ROCHESTER, Mich. — The Oakland University volleyball program commences Horizon League play with a pair of road matchups. OU will take on Youngstown State on Friday, Sept. 24 at 6 p.m. and Robert Morris on Saturday, Sept. 25 at 4 p.m. ESPN+ will broadcast Friday's clash at YSU. Live stats will be provided for both matches.
WEEKEND INFORMATION
September 24 at Youngstown State | 6 p.m. |
Watch |
Live Stats
September 25 at Robert Morris | 4 p.m. |
Live Stats
THOUGHTS FROM COACH BEAM
"I believe that our team has been tested and has grown a lot through the tournament phase. With that in mind, we are all eager to get the Horizon League regular season underway. Both Youngstown State and Robert Morris will challenge us to play our best. We will have to be sharp, particularly on the road, as we open the campaign."
SCOUTING THE PENGUINS
Youngstown State is 3-8 with victories over Saint Francis (Pa.), North Dakota, and Duquesne. The Penguins recently snapped a five-match skid in their win against Duquesne at last weekend's Golden Flashes Invitational. As a team, YSU ranks second in the HL in digs per set (16.05) and fourth in service aces per set (1.73). Freshman outside hitter Paula Gursching holds top-20 national marks in triples-doubles (1, 4th), attacks per set (12.68, 10th), aces (23, 13th), total attacks (507, 17th), and aces per set (0.57, 20th).
ALL-TIME SERIES VS. YSU
The Golden Grizzlies have won 17-straight matches over YSU dating back to the 2013 season. Oakland swept YSU with a pair of straight-set decisions during the 2021 winter campaign. OU leads the all-time series, 17-6, as the Penguins came away with victories in the first six matches between the two programs from 1998 to 2000.
SCOUTING THE COLONIALS
Robert Morris is off to a 7-5 start to the 2021 fall campaign. Last weekend, the Colonials fell in straight-sets to UMBC and No. 20 Penn State but rebounded with a sweep against George Washington. RMU leads the country with 111 aces and ranks second in aces per set (2.36). Graduate middle blocker Emma Granger has accumulated 31 aces, which is the most in NCAA Division I. She also ranks first in the HL in blocks per set (1.09).
ALL-TIME SERIES VS. RMU
OU leads 6-2 in the overall series. The Golden Grizzlies have gone 5-0 against the Colonials since
Rob Beam took over as a head coach in 2007. Last season, OU won a pair of matches at RMU. Redshirt freshman
Patti Cesarini totaled a team-best 32 kills, averaging 4.0 per set in the series, which led to earning Horizon League Player of the Week.
WEEKEND RECAP
Oakland went 1-2 last weekend with a win against in-state foe Central Michigan and losses at Michigan State and Bowling Green. After taking down the Chippewas in five sets on Friday, the Golden Grizzlies had a quick 90-minute turnaround versus tournament host MSU. While OU led for almost the entirety of its opening set, the Spartans rallied back to win the period 26-24 and the following three sets. Against BGSU, the Falcons held the momentum from start to finish, resulting in a straight-set loss.
DIGS LEADER
Fifth-year libero
Lindsay Wightman made history by breaking Oakland's record in career digs last weekend. Wightman came into Friday's match against CMU needing 32 digs to break the career mark, previously held by Lauren Duquette (2005-08) with 1,841 career digs. The Lake Orion, Mich., native did just that, as she totaled a match-high 32 digs to go along with six assists and one service ace. The dig total marked her 10th career match with 30-plus in the category.
CONFERENCE MARKS
As a team, the Golden Grizzlies rank second among Horizon League teams with a .228 hitting percentage. OU is close behind in third in blocks per set (2.10) and total blocks (86.0). Individually, Wightman's 5.22 digs per set rank second in the conference and 19th nationally. Graduate senior
Jamie Walling is fifth in the HL in points per set (4.04), while another senior in
Jessica Riedl sits fifth in blocks per set (0.95).
CHASING HISTORY
Walling sits second in school history with 1,278 career kills. Two weekends ago, Walling surpassed Melissa Deatsch (2013-16), who previously ranked second with 1,244 kills. Hall of Honor inductee Meghan Bray (2009-12) leads the category with 1,578 career spikes.
