The Malone University volleyball team will head off to Nashville, Tennessee and Owensboro, Kentucky this weekend to take on Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) West Division foes Trevecca Nazarene University and Kentucky Wesleyan College in a pair of road matches. The Pioneers lost to both schools at home last season, but bounced back to eliminate Kentucky Wesleyan in the first round of the 2016 G-MAC Championship. Both matches will be broadcasted on the Great Midwest Digital Network.
 

Matches (9/15) Malone at Trevecca – 7:00pm ET (6:00pm CT) Live video/stats: portal.stretchinternet.com/trevecca   (9/16) Malone at Kentucky Wesleyan – 2:00pm ET (1:00 pm CT) Live video/stats:portal.stretchinternet.com/kwc

Malone Notes 

• The Pioneers enter the weekend looking to improve on their 5-4 record that includes a 1-4 mark in their last five matches.
• The Pioneers have struggled against the attack in the early going, allowing the most kills (13.33 k/s) of any team in the G-MAC.
• The Malone defense has, however, allowed the fewest service aces (28) of any team in the conference. Malone also ranks third in the G-MAC in blocks (2.05 b/s).
• Malone is one of just two teams in the conference with four players, Mallory Adams (2.79), Veronica Gehring (2.66), Faith Lau (2.29), and Rachel Santos (2.06), averaging better than two kills per set. Santos led the Pioneers with 11 kills in their loss to Walsh on Tuesday.
• In addition to leading the team in kills this season, Adams leads the team in aces (12) and blocks (34) and is 3rd in digs (2.21d/s). She is the only player in the country with 90 kills, 60 digs, and 30 blocks.
• Setter Cathryn Miller leads the team with 242 assists (7.56 a/s) and is second on the team with 82 digs (2.56 d/s).
• Libero Maggie Hamrock leads the squad with 126 digs (3.82 d/s). Brooklyn Sullivan is second on the team with 29 blocks (0.91 b/s).
• All three matches against Trevecca and Kentucky Wesleyan went to five sets in 2016. Malone posted 19 blocks against KWC in the G-MAC Quarterfinal, the most by a team in G-MAC history.

Trevecca Notes (Roster | Schedule | Stats)

• The Trojans enter Friday's contest just 3-7 on the young season, but have faced one of the toughest schedules in the country. The seven teams that TNU has lost to are a combined 37-8.
• Freshman middle hitter Madison Clements leads the team with 60 kills and ranks 4th in the G-MAC with a .326 hitting percentage.
• Trevecca topped Malone in five sets in their only meeting last season. The Trojans finished that match with 95 digs, the most by a Malone opponent in 2016.

Kentucky Wesleyan Notes (Roster | Schedule | Stats)

• The Panthers (5-4) enter the weekend on a five-matching winning streak, including a five-set victory over Trevecca Nazarene on Tuesday.
• Freshman middle hitter Danielle Brouillette leads the team with 57 kills and leads the conference with a .378 attacking percentage.
• Junior libero Nicole Venema is 8th in the G-MAC in digs (4.33 d/s).
• Outside hitter Audrey Baysinger led KWC with 15 kills against Malone in the first match last season. She then tied the 2016 G-MAC single-season high with eight aces vs. Malone in the G-MAC Quarterfinal.

Looking Ahead
Malone will be back on the road next weekend with three more G-MAC matches at Davis & Elkins (9/21), Alderson Broaddus (9/22), and Ohio Valley (9/23).