siena Heights: Amelia Horton hit .450 for Lourdes on Wednesday evening at Siena Heights, the highest hitting percentage in a match for any Gray Wolf this season.  She had 12 kills and just three errors in 20 swings.

Block Party: Andrea Brown had a season-high seven blocks for the Gray Wolves in the victory over Union (Ky.).  She tallied three solos and four assists.

Let's Get Defensive: Lourdes matched a season-high with 79 digs in the five set victory over Union (Ky.) on Saturday.  In addition, the Gray Wolves had a team-high 11 blocks against the Bulldogs.

Captains Selected: Juniors Allegra Recknagel and Lola Hidalgo have each been named team captains by coach Greg Reitz for the 2012 season. 

This and That: Lourdes ranks in the top 15 in the country as a team in digs (5th), kills (8th), aces (12th), and assists (14th) ... Michi Jimenez is 11th individually in digs with 179 while Andrea Brown ranks 13th in the NAIA with 39 blocks ... Brown is the only player to have played in all 49 sets this year ... Lourdes has won the second set in eight of 13 matches this year.