Omaha Heads North to Meet Bison, Coyotes
Oct 23, 2014 | Volleyball
This Weekend
The Omaha volleyball team returns to action with two road matches this weekend, visiting North Dakota State on Friday, Oct. 24 at 7 p.m. and South Dakota on Sunday, Oct. 26 at 2 p.m. Links to live stats and live video will be available on OMavs.com.
Scouting the North Dakota State Bison
North Dakota State enters the weekend with a record of 8-14 (2-6 Summit League) after earning a 3-2 non-conference win at Valparaiso on Sunday afternoon in Valparaiso, Ind. The Bison sit just behind Omaha in the Summit League standings, where they are seventh.
NDSU is led by Jenny Fassbender's 3.34 kills per set, and her 0.34 service aces per set rank fourth in the Summit League. Head coach Kari Thompson is in her fifth season and holds a career record of 62-65.
This weekend marks the 78th meeting all-time between Omaha and North Dakota State, and the Mavericks lead the series, 40-37. The two squads last met on Oct. 3, with Omaha taking a 3-1 win at Sapp Fieldhouse. UNO's last trip to Fargo came on Oct. 11, 2013, when it earned a 3-0 sweep.
Scouting the South Dakota Coyotes
South Dakota enters the weekend with a record of 13-9 (7-1 Summit League) after sweeping at South Dakota State on Friday in Brookings, S.D. The Coyotes are tied with Denver for first in the conference with a 7-1 league mark.
USD is led by Kendall Kritenbrink's 4.34 kills per set, which is second among Summit League attackers, while Riley Haug's 4.56 digs per set are first in the conference. On Monday, Haug garnered her third Summit League Defensive Player of the Week award after averaging 5.17 digs per set last week. Head coach Leanne Williamson is in her first year at South Dakota, and she holds a record of 13-9.
This weekend marks the 70th meeting all-time between Omaha and South Dakota, and the Mavericks lead the series, 55-14. The two teams last met on Sept. 30, with USD taking a 3-1 win at Sapp Fieldhouse. In their last meeting in Vermillion, S.D., the Coyotes won 3-0 on Oct. 20, 2013.
Quick Hits
•Freshman setter Sydney O'Shaughnessy had a career-high 52 assists at South Dakota State last Sunday. Her assist total was the most since former Maverick Emily Myers had 53 against Dallas Baptist on Oct. 1, 2011.
•Junior setter/rightside hitter Michaela Schimmer was named Summit League Offensive Player of the Week after averaging 3.57 kills per set and hitting .522 over Omaha's perfect 2-0 weekend. She hit a career-best .625 in UNO's win over Oral Roberts.
•Junior outside hitter Kelley Wollak got her team-leading 10th double-double at SDSU, finishing with 10 kills and 13 digs.
•The Mavericks are 4-1 this season when O'Shaughnessy has 30 or more assists in a match.
•Four Mavericks were named to all-tournament teams earlier this season: junior defensive specialist Kimberly Bailey at the Emerald Beach Islanders Classic, O'Shaughnessy and junior middle blocker Megan Schmale at the Billiken Invitational and Wollak at the Omaha Classic.
Schimmer Named League Offensive Player of the Week
Junior setter/rightside hitter Michaela Schimmer was named Summit League Offensive Player of the Week for her performances Oct. 13-19, the conference office announced Monday. Schimmer became the first Omaha volleyball player to earn a Summit League weekly award since joining the conference in 2012-13.
A native of Grand Island, Neb., Schimmer collected the first weekly league award of her career after leading Omaha to an undefeated 2-0 weekend in league play. She was perfect at the net with 10 kills and no errors in 16 attempts for a .625 hitting percentage en route to the Mavericks' sweep of Oral Roberts on Friday. Schimmer then posted 15 kills with one error for a .467 clip in Sunday's 3-1 win at South Dakota State. On the week, she tallied a .522 hitting percentage with 25 kills, averaging 3.57 kills per set. She added three blocks and two digs, while averaging 3.9 points per set.
Arriving at the National Block Party
Omaha's blocking corps has been outstanding during the 2014 season, and the statistics say it all. The Mavericks have outblocked their opponents a combined 207-118.5 and have tallied double-digit team blocks in 12 matches. As such, the Mavericks, who may not officially be listed in the NCAA Division I stats release, are unofficially ranked 24th in the country with 207 total blocks, and they are 42nd nationally with 2.52 blocks per set. Individually, junior Megan Schmale is 34th among Division I blockers with 95 total blocks.
