MILWAUKEE, Wis. - The Milwaukee volleyball team is set to open the shortened 2020-21 season at the Klotsche Center, hosting Wright State on Monday, January 25 and Tuesday, January 26. Milwaukee will play all of its home matches on Mondays and Tuesday this season with first serve at 6:00 pm and 12:00 pm, respectively.
 
With no fans permitted across the league for the Horizon League season, fans have plenty of options to follow along with each match. All 16 matches will feature live stats and a broadcast which is available on MKEPanthers.com. Additionally, fans can download the virtual gameday program on the website.
 
SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
Wright State comes into the 2021 season as the preseason favorites, earning 112 poll points and five first place votes.
 
 The Raiders are coming off a 24-6 overall season in which they captured the regular season crown at 13-3. Wright State fell to No. 4 and eventual Horizon League Tournament Champions, Northern Kentucky 3-1 in the semifinals.
 
Third-year head coach Allie Matters returns an experienced group with four seniors and four juniors including All-League Honorees Nyssa Baker, Celia Powers, Lainey Stephenson, and Jenna Story, who was also named Defensive Player of the Year.
 
PRESEASON POLL
The Horizon League released the spring 2021 preseason poll on January 21 afternoon and Milwaukee was predicted to finish third, voted by the league coaches.
 
The Panthers earned 94 total poll points. Wright State just edged defending Horizon League Tournament Champion Northern Kentucky in the poll. The Raiders earned five first-place votes and 112 total points compared to 111 total points and three first-place votes for the Norse.
 
The third-place preseason ranking is the highest for the Panthers since Milwaukee was predicted to place second in the 2015 Preseason Poll.
 
HOME SWEET HOME
With a 12-1 record at the Klotsche Center a year ago, the Panthers recorded their 23rd winning record at home since joining NCAA Division I in 1990. Milwaukee has compiled a 252-104 record (.708) at the Klotsche Center with 10 double-digit win seasons. 
 
RETURNING FIREPOWER
The Panthers graduated six, but Head coach Susie Johnson has plenty of firepower returning for an offense that led the league a year ago. All-League honoree Carmen Heilemann is back for her senior season after leading Milwaukee with 345 kills a season ago. Freshman of the Year and All-League member Ari Miller joins after posting 323 kills and a team-best 99 blocks in her first collegiate campaign. Defensively, Jess Grabowski gears up for her third season with the Panthers after totaling 602 digs in 2019, second most for a single season in program history. Grabowski was named Honorable Mention All-League a season ago. 
 
ADDITIONAL EXPERIENCE
Along with the three who earned all-league honors, the Panthers have plenty to be excited about. Kleja Cerniauskaite ranked third on the team with 292 kills and returns for her junior season while Jenna Miller, who led the team with a .290 attack percentage is ready to lead in her senior campaign. As a whole, the Panthers return 67.9 percent of their kills from 2019 and 68.1 percent of their digs.
 
STELLAR SOPHOMORE
Ari Miller collected the accolades after an incredible freshman campaign, but classmate Mati Jakscht also had an impressive impact in 2019. The East Troy, Wis. native totaled 276 digs which placed her eighth all-time for a Milwaukee freshman. Additionally, Jakscht ranked fourth on the team with 22 service aces. 
 
EYES ON THE TOP
In two seasons, Jess Grabowski has totaled 1,163 digs which puts her just outside the program's top-10 list. As a freshman, Grabowski totaled 561 digs and followed with 602 last season, which puts her fifth and second, respectively, for single seasons. If the junior keeps her current pace of 4.99 digs per set (which also ranks first in Milwaukee history), she could potentially reach Lauren Felsing's school record of 1,929 career digs.
 
SHOCKED THE LEAGUE
Milwaukee was selected to finish seventh in the 2019 Horizon League Preseason Poll but shocked the rest of the league and finished 12-4 to earn the No. 2 seed for the tournament. The Panthers put together one of the strongest seasons in recent history, tying the program record for most wins (26), earning 14 sweeps (most since 2006), and finishing the year with a 56 RPI of 335 NCAA Division I teams. Milwaukee took down No. 3 Green Bay in the Horizon League Tournament semifinals but fell to Northern Kentucky in the title match.
 
NATIONAL NUMBERS
Milwaukee put together an impressive season in 2019 not only on a league level, but on the national stage as well. Here's where the Panthers stood among 332 NCAA Division I teams.

• 1st/14th in Total Assists (1,602)
• 1st/9th in Assists Per Set (13.46)
• 1st/18th in Total Kills (1,706)
• 1st/13th in Kills Per Set (14.34)
• 1st/61st in Hitting Percentage (.239)
• 2nd/71st in Service Aces (175)

NEW FACES
Milwaukee bolstered the roster with four new faces for this year's campaign including Kaley Blake, Marissa Kleman, Emma Loveall, and Sarah Schrader.
 
Blake comes to Milwaukee after leading Burlington High School to four straight state tournament appearances including a pair of titles. The 5-foot-7 setter pulled in all sorts of awards including four all-conference nods and four all-state awards including two years on first team.
 
A three-sport athlete at La Crosse Logan, Kleman excelled in volleyball, earning First Team All-Mississippi Valley Conference honors three times after an honorable mentioned nod as a freshman. In 2019-20, Kleman led the MVC in kills and was named team offensive player of the year and first team all-state.
 
Loveall joins the Panthers after an impressive four-year campaign at Spirit Lake. The 6-foot-2 outside hitter earned an all-conference nod all four years, three of which were first team and currently holds the Spirit Lake record for most kills in a game, season, and career, after totaling over 1,400 for the Indians.
 
At Sussex Hamilton High School, Schrader helped lead the Chargers to the State Tournament with a 31-14 record. The outside hitter was named Division I Second Team All-State her final two seasons in addition to earning first team all-conference honors.
 
JOIN THE CLUB
Noel Carpio joins the Panthers as an assistant coach for the 2020-21 season after spending two years as volunteer assistant coach at Creighton University. He was part of the BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year and assisted in scouting, practice planning, and on-court training as well as gameday operations with the Bluejays.
 
CATCH ALL THE ACTION
Thanks to ESPN+, Milwaukee volleyball will be readily available for viewers. The Horizon League and ESPN have an agreement that includes ESPN hosting the league's digital network on the ESPN+ platform.
 
ESPN+, which will host the Horizon League women's soccer, men's soccer, and volleyball championships, offers fans thousands of live events, on-demand content, and original programming not available on ESPN's linear TV or digital networks. Fans can subscribe to ESPN+ for just $4.99 a month (or $49.99 per year) and cancel at any time.
 
For road games, visit MKEPanthers.com for live coverage.