University of Chicago Maroons (7-1 overall)
at Lakeland University Muskies (1-8 overall)
Tuesday, September 10, 2024 7 p.m.
Woltzen Gymnasium
Lakeland/Chicago Match Notes PDF
The Lakeland University women's volleyball team is home for the first time this season but faces another strong opponent when the University of Chicago visits Tuesday night at 7 p.m. at the Moose & Dona Woltzen Gymnasium.
Broadcast Information
Live video:
http://www.lakelandmuskies.com/muskieslive.
Live statistics:
https://static.lakelandmuskies.com/custompages/stats/wvb/LS/xlive.htm
Series history: 7th meeting, Chicago leads 5-1
Lakeland and the University of Chicago have met six times before but have not played since exactly 13 years earlier, when the Maroons swept the Muskies in three sets at the UW-Oshkosh Pizza Hut Classic. Lakeland's lone win over Chicago was a three-set sweep in 2007 at a tournament hosted by Wheaton College in Wheaton, Ill. All six previous matchups took place between 2004-11, and all six have been at neutral sites in tournaments. Tonight marks the first time the teams have played on one of their home courts, and this match marks the first of a two-year home-and-home series, with the Muskies scheduled to play at Chicago in 2025.
Lakeland last time out: Lost to North Central (Ill.) and Whitworth (Wash.) 3-0 Saturday
The Muskies finished a tough weekend at the UW-Oshkosh Marty Petersen Invitational, going winless in three matches including a pair of sweeps Saturday. Lakeland was defeated by North Central 25-23, 25-17, 25-6 and then was turned back by a 25-20, 25-18, 25-10 score by Whitworth.
Susana Stevens posted nine kills in the first match and
Ryan Figi notched 17 digs in the second match against the Pirates.
Lakeland is off to a 1-8 start against a typically tough non-conference schedule. The Muskies' have played their first nine matches away from home and the combined record of the eight teams Lakeland has lost to is 38-20. The Muskies' strength of schedule ranks 34th of 434 NCAA Division III teams according to the Massey Ratings.
Chicago last time out: Lost to #17 Millikin (Ill.) 3-1 Saturday
The Maroons lost for the first time this season as nationally ranked Millikin rebounded from a first-set loss to win 24-26, 25-23, 25-22, 25-17 in the Gargoyle Classic hosted by the University of Chicago. Amelia Gibbs finished with 13 kills and a .458 hitting percentage as the Maroons saw their seven-match winning streak snapped.
Chicago is a traditional D-III power coming off a down year, an 11-16 overall mark that was the program's first losing record since 2007. The Marrons have reloaded with a roster including a pair of NCAA Division I transfers in Amelia Gibbs (Dartmouth) and Peyton Minyard (Boston College) and the 7-1 start is their best since 2019. Chicago has been receiving votes in the AVCA/NCAA Division III Top 25 Poll the last two weeks.
Top 10 in sight: Lakeland outside hitter
Susana Stevens has 102 kills through nine matches this season, and the senior is moving up the Muskies' career list for kills. Stevens is up to 883 kills for her career, and in her last match against Whitworth passed Allison Davis (881 kills from 2008-11) for 12th all-time. Up next is Katie Freitag, who is 11th with 911 career kills, and Heidi Kramer is in 10th with 924 kills. Stevens needs 117 kills to become the ninth player in program history to record at least 1,000 kills.
