14th-Ranked Muskies set to battle Wittenberg in the first round of the NCAA Division lll Volleyball Tournament

The 14th-ranked Muskingum volleyball team received an at-large bid to the NCAA Division III Volleyball Tournament on Monday. The Muskies will travel to Grand Rapids, Michigan Regional, to play the Wittenberg Tigers on Thursday, November 14. The start time is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. The contest will feature live stats and video at fightingmuskies.com. The winner of the match will advance to the semifinals of the regional on Friday at 5:30 p.m. and face the winner of the Hope/Texas-Dallas match. Click here for the official regional web site.

The Last Time

The then 11th-ranked Muskies defeated the then 22nd-ranked Wittenberg Tigers on Saturday, October 5 in the Anne C. Steele Center, 3-1 (25-15, 25-27, 25-22, 25-12). The victory marked the third time that the Muskies beat a ranked team this season.

As a team, Muskingum notched 52 kills, 49 assists, and 79 digs. Junior Brooke Fatheree registered her 1,000th career dig. Fatheree directed the Muskies with 21 kills on 53 attempts, notching a scorching .321 hitting percentage. She also chipped in 15 digs. Junior Brynn Guist amassed 10 kills, while junior Maddie McGee tallied eight. Junior Jessica Cottle anchored the Muskie backline with 18 digs. Freshman Emma Conrad dished out 13 digs, while junior Erin Dickson logged 11. Dickson controlled the Muskie offense with a game-high 42 assists.

As a team, Wittenberg tallied 44 kills, 39 assists, and 81 digs. Senior Aubrey Cox directed the Tigers with a team-high 16 kills on 37 attempts, registering a .324 hitting percentage. Junior Cora Lutz and sophomore Paige Kucinic chipped in eight kills each. Sophomore Ashley Brooks guided the Tigers with a team-best 29 assists. Brooks also locked in 12 digs and tallied two blocks. Senior Taylor Yontz secured a team-best 35 digs. Sophomore Katie Hiestand amassed 15 digs.

Matchup Breakdown

Muskingum (Roster l Schedule l Statistics)

Muskingum leads the all-time series against the Tigers, 19-14. The Muskies will be making their 10th appearance in the NCAA Tournament and first since 2008. Muskingum will enter regional play at 26-3 overall and are fresh off of claiming a share of the Ohio Athletic Conference Regular-Season Championship for the first time since 1999. 

This season, the Muskies have surrendered just 21 sets, claimed 18 straight-set victories, and recorded a 13-game winning streak. As a team, Muskingum has logged 1,426 kills, 1,296 assists, 1,926 digs, 153 service aces, and 166 total blocks. This year, the Muskies had four players who earned All-OAC accolades. Fatheree and Dickson were named First Team All-OAC honorees, while McGee received Second Team All-OAC accolades. Guist was named Honorable Mention All-OAC.

The Muskies are led by Fatheree, who has recorded 330 kills in 102 sets played, averaging 3.24 kills per set. Fatheree has registered 390 digs, 59 assists, and 31 total blocks this year. This season, Fatheree locked in her 1,000th career dig, 1000th career kill, and moved to fifth all-time in career kills at Muskingum with a total of 1,081. Dickson has secured a team-best 901 assists in 96 sets played, ranking fourth in the OAC with 9.39 assists per set. Dickson is currently fourth all-time in career assists at Muskingum with a total of 2,870 assists.

Cottle directs the Muskie defense with a team-high 504 digs, ranking fourth in the league with 4.99 digs per set. Cottle recorded her 1000th career dig against Hiram this year. McGee is second on the team in kills (293), kills per set (3.12), and points per set (3.7). Guist has recorded 247 kills, while junior Jada Briggs has dished out a career-high 171 kills. Guist has logged a team-best 76 blocks on the year, averaging 0.78 blocks per set.

Wittenberg (Roster l Schedule l Statistics)

Wittenberg holds a 49-23 record all-time at the NCAA postseason play. The Tigers claimed their 14th North Coast Athletic Conference regular-season title this season.

This season, the Tigers have claimed 11 straight-set victories and recorded a five-game winning streak. As a team, Wittenberg has secured 1,122 kills, 1,049 assists, 1,677 digs, 136 service aces, and 158 total blocks. Wittenberg also had four players that were awarded All-NCAC accolades. Cox, Hiestand, and Yontz were named First Team All-NCAC, while Brooks was named Honorable Mention All-NCAC. Yountz was also named the Libero of the Year for her outstanding performance this season.

Hiestand guides the Tigers with a team-best 292 kills in 84 sets played, averaging 3.48 kills per set. Hiestand has also registered 302 digs, tallied 30 total blocks, and locked in a team-best 327.5 points on the year. Kucinic has tallied 184 kills (2.16 kills per set), while Cox has amassed 169 kills (2.41 kills per set). Brooks directs the Wittenberg offense with a team-best 576 assists, averaging 6.55 assists per set. Brooks has tallied 61 kills, 10 service aces, and 91 digs this season. Senior Sarah Auble is second on the team with 291 assists in 64 sets played, averaging 4.55 assists per set.

Yontz anchors the Wittenberg defense with a team-best 513 digs, averaging 5.70 digs per set. Junior Lexie Weithman is third on the team in digs (217) and digs per set (2.41). Cox has secured a team-best 60 total blocks on the year, averaging 0.86 blocks per set. Hancock has notched 58 total blocks in 91 sets played, averaging 0.64 blocks per set.