Complete PDF Notes
Upcoming in Gray Wolves Volleyball: Lourdes University, ranked fourth in the preseason NAIA national poll, opens its sixth season of men's collegiate volleyball season this week as the Gray Wolves travel to Lawrence Tech on Wednesday.  Lourdes will continue its season-opening road trip over the weekend, with stops at eighth-ranked Saint Ambrose on Friday night before concluding with a visit to seventh-ranked Clarke on Saturday afternoon.

Head Coach Greg Reitz: In his sixth season both on the Lourdes bench, and overall coaching men's volleyball, Greg Reitz has a 93-42 (.689) record at the helm of the Gray Wolves.  He was named to the MAMVIC East Coach of the Year in 2012 and the Great Lakes Conference Coach of the Year in 2014 and 2015 while earning Mideast Conference Coach of the Year honors in 2016.  Reitz is the only head coach in Lourdes program's history.

Series Notes: Lourdes leads the all-time series against Lawrence Tech 4-0 dating back to Jan. 20, 2016.  The Gray Wolves swept all four meetings against the Blue Devils last season, including the lone match played in Southfield, Mich.  Saint Ambrose holds an 8-1 series edge against Lourdes dating back to Jan. 17, 2012.  The two schools have not met since March 20, 2015, when Lourdes won its only match against Saint Ambrose, 3-0, at the Spartan Invitational.  The Gray Wolves dropped the only meeting in Davenport, Iowa, 3-0, on Feb. 15, 2013.  Clarke holds a 6-2 series edge over the Gray Wolves dating back to Feb. 17, 2012.  Last year the Crusaders won a four-set contest at Tam-o-Shanter before Lourdes responded with a three-set win in Milwaukee, Wis.  Clarke holds a 2-1 series edge in matches played in Dubuque, Iowa.
 
Wrapping Up 2016: The Gray Wolves finished the 2016 campaign with a 25-5 record overall and a perfect 6-0 mark in the Mideast Conference to win the regular season title.  The Gray Wolves also won the MEC tournament title and advanced to the NAIA National Invitational, posting a win over Park before falling to Missouri Baptist and Grand View.  Ryan Ferkel was named the MEC Player of the Year and Setter of the Year while CJ Rilveria was named the MEC Libero of the Year.  Greg Reitz was named the MEC Coach of the Year.  Ferkel, Rilveria, and Ryan Maune were named First Team All-MEC while Eric Ubior was a Second Team All-MEC pick.  

Scouting Lawrence Tech: The Blue Devils dropped their season opener at home against Trinity Christian last Saturday.  Joseph Balanda led Lawrence Tech with six kills while Gospel Sua handed out eight assists.  Jonathan Kashat tallied eight digs for the Blue Devils.  Last year Lawrence Tech finished the year with an 0-16 record.

Scouting Saint Ambrose: The Fighting Bees open the season on Wednesday at Grand View before hosting Lourdes on Friday.  Last season Saint Ambrose finished 26-9 and advanced to the NAIA National Invitational semifinals before falling to Grand View.  Austin Royer handed out 1,155 assists last season while tallying 145 digs.

Scouting Clarke: The Crusaders fell to Carthage 3-0 in their season opener last Saturday afternoon.  Clarke heads to Robert Morris (Ill.) on Tuesday and hosts Missouri Valley on Friday before entertaining Lourdes.  Isaiah Acfalle tallied a team-high 13 kills in the opener while Matt DePauw handed out 33 assists.  Joshua Phalen registered seven digs for the Crusaders.

Lourdes in Season Openers: The Gray Wolves are 4-1 all-time in their season openers.  Lourdes lost its inaugural match of the 2012 season 3-0 to #1 Saint Ambrose, but has won four straight, three via sweeps, to open seasons.  Last year the Gray Wolves posted a 3-0 triumph at Lawrence Tech.

Facing Ranked Opponents: Lourdes is 11-36 all-time against teams ranked in the top-10.  Last season the Gray Wolves posted a 3-5 mark against ranked foes.  Lourdes defeated #10 Robert Morris (Ill.), #7 Clarke, and #6 Park.  The Gray Wolves have never defeated a team ranked higher than #5.

Shifting Conferences: NAIA has reshuffled its conferences yet again heading into 2017. The Gray Wolves will play a double round-robin slate against Lawrence Tech, and Siena Heights as part of a divided independent group.  The top two teams from the three Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference schools will advance to the conference tournament against the top two teams among Benedictine at Mesa, Hope International, and UC Merced, which comprise the other half of the independent group.  The west coast will host this year's postseason event.

Lots of New Faces: Lourdes has 10 newcomers on its roster this season, including five true freshmen.  The Gray Wolves also return redshirt-freshman Zach Grennan, who sat out all of 2016.  Lourdes has just seven returnees among its eligible roster for the spring.

This and That: Zachary Hawkins' 298 career kills are most among all returnees ... CJ Rilveria has 645 career digs and 38 career service aces, most among current Gray Wolves ... Ryan Ferkel is the team's active assist leader with 1,404 ... Ryan Maune has 115 career blocks, most on the current roster.