MILWAUKEE, Wis. - The Milwaukee volleyball team bounced back from three straight losses to earn a pair of wins in its final home regular season series. The Panthers knocked off Oakland 3-0 on consecutive nights and head into the final week of play with six wins in Horizon League action and will face Purdue Fort Wayne in two matches on Monday.
With no fans permitted across the league for the Horizon League season, fans have plenty of options to follow along with each match. All 14 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 MASTODONS
In its first season in the Horizon League, Purdue Fort Wayne has put together an impressive campaign thus far. The Mastodons dropped a pair at UIC to open the year but have since gone 10-2 and sit in third place in the Horizon League.
With the 10-4 record, Purdue Fort Wayne has clinched a berth to the Horizon League Tournament.
PFW boasts the league's top offense, leading the Horizon League in hitting percentage (.266), assists per game (13.3), and kills per game (14.4). Katie Crowe leads the league with 207 total kills (4.2/set) while Sydney Boerst leads with a .364 attack percentage.
Additionally, Crowe has been named Player of the Week four times in 2021, more than any other player. She became the fourth player in Horizon League history to win the Player of the Week honor four times in a season. As well as leading the league with 4.2 kills per set, Crowe ranks 12th with 3.22 digs per frame.
SERIES HISTORY
Milwaukee and Purdue Fort Wayne have met just three times in the NCAA Division I era with the Panthers earning a pair of victories over the Mastodons. Most recently, MKE topped PFW 3-1 behind 24 kills from Kerri Schuh in 2011.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Behind an outstanding offensive effort of 32 kills with a .393 attack percentage,
Kleja Cerniauskaite was named Horizon League Player of the Week. It marks the first weekly honor for the junior. In Monday's 3-0 win over Oakland, Cerniauskaite put away a career-high 18 kills at a .394 clip.
BREAK OUT THE BROOMS
The Panthers had arguably one of their best complete series this season, averaging 16.83 kills and 16.0 assists per set with a .240 attack percentage in a pair of 3-0 sweeps over Oakland. Milwaukee also averaged 20.2 digs per set in the victories.
HOME SWEET HOME
With the sweep over Northern Kentucky, the Panthers cemented their 24th season with a winning record at home since joining NCAA Division I in 1990. Milwaukee finished 5-3 at home this season and are now 255-107 (.704) at the Klotsche Center. The Panthers have 10 double-digit win seasons at home.
MAKING IMMEDIATE IMPACT
Kaley Blake continues to impress in her first season for the Panthers. Against the Golden Grizzlies, Blake averaged 6.33 assists and 2.83 digs per set. On Monday, the freshman totaled 17 assists and seven digs. She followed with her fifth double-double of this season on Tuesday, totaling 21 assists and 10 digs. This season, Blake is dishing out assists at 5.0 sets per frame which ranks second on the team. She also ranks fourth on the team in digs (90) and is tied for second in aces (6).
Sarah Schrader played all six sets against Oakland and contributed all over the court. The freshman totaled three kills, three assists, four aces, and 20 digs in the victories.
KOENEN CAREER-HIGH
Abby Koenen totaled 27 kills in two matches against Northern Kentucky including a career-high 17 on Monday. The junior finished the match with a career-high 56 swings. Additionally, Koenen added nine digs in each contest against the Norse.
This season, Koenen ranks second on the team with 105 kills and sixth with a career-high 51 digs.
STEPPING UP THE D
Mati Jakscht played a big role for Milwaukee's defense in the Northern Kentucky series and totaled 28 digs in two matches. On Monday, Jakscht tallied a career-high 17 digs and followed with her 15th career match of double-digit digs with 10 on Tuesday.
CLIMBING THE CAREER RECORDS
Rylie Vaughn opened the season with 1,319 career assists putting her 10th all-time in Milwaukee program history. At her current pace, the junior has a chance to become the ninth player in school history to record at least 2,000 career assists.
With 164 digs this year,
Jess Grabowski now has 1,327 career digs which puts her sixth all-time in school history, just two digs behind Leanne Felsing who is in fifth.
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.
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.