The Block Party: Summit League Style
Omaha claims four of the top 10 spots on the Summit League's individual blocking leaders list. Redshirt freshman middle blocker Amanda Conlin is third with 1.24 blocks per set, junior middle blocker Megan Schmale is fourth (1.16), junior setter/rightside hitter Michaela Schimmer is fifth (1.00) and junior middle blocker Diane Banderas is sixth (0.97). Schmale also ranks first in the conference with 90 block assists and 95 total blocks.
As a team, Omaha leads the league with 362 block assists and is second in total blocks (207) and blocks per set (2.52).
Last Time Out: Mavs Surge to 3-1 Win at South Dakota State
Omaha captured its second win of the weekend on Sunday, defeating South Dakota State 3-1 (24-26, 25-17, 25-18, 25-16) on the road at Frost Arena. Two Mavericks had double-doubles for the day, highlighted by freshman setter Sydney O'Shaughnessy's team-leading 10th of the season on a career-high 52 assists and 10 digs. O'Shaughnessy also had three kills and three blocks for the day.
Junior outside hitter Kelley Wollak achieved her 10th double-double as well with 10 kills and 13 digs. She was one of four Mavericks who had double-figure kills, as junior middle blocker Megan Schmale also had 16 kills on .414 hitting and added a team-best three blocks and a trio of service aces.
Junior setter/rightside hitter Michaela Schimmer had another strong offensive performance for the weekend, finishing with 15 kills on .467 hitting with just one attack error. Junior middle blocker Amy Taylor added 11 kills and hit .400 for the afternoon with three stops at the net.
Three Mavs also totaled double-figure digs, with 15 from junior libero Kimberly Bailey, 14 from freshman outside hitter Mackenzie Horkey and 13 from freshman defensive specialist Marisa Moseman.
As a team, Omaha outhit SDSU, .265 to .122, and outblocked the Jacks, 7-2.
Up Next
Omaha returns to action on Friday, Oct. 31, welcoming Denver to Sapp Fieldhouse with first serve at 7 p.m. Links to live stats and live video will be available on OMavs.com.
The Omaha volleyball team returns to action with two road matches this weekend, visiting North Dakota State on Friday, Oct. 24 at 7 p.m. and South Dakota on Sunday, Oct. 26 at 2 p.m. Links to live stats and live video will be available on OMavs.com.
Scouting the North Dakota State Bison
North Dakota State enters the weekend with a record of 8-14 (2-6 Summit League) after earning a 3-2 non-conference win at Valparaiso on Sunday afternoon in Valparaiso, Ind. The Bison sit just behind Omaha in the Summit League standings, where they are seventh.
NDSU is led by Jenny Fassbender's 3.34 kills per set, and her 0.34 service aces per set rank fourth in the Summit League. Head coach Kari Thompson is in her fifth season and holds a career record of 62-65.
This weekend marks the 78th meeting all-time between Omaha and North Dakota State, and the Mavericks lead the series, 40-37. The two squads last met on Oct. 3, with Omaha taking a 3-1 win at Sapp Fieldhouse. UNO's last trip to Fargo came on Oct. 11, 2013, when it earned a 3-0 sweep.
Scouting the South Dakota Coyotes
South Dakota enters the weekend with a record of 13-9 (7-1 Summit League) after sweeping at South Dakota State on Friday in Brookings, S.D. The Coyotes are tied with Denver for first in the conference with a 7-1 league mark.
USD is led by Kendall Kritenbrink's 4.34 kills per set, which is second among Summit League attackers, while Riley Haug's 4.56 digs per set are first in the conference. On Monday, Haug garnered her third Summit League Defensive Player of the Week award after averaging 5.17 digs per set last week. Head coach Leanne Williamson is in her first year at South Dakota, and she holds a record of 13-9.
This weekend marks the 70th meeting all-time between Omaha and South Dakota, and the Mavericks lead the series, 55-14. The two teams last met on Sept. 30, with USD taking a 3-1 win at Sapp Fieldhouse. In their last meeting in Vermillion, S.D., the Coyotes won 3-0 on Oct. 20, 2013.
