Complete PDF Notes
Upcoming in Gray Wolves Volleyball: Postseason play begins for Lourdes University this weekend as the Gray Wolves travel to Chandler, Ariz. for the NAIA Independent Group tournament, a double elimination event.  The Gray Wolves face UC Merced in the opening round on Friday evening before battling either host Benedictine-Mesa or Siena Heights in match two.  The tournament continues Saturday, with the champion being crowned later that evening.

Head Coach Greg Reitz: In his sixth season both on the Lourdes bench, and overall coaching men's volleyball, Greg Reitz has a 109-49 (.690) 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 won the only meeting against UC Merced, a straight sets victory on March 28, 2017 at the Ebeid Recreation Center.  The Gray Wolves defeated Benedictine-Mesa in the only previous match between the two teams, 3-1, on Feb. 4, 2017 in Des Moines, Iowa.  Lourdes is 18-0 all-time against Siena Heights in a series that dates back to Feb. 14, 2012.  The Gray Wolves won both meetings with the Saints this season in four sets, the most recent coming on March 3, 2017.  The two schools have never met on a neutral court.
 
Wrapping Up Last Week: Lourdes closed out the 2017 regular season on Tuesday, March 28, with a 25-14, 25-20, 25-12 victory at home against UC Merced.  Evan Gebert tallied 15 kills and hit .583 in the victory while Ryan Ferkel handed out 43 assists in the three sets.  CJ Rilveria posted a match-high 12 digs.

Scouting UC Merced: The Bobcats enter the tournament having lost their final regular season contest in five sets to Benedictine-Mesa on Sunday afternoon.  Cole Smith leads the Bobcats with 185 kills and 14 service aces on the season.  Matt Pelfini has handed out 558 assists while Matthew Lostetter leads the squad with 100 digs.  Jacob Shelton leads UC Merced with 56 blocks.

Scouting Siena Heights: The Saints enter the tournament having won two straight following a three-set win over Saint Xavier last Saturday.  Matthew Dugan leads Siena Heights with 259 kills while Keegan Crawford has handed out 771 assists.  Emilier DeJesus has a team-high 40 service aces and 297 digs.  Julian Ayers leads the Saints with 74 blocks.

Scouting Benedictine-Mesa: The Redhawks enter postseason having dropped a straight sets match to Concordia (Calif.) on Wednesday night.  Logan Adcock leads Benedictine-Mesa with 318 kills while hitting .301.  Jaron Jones has handed out 910 assists and has a team-high 19 service aces.  Jesus Izaguirre has tallied a team-leading 265 digs while Bobby Henige has registered 81 blocks.

Conference Tournament History: Lourdes is 8-3 all-time in conference tournament play, having participated in the MAMVIC East Conference (2012-2013), Great Lakes Conference (2014-2015), and Mideast Conference (2016).  The Gray Wolves captured the 2014 GLC and 2016 MEC tournament titles.  

Hitting Percentage a Key to Success: Lourdes has not won a match this season when hitting a lower percentage offensively than its opponents.  The Gray Wolves' .263 hitting mark as a team ranks ninth nationally.

Nearing 1,000: CJ Rilveria enters the tournament needing just 48 more digs for 1,000 over his four-year career.  With 307 digs this season, he leads all of NAIA men's volleyball averaging 3.74 digs per set in 2017.  He is 45 digs shy of matching his career high of 352 digs set last season.

Swinging With Authority: Ryan Maune has hit .400 or higher in 17 of the Gray Wolves' 23 matches this season. His .431 hitting percentage overall ranks sixth among all NAIA players. Maune leads Lourdes with 232 kills on the year (2.80/set).

Perfection Against Non-Ranked Foes: Lourdes has not dropped a match in the last two seasons against a team that has not been ranked in the NAIA top-10 poll.  In fact, the Gray Wolves' last defeat to an unranked opponent was in the Great Lakes Conference tournament championship match against Cardinal Stritch on March 28, 2015.

Playing on the Road or at Neutral Sites: Lourdes has had success away from home throughout the years.  The Gray Wolves are 26-21 all-time in neutral site matches, including 2-2 against this year.  Lourdes opens with a neutral site contest against UC Merced, and matches against Siena Heights would also fall in this category.  The Gray Wolves have been even better all-time on the road, as a match with Benedictine-Mesa would be, going 41-18 in program history.

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-Mesa, Hope International, and UC Merced, which comprise the other half of the independent group.

This and That: Ryan Maune is the lone Gray Wolf to appear in all 83 sets this season ... Lourdes has not won a five-set match since at Missouri Valley on Feb. 26, 2016 ... Zachary Hawkins is seven kills shy of 500 for his career at Lourdes  ... Maune needs five kills to reach 500.