1K CLUB
Junior setter
AnnaBelle Tomei became the eighth Golden Grizzly in program history to reach 1,000 career assists in Oakland's tournament-opening sweep against Penn. Needing 17 assists to reach the 1,000 assist plateau, she finished with a team-best 20. The setter totaled 548 assists in her debut season with the Golden Grizzlies, followed by 315 assists in her sophomore campaign and 232 assists through 11 matches this season.
LET'S GO STREAKING
Dating back to the 2019 season, Riedl has recorded one or more blocks in 46 straight contests. She has totaled multiple blocks in all 11 matches this season, including a season-high six blocks at DePaul.
SHE CAN DO IT ALL
Junior setter
Madison Ross possesses top-five team marks in hitting percentage (.319, 1st), solo blocks (5, 1st), assists per set (3.71, 2nd), total assists (152, 2nd), block assists (21, 4th), total blocks (26.0), and blocks per set (0.63, 4th). In OU's straight-set win over Akron, she finished with a career-high seven blocks to go along with five kills on 13 swings (.385), 13 assists, and three digs.
IN THIS TOGETHER
The Golden Grizzlies bring back all 17 student-athletes on their roster from a season ago. In addition to Walling and Wightman,
Brittany Welch, Cesarini, Ross, Riedl, and Tomei appeared in every set last season.
WELCOME TO THE FAM
OU welcomes three newcomers to the program in
Emily Wichmann,
Kira Buza, and
Clarke Adams. The freshman trio arrives in Rochester from Houston, Texas (Adams), Crescent Springs, Ky. (Wichmann), and nearby Shelby Township, Mich. (Buza).
PRESEASON POLL
Oakland was picked seventh in the 2021 Horizon League preseason coaches poll, which the league's 11 head coaches voted on. Fresh off an HL regular-season title and tournament crown, Wright State was selected to win the conference with 119 points and a league-high nine first-place votes.
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FIRST FOR EVERYTHING
Last season, Wightman became the first player in program history to tab AVCA All-Region First Team honors. Wightman was voted to the 14-player All-Region Team by coaches who are AVCA members. The Lake Orion, Mich., native was one of just three individuals on the First Team from a non-Power Five program. She was the first Oakland player since Taylor Humm in 2014 (All-Region Honorable Mention) to earn All-Region honors.
MORE THAN AN ATHLETE
As a team, the Golden Grizzlies have earned the AVCA Team Academic Award for six straight years. The award honors volleyball teams with a year-long grade-point average of 3.30 on a 4.0 scale or 4.10 on a 5.0 scale. OU compiled an impressive 3.56 GPA to close out the 2020-21 academic year. Sixteen members of the Golden Grizzly volleyball program earned a GPA above 3.0, highlighted by
Haley Brown and
Katelyn Johnson, who turned in a perfect 4.0 GPA in the spring.
THAT'S OUR COACH
Head coach
Rob Beam is in his 15th season with the Golden Grizzlies. As the longest-tenured volleyball coach in school history, Beam has guided Oakland to nine winning seasons and a berth to the NCAA Volleyball Tournament in 2014. He has accumulated 213 victories, second in school history, reaching the 200-win plateau during the 2019 campaign. Most recently, Beam helped OU to a 7-9 record during the Covid-19 shortened 2021 winter season.
MEET THE STAFF
Amber Hildebrandt enters her first year as an associate coach with the Golden Grizzlies. No stranger to Rochester, Hildebrandt (then Miehlke) competed at OU from 2009-12 and later served as a volunteer assistant under Beam in 2014. In addition to her time at Oakland, she has coached at Appalachian State (2015-16, 2019-21) and Xavier (2016-17). Graduate assistant
Bekah Strange is set to go for her second season with the Black and Gold. As a four-year starter at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), Strange totaled 1,812 career digs, good for third place in school history. As a senior, she was named Atlantic 10 Libero of the Year and an AVCA All-East Region selection.
NEXT UP
Following this weekend's competition, the Golden Grizzlies will host Purdue Fort Wayne on Sept. 28, followed by a road contest at Cleveland State on Oct. 1.