Quick Hits
•Freshman setter Sydney O'Shaughnessy had a career-high 52 assists at South Dakota State last Sunday. Her assist total was the most since former Maverick Emily Myers had 53 against Dallas Baptist on Oct. 1, 2011.
•Junior setter/rightside hitter Michaela Schimmer was named Summit League Offensive Player of the Week after averaging 3.57 kills per set and hitting .522 over Omaha's perfect 2-0 weekend. She hit a career-best .625 in UNO's win over Oral Roberts.
•Junior outside hitter Kelley Wollak got her team-leading 10th double-double at SDSU, finishing with 10 kills and 13 digs.
•The Mavericks are 4-1 this season when O'Shaughnessy has 30 or more assists in a match.
•Four Mavericks were named to all-tournament teams earlier this season: junior defensive specialist Kimberly Bailey at the Emerald Beach Islanders Classic, O'Shaughnessy and junior middle blocker Megan Schmale at the Billiken Invitational and Wollak at the Omaha Classic.
Schimmer Named League Offensive Player of the Week
Junior setter/rightside hitter Michaela Schimmer was named Summit League Offensive Player of the Week for her performances Oct. 13-19, the conference office announced Monday. Schimmer became the first Omaha volleyball player to earn a Summit League weekly award since joining the conference in 2012-13.
A native of Grand Island, Neb., Schimmer collected the first weekly league award of her career after leading Omaha to an undefeated 2-0 weekend in league play. She was perfect at the net with 10 kills and no errors in 16 attempts for a .625 hitting percentage en route to the Mavericks' sweep of Oral Roberts on Friday. Schimmer then posted 15 kills with one error for a .467 clip in Sunday's 3-1 win at South Dakota State. On the week, she tallied a .522 hitting percentage with 25 kills, averaging 3.57 kills per set. She added three blocks and two digs, while averaging 3.9 points per set.
Arriving at the National Block Party
Omaha's blocking corps has been outstanding during the 2014 season, and the statistics say it all. The Mavericks have outblocked their opponents a combined 207-118.5 and have tallied double-digit team blocks in 12 matches. As such, the Mavericks, who may not officially be listed in the NCAA Division I stats release, are unofficially ranked 24th in the country with 207 total blocks, and they are 42nd nationally with 2.52 blocks per set. Individually, junior Megan Schmale is 34th among Division I blockers with 95 total blocks.
The Block Party: Summit League Style
Omaha claims four of the top 10 spots on the Summit League's individual blocking leaders list. Redshirt freshman middle blocker Amanda Conlin is third with 1.24 blocks per set, junior middle blocker Megan Schmale is fourth (1.16), junior setter/rightside hitter Michaela Schimmer is fifth (1.00) and junior middle blocker Diane Banderas is sixth (0.97). Schmale also ranks first in the conference with 90 block assists and 95 total blocks.
As a team, Omaha leads the league with 362 block assists and is second in total blocks (207) and blocks per set (2.52).
Last Time Out: Mavs Surge to 3-1 Win at South Dakota State
Omaha captured its second win of the weekend on Sunday, defeating South Dakota State 3-1 (24-26, 25-17, 25-18, 25-16) on the road at Frost Arena. Two Mavericks had double-doubles for the day, highlighted by freshman setter Sydney O'Shaughnessy's team-leading 10th of the season on a career-high 52 assists and 10 digs. O'Shaughnessy also had three kills and three blocks for the day.
Junior outside hitter Kelley Wollak achieved her 10th double-double as well with 10 kills and 13 digs. She was one of four Mavericks who had double-figure kills, as junior middle blocker Megan Schmale also had 16 kills on .414 hitting and added a team-best three blocks and a trio of service aces.
Junior setter/rightside hitter Michaela Schimmer had another strong offensive performance for the weekend, finishing with 15 kills on .467 hitting with just one attack error. Junior middle blocker Amy Taylor added 11 kills and hit .400 for the afternoon with three stops at the net.
Three Mavs also totaled double-figure digs, with 15 from junior libero Kimberly Bailey, 14 from freshman outside hitter Mackenzie Horkey and 13 from freshman defensive specialist Marisa Moseman.
As a team, Omaha outhit SDSU, .265 to .122, and outblocked the Jacks, 7-2.
Up Next
Omaha returns to action on Friday, Oct. 31, welcoming Denver to Sapp Fieldhouse with first serve at 7 p.m. Links to live stats and live video will be available on OMavs.com.
Players Mentioned
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