COMING UP: vs. No. 4-ranked Corban, Friday, 7 p.m.; vs. Bushnell, Saturday, 6 p.m.

COMPLETE WEEKLY INTERACTIVE MEDIA NOTEBOOK
 
GAMEDAY INFORMATION: Live Video of both weekend matches at Danny Miles Court will be available online via the Owls Sports Network, with Mike Safford on the call. Both matches will also have Live Stats via OIT's SIDEARM Stat Portal. For those headed to the games, general admission tickets are available at the gate for $8.00.
 
NOTE SATURDAY GAME TIME: Due to OIT hosting a soccer doubleheader prior to the start of the Saturday volleyball match, start time for the evening game has been pushed back an hour, with first serve now at 6 p.m.
 
MULTIMEDIA: All photos from the 2023 season will be posted online via the OIT Volleyball Flickr Page, while highlight clips and interviews will be posted online via the new OIT Volleyball You Tube Channel.
 
OPPONENT PREVIEW – CORBAN: The weekend opens against one of the premier teams in the NAIA, as defending national runner-up Corban brings a 10-match win streak to Klamath. The Warriors (13-2, 7-0 CCC) have dropped just one set in CCC play and own wins this season over Top-10 foes Midland and Missouri Baptist. All-American Rylee Troutman (4.02 k/s, 2.40 d/s) headlines an offense that hits at a .283 percentage, joined by Makayla Roginski (2.59 k/s, 0.80 b/s) and Emma Bischoff (1.67 k/s, 1.24 b/s). Setters Abby Guindy (6.10 k/s, 1.67 d/s) and Nadeiah Howard (4.17 a/s, 1.44 d/s) orchestrate the attack, with libero Marissa Uehara (3.46 d/s, 17 aces) the top defender.
 
HISTORY VS. THE WARRIORS: The Owls are looking to buck the recent trend against Corban, as the Warriors have won 15 of the last 16 meetings dating back to 2015. Friday's match is the 57th meeting since 1998, with Corban holding a 30-26 series edge, but OIT holds a slim 13-12 edge in the Basin.
 
AGAINST THE TOP-25: Friday's match marks the fifth match-up this season against a team in the Top-25 poll (or receiving votes) – as Tech previously met Jessup, Vanguard, Benedictine Mesa and Eastern Oregon. OIT's last win against a Top-25 foe was last season, a win over No. 19-ranked Southern Oregon.
 
OPPONENT PREVIEW – BUSHNELL: The backend of the weekend twinbill has Bushnell in town, as the Beacons (8-3, 6-1) enter play riding a 4-match win streak. Former Tech coach, Jason Corwin, has a squad that excels at the net (2.4 blocks per set) and at the service line (1.9 aces per set). A balanced offense is led by Maddy Ladd (2.59 k/s, 0.82 b/s), Leah Agost (2.42 k/s, 1.11 d/s), Halle Neumann (2.19 k/s, 0.76 b/s) and Amyah Semau (2.05 k/s, 2.58 d/s), with setters Peyton Ritchie (5.38 a/s) and Katie Belitz (4.64 a/s), along with libero Bella Parque (5.24 d/s, 17 aces) key to the Beacons success.
 
HISTORY VS. THE BEACONS: OIT holds a 19-15 series edge on Bushnell, but the two teams have split the last 16 matches, dating back to 2015. Tech has a 12-6 record against the Beacons at Danny Miles Court, but it was BU that rallied from a 2-set deficit last season to top the Owls in Klamath.
 
PROTECTING THE HOME COURT: Tech returns home for a pair of matches at Danny Miles Court, posting a 2-1 home record in 2023. Since volleyball returned as a varsity sport in 1998, OIT has a 164-101 record on their home floor.
 
GRACE PACES THE ATTACK: Saturday was a big night for junior Molly Grace, as the outside hitter became the 14th OIT player in program history to crack the 20-kill mark in the win over Multnomah. Grace finished with 20 kills – the ninth player to post 20-or-more kills in a 4-set match. For the week, Grace hit at a stellar .398 percentage, improving her season attack percentage to .271 – while ranking among the Top-5 in the league in kills per set.
 
AT THE PINS: Outside hitter Savanna Sterck recorded her ninth match with 10-or-more kills at Warner Pacific, recording 17 kills and four blocks in the 3-set win, adding eight kills at Multnomah. Opposite hitter Willow Jacobson continued her steady play, posting eight kills at WPU, adding seven kills and four blocks at MU.
 
SERVING / PASSING: A key to the road sweep was the serve and pass game, as the Lady Owls setters and back row players had quality trips. Paige Tevelde was key against Multnomah, recording a slash line of seven kills, 29 assists and six digs, with Autumn Williams adding three aces – pushing her season total to 19. Libero Kaley Whalen extended her string of double-digit dig matches to seven, including a 22-dig effort at MU, while Abigail Sorensen logged a career-high 17 digs in the victory, while recording two aces in both matches – pushing her team lead in the category to 21 aces.
 
ON THE BLOCK: The Owls continue to get key production at the net, led by middle Kate Hicks, who leads the team with 52 total blocks on the season. Hicks has recorded 4-or-more blocks in 4-straight games, averaging 1.02 blocks per set, while also averaging seven kills per match during the stretch. Freshman Aleksen Thayer is the lone player on the team with a block in every match, ranking second on the squad with 39 blocks – recording multiple blocks in 5-straight outings.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS: As a team, the Lady Owls rank No. 5 in the CCC in hitting percentage (.175), No. 6 in kills per set (11.12), blocks per set (1.85) and assists per set (10.12), No. 7 in aces per set (1.65) and No. 8 in digs per set (14.44). Individually, Molly Grace is No. 3 in kills per set (3.30), Kaley Whalen is No. 5 in digs per set (4.19), Abigail Sorensen is No. 6 in aces per set (0.40), Kate Hicks is No. 7 in blocks per set (1.02), Savanna Sterck is No. 8 in kills per set (2.76) and Autumn Williams ranks No. 9 in aces per set (0.37).
 
AROUND THE CONFERENCE: Corban took over sole possession of first-place in the CCC standings with a road sweep at Walla Walla and LC State, while Eastern Oregon lost their first match of the season – a 5-set marathon setback at Northwest. EOU, Southern Oregon and Bushnell all sit one-game back in the standings heading into the weekend – as WWU and LC travel to EOU and College of Idaho, Northwest and Evergreen head to Warner Pacific and Multnomah, with Corban and Bushnell making the trip to OIT and SOU.
 
RECORD BOOK: Four OIT players currently rank among the Top-25 in the all-time career record book – as Paige Tevelde leads the group, ranking No. 12 in assists (849). Brooke Cassidy is No. 14 in assists (648) and No. 15 in aces (76), Kate Hicks is No. 15 in blocks (15), with Molly Grace No. 25 in kills (502).
 
NEXT WEEK: The Lady Owls close out the first half of the conference season with a trip to Evergreen State (Sept. 29) and Northwest (Sept. 30).
 
 
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