COMING UP: at College of Idaho, Friday, 5 p.m.; at No. 3 Eastern Oregon, Saturday, 5 p.m.

COMPLETE WEEKLY MEDIA NOTEBOOK
 
GAME DAY INFORMATION: Pay-per-view video (for $10.60 each match) through HUDL will be available for fans unable to make the trip to Caldwell and La Grande – with Friday video through College of Idaho's HUDL page and Saturday night through Eastern Oregon's HUDL page. Live Stats for both matches will be available through OIT's SIDEARM Stats Link.
 
SCHEDULE UPDATES: Updated start times for three road matches have been determined (to accommodate staffing issues at road venues) – as Saturday's game at Eastern Oregon is set for a 5 p.m. start, the Oct. 25 match at Corban is now set for 7 p.m., with the Oct. 26 match at Bushnell now scheduled for a 5 p.m. start.
 
MULTIMEDIA: All photos from the 2024 season will be posted online via the OIT Volleyball Flickr Page, while game highlight clips will be posted online via the OIT Volleyball You Tube Channel.
 
OPPONENT PREVIEW – COLLEGE OF IDAHO: The second half of the conference schedule opens in Idaho on Friday night, as the Lady Owls make the long trip to College of Idaho. The Coyotes (10-9, 6-5 CCC) head into the match-up winning 3-of-4 – with C of I posting a 2-6 record in 5-set matches (1-3 in CCC 5-set matches), but topped Tech in five sets in September. The Yotes attack averages 12.5 kills a set, behind the play of 6-rotation outside Haley McUne (2.53 k/s, 3.20 d/s, 29 aces), outside Janae Rayborn (1.62 k/s, 2.35 d/s), opposite hitter Alexa Wheeler (2.17 k/s, 1.37 b/s) and middle Shelby Nichol (2.14 k/s, 1.00 b/s). Setters Savannah Hutchins (5.23 a/s, 2.00 d/s) and Capri Salmon (4.92 a/s, 1.65 d/s) direct the attack, with Althea Sandoval (4.29 d/s) handling libero duties. C of I holds a 48-13 all-time series lead on Tech, but the Owls have posted wins in four of the last five meetings in Caldwell.
 
OPPONENT PREVIEW – EASTERN OREGON: The long road swing finally ends Saturday at Eastern Oregon, as the No. 3-ranked Mountaineers (18-1, 10-1) head into the weekend on a 9-game win streak – with their lone loss of 2024 last month at Southern Oregon. Eastern averages 13.5 kills a set and hits at a .245 clip – as the attack is focused on a trio of dangerous hitters in opposite Keira Vaughn (3.48 k/s, 0.46 b/s), middle Kiauna Mack (2.42 k/s, 1.72 b/s) and outside Ashton Bales (2.37 k/s, 0.94 b/s) – with Mack recording 16 kills and nine blocks in the September win over OIT. Setters Hannah Ledgerwood (4.82 a/s, 1.68 d/s, 33 aces) and Alexis McMurtrey (5.74 a/s, 2.03 d/s) are among the top passers in the CCC, with libero Hailey Arritola (4.51 d/s, 23 aces) winning back-to-back CCC Defensive Player of the Week honors during the Mounties current run. EOU holds a 29-26 all-time series lead with Tech, having won 6-in-a-row and 14-of-15 matches in the recent series.
 
AGAINST THE TOP-25: OIT looks to end a 15-match losing streak against Top-25 teams on Saturday – including four losses to ranked foes in 2024. The Owls last win against a Top-25 team was a 4-set win over No. 17-ranked Southern Oregon in 2022, with their last Top-10 win a 5-set win over No. 10-Eastern Oregon in 2015.
 
 
GRACE LEADS ATTACK: The Owls turned to Molly Grace to power the attack – averaging over six kills per set in the 3-match week. Following a 9-kill, 7-dig effort at SOU, Grace dominated the Portland schools, combining for 34 kills in 65 swings with just one error (.508 hitting percentage) – including 20 kills in the win at Multnomah. The senior pushed her all-time kills total to 924, just 76 kills away from becoming the fifth OIT player with 1,000-or-more career kills.
 
MIDDLES REMAIN ACTIVE: Middle blockers have become a key asset in the offense, with Aleksen Thayer, Kate Hicks and Tiana Barrett all providing key moments in the three matches. Thayer combined for 14 kills and six blocks on the trip – including eight kills vs. Warner Pacific – becoming the lone player to record at least one block in all 20 matches. Hicks led the middles with six kills and two blocks at SOU, while Barrett was near-perfect in Portland, combining for 14 kills in 21 swings (without an error), including a career-high eight kills at Multnomah.
 
DOUBLE-DOUBLES FOR BOYD: The Tech offense continues to roll with one setter, as Lucy Boyd has directed the attack to a .240 or better hitting percentage in five of the last seven matches – including both outings in Portland. The freshman combined for 11 kills, 95 assists and 31 digs over the week – including 31 assists and 12 digs at Southern Oregon and 37 assists and 12 digs at Multnomah. Boyd continues to lead the CCC in assists per set (7.04).
 
FROM THE BACK ROW: The Owls two defensive specialists were key during the three-match week, as Kaley Whalen and Abigail Sorensen climbed the all-time leaderboard. Whalen combined for 51 digs during the weekend, including 22 digs at Multnomah – her sixth match this season with 20-or-more digs – moving past the 1,100-dig mark for her OIT career. Sorensen had 24 total digs, including 11 at Multnomah – her tenth match with double-digit digs in 2024 – surpassing the 500-dig mark in a Lady Owl uniform.
 
AROUND THE LEAGUE:  The Cascade Conference has a virtual 3-way tie atop the standings heading into the second half of the league schedule – as Southern Oregon (11-1), Corban (10-1) and Eastern Oregon (10-1) all sit with one loss. Tech heads into the second half in a tie for seventh-place with Walla Walla (5-7), two games clear of Evergreen State (3-8) for the final postseason spot. This week, along with SOU and OIT traveling to C of I and Eastern, Northwest and Evergreen State head to Walla Walla and Lewis-Clark State, while Corban and Bushnell host Warner Pacific and Multnomah.
 
LEAGUE LEADERS:  As a team, the Lady Owls lead the CCC in digs per set (16.89), ranking No. 3 in blocks per set (2.49), No. 4 in hitting percentage (.204), No. 5 in aces per set (1.67) and No. 7 in both kills per set (12.30) and assists per set (11.67). Individually, Lucy Boyd leads the league in assists per set (7.04), Aleksen Thayer is No. 3 in blocks per set (1.31), Kaley Whalen ranks No.  3 in digs per set (4.96), Molly Grace is No. 5 in kills per set (3.39) and No. 8 in aces per set (0.40), with Kate Hicks No. 8 in blocks per set (1.00).
 
RECORD BOOK: Six players are currently ranked in the Top-25 of the OIT career record book – with Kate Hicks No. 3 in blocks (313) – 15 blocks away from the all-time school record, Kaley Whalen is No. 7 in digs (1,1109) and No. 22 in assists (173), Molly Grace is No. 7 in kills (924) and No. 25 in digs (567), Paige Tevelde is No. 9 in assists (1,361), Lucy Boyd is No. 15 in assists (493), with Aleksen Thayer No. 18 in blocks (174). Abigail Sorensen (507) is just outside the Top-25 in digs.
 
LOOKING AHEAD: The Lady Owls return home next weekend to host Walla Walla on Friday afternoon (Oct. 18 | 2 p.m.) and Lewis-Clark State (Oct. 19 | 4 p.m.)