MILWAUKEE, Wis. - The Milwaukee volleyball team returns to the Klotsche Center this weekend looking to get back on track after some tough matches last week. The Panthers begin with Cleveland State on Friday, October 7 at 6:00 pm for OHOW Night and Health Care Heroes Appreciation. MKE will then host Oakland on Saturday at 4:00 pm for Panther Family Weekend.
 
Both matches will be carried on ESPN+ with Matt Menzl on the call. Live stats will also be available for the Horizon League contests. All links can be found on MKEPanthers.com.
 
SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
Cleveland State opened the Horizon League schedule 1-2 but picked up a pair of victories against Robert Morris and Oakland to improve to 3-2 heading into this week. The Vikings' defense has been strong this season, ranking second in the league in blocks per set (2.43) and fifth in digs (15.31).
 
Freshman Laken Voss has been outstanding for CSU, leading the team and ranking fourth in the league with 3.38 kills per set (196 total). Audrey McConihe paces the way defensively, leading the team with 4.05 digs per set.
 
Oakland enters the week 2-3 in Horizon League play with wins over Robert Morris and Youngstown State. First-year head coach Krista Rice guided the Golden Grizzlies to a 4-8 mark in non-conference action.
 
Redshirt sophomore outside hitter Patti Cesarini has shouldered the load for the offense, totaling 233 kills this season. Cesarini has also totaled 166 digs which ranks second on the team. Emily Wichmann leads the back line with 5.02 digs per set, good enough for second in the Horizon League.
 
SERIES HISTORY
The Panthers have dominated the all-time series with Cleveland State 48-20 and have won five of the past six contests against the Vikings. Last year, MKE earned a pair of 3-0 sweeps over CSU. At home, the Panthers own a 25-7 record against the Vikings.
 
Milwaukee has earned four consecutive sweeps against Oakland dating back to 2020 and improves to 11-9 against the Golden Grizzlies. MKE is 7-3 on its home court against Oakland.
 
YEAR 50
This year marks the 50th season of Milwaukee volleyball. Susie Johnson has been on the bench for more than half that time, spending 10 seasons as an assistant coach and embarking on her 16th at the helm this year. Johnson is just 17 victories away from surpassing Kathy Litzau for the most NCAA Division I wins in program history (272).
 
As a program since inception in 1973, the Panthers have claimed 14 league championships and have been to 10 NCAA Tournaments. Milwaukee volleyball also has 21 Bud K. Haidet Hall of Famers, 12 All-Americans, 11 league players of the year, and much more in its history.
 
HOME SWEET HOME
Milwaukee has seen plenty of success on its home floor, totaling a 268-112 (.706) record at the Klotsche Center since 1990. Last year, the Panthers finished 9-0 against league opponents at home, their 11th time going undefeated against the league in MKE. In total, the Panthers are 165-47 against league opponents at the Klotsche Center since 1990.
 
PUTTIN' UP NUMBERS
Ari Miller continues to lead the Panthers, leading the team in kills per set (3.90), attack percentage (.387), blocks per set (1.62), and points per set (5.17) in Horizon League play. Those numbers also put her in the top three of each category in the league.
 
Miller has tallied at least 10 kills in eight straight matches and has recorded at least six blocks on six occasions. 
 
The junior currently ranks 48th in the nation in total blocks with 71.
 
STEPPING UP THE D
Kara Erdmann has been solid for the Panthers' defense in her freshman season, ranking fourth on the team with 92 digs. Erdmann totaled nine digs on two separate occasions before racking up a career-high on Saturday. She led all players with 18 digs against Northern Kentucky.
 
MAKING IMMEDIATE IMPACT
Natalie Schmitz has wasted no time contributing in her first year for the black and gold. The freshman ranks third on the team with 152 kills (2.41 per set).
 
Fellow freshman Josie Johnson has helped control the offense at the setter position. Johnson has dished up 265 assists and has added 87 digs and eight aces, which ranks third on the team.
 
Kara Erdmann currently ranks fourth with 92 digs.
 
Czhen Beneby has so made an impact, totaling 86 kills and 46 blocks in her first season with the black and gold.
 
A GRAND MILESTONE
On September 17 against San Jose State, junior Ari Miller put away 13 kills which put her over 1,000 for her career. Miller became the 15th player in program history to reach the milestone.
 
Additionally, Miller currently ranks sixth in career kills per set (3.16) and first in attack percentage (.336).
 
PRESEASON POLL
The Panthers picked up four first-place votes and 93 total poll points as they were predicted to finish second in this year's Horizon League preseason poll. MKE was edged by Northern Kentucky, who earned six first-place votes and 96 poll points. Wright State was picked third (78 points) followed by Green Bay (69) to round out the top four.
 
ALL-TOURNAMENT HONORS
Bri Geurts was named to the USC Trojan Challenge All-Tournament team over the weekend thanks to a pair of solid outings against New Mexico State and San Jose State.
 
Geurts put away 11 kills and added four digs and two blocks against the Aggies and followed with a 10-kill performance against the Spartans, hitting .368. 
 
At the Purdue Reamer Club Xtra Special from September 2-3, Ari Miller earned All-Tourney honors after hitting .315 with 39 kills (3.0 per set) and 15 blocks . The junior recorded at least 12 kills in all three matches, opening with 14 kills and a .364 attack percentage against (RV) Utah. That afternoon, she helped the Panthers to a win over Bradley, totaling 12 kills and six blocks. On Saturday, Miller put away 13 kills against No. 11 Purdue.
 
NO SLOUCH IN NON-CONFERENCE
Head Coach Susie Johnson has put together one of the toughest non-conference schedules in program history and that continues in California. The Panthers already have two ranked matches under their belts and on Friday, MKE will face its third team that is receiving votes in the top-25 poll.
 
The last time the Panthers saw at least two ranked opponents in a single season was 2014 when MKE took on No. 19 Minnesota and No. 25 Michigan State.
 
PANTHER DEBUTS
All 13 active Panthers saw the floor during the opening weekend of play with six new faces making their debut for the black and gold. Natalie Schmitz put away 20 kills, averaging 1.82 per set while Czhen Beneby totaled 14 kills and seven blocks. Rachel Scott recorded five kills, four digs, and three blocks in nine sets played. Josie Johnson saw action in all 11 sets and racked up 36 assists and 13 digs. Maddie Moan (one block) and Kara Erdmann (eight digs) also made their debut for MKE.
 
Miller joined an elite group of just 11 other Panthers in program history with her AVCA Honorable Mention All-American accolade. It's the most recent All-American honor for the Panthers since Rachel Neuberger and Kerri Schuh was named in 2011.
 
NEW FACES
Head Coach Susie Johnson lost six players to graduation from one year ago but brought plenty of new faces ready make an impact. Transfers Czhen Beneby (Virginia) and Lakyn Graves (Omaha) have seen action at the college level while five new freshmen will get their first shot at this level. Kara Erdmann, Josie Johnson, Maddie Moan, Natalie Schmitz, and Rachel Scott will all look for playing time this fall.
 
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 $9.99 a month (or $99.99 per year) and cancel at any time.
 
For road games, visit MKEPanthers.com for live coverage links.
 
UP NEXT
The Panthers take on Green Bay on October 14 before returning to the Klotsche Center on October 18 to host IUPUI for Panthertoberfest.