Complete PDF Notes
Upcoming in Gray Wolves Volleyball: Nearly five months later than planned, Lourdes begins its 11th season of intercollegiate volleyball on Saturday afternoon as the Gray Wolves open the 2020 season in the spring of 2021, hosting Saint Xavier inside the Russell J. Ebeid Recreation Center.

Head Coach Greg Reitz: In his 11th season on the Lourdes bench, Greg Reitz has a 198-133 (.598) record at the helm of the Gray Wolves.  In his 11th season overall as a women's head coach, Reitz has a 218-168 (.565) career mark.  He is the only head coach in Lourdes program's history and was named WHAC Coach of the Year in 2015.

Series Notes: Lourdes and Saint Xavier have split their four previous matches 2-2 in a series that dates back to Sept. 21, 2013.  The Cougars won the last meeting between the two schools in four sets on Sept. 23, 2017 in the only previous contest played between the teams inside the Ebeid Rec Center.  

Wrapping Up 2019: Lourdes finished the 2019 season with a 14-16 record overall and a 10-10 mark in the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference.  The Gray Wolves finished seventh in the regular season standings.  Lourdes advanced to the semifinals of the WHAC tournament, downing second-seeded Aquinas in the quarterfinals before falling to third-seeded Madonna in four sets.

Scouting Saint Xavier: The Cougars are also opening their 2020 (21) season on Saturday after finishing the 2019 campaign with a 12-22 record overall and a 9-9 mark in the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference, tying for seventh place.  Saint Xavier returns 11 players from last year's squad.  Nadia Atton is the team's top returning hitter, averaging 3.60 kills per set while hitting .232.  Atton also is the top returner in digs, tallying 228 one season ago.  Cassidy Wyman handed out 169 assists last season and is the Cougars' top returnee while Alexandra Wis registered 56 blocks.

Lourdes in Season Openers: Lourdes is 6-4 all-time in season-opening matches.  The Gray Wolves have dropped three of their last four openers after falling in straight sets to 22nd-ranked Bellevue in last year's first match at the GoSarpy.com Labor Day Classic.  Lourdes last won an opener in 2018, a four-set triumph at home against Taylor.

Gray Wolves at Home: Lourdes is 9-1 all-time in home openers, including 4-0 inside the Russell J. Ebeid Recreation Center. The Gray Wolves have won seven consecutive home openers, with the lone loss coming in 2012 to 17th-ranked Madonna.  In last year's first home match, Lourdes scored a 3-2 victory over Shawnee State in the Gray Wolf Invitational.

2019 Award Winners: Kylee McBride and Alli Plasencio were both named a Second Team All Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference selection last season and return to the roster this year.  McBride led Lourdes with 318 kills (2.89/set) and hit added 198 digs (1.80/set) as a rookie while Plasencio registered 509 digs (4.63/set).  McBride was also selected to the WHAC All-Freshman Team.

In the Record Books: Alli Plasencio enters her junior season ranked sixth in program history with 693 career digs.  She is just 17 behind Jordan Kerr (2010-2011) for fifth all-time.  Yasmin Assis ranks 10th in Gray Wolf history with 407 career assists.  She begins the year wit 407 helpers and trails Sarah Wisser (2016-2019) by 63 for ninth on the all-time charts.  Elis Sanford enters the season ranked fourth on the career hitting percentage charts (minimum 200 attempts) swinging at a .261 clip while Michaela Eisenhauer is sixth in the same category at .253.

A Constant on the Court: Kylee McBride and Alli Plasencio were also the only two Gray Wolves to appear in all 110 sets for Lourdes last season.  Angelica Dippold was third on the team playing in 93 stanza as 19 Lourdes players saw at least 12 sets of action over the 30 matches last season.

Nearing 200: Lourdes is just two victories shy of 200 in the program's history.  Head coach Greg Reitz has been a part of all 198 wins today for the Gray Wolves.  Lourdes enters the weekend with a 198-133 all-time record.

Some New Faces: Lourdes added three freshmen and a transfer to the roster this season.  Kortney Ellison, Kaitlyn Rhoades, and Quinn Yondo will all be making their collegiate debuts with the Gray Wolves while McKenna Hall arrives as a sophomore transfer from NCAA Division I Indiana State.

A Different Look This Season: Due to COVID-19, only four schools in the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference played league matches during the fall.  Indiana Tech, Concordia (Mich.), Lawrence Tech, and Rochester (Mich.) each have either four or five WHAC contests under their belt while the remaining schools will join the four in competition this spring.  The WHAC tournament and NAIA National Championships will also take place this spring.
 
This and That: Lourdes is 46-17 all-time inside the Ebeid Rec Center ... the Gray Wolves went 3-3 in five-set matches last season ... Lourdes will not return home following the match with Saint Xavier until Feb. 16 when Madonna visits Sylvania.