Complete PDF Notes
Upcoming in Gray Wolves Volleyball: Lourdes makes its sixth appearance at the NAIA National Championships (Invitational prior to 2019) this week and enters pool play as the seventh seed.  The Gray Wolves face 10th-seeded Missouri Baptist in their first match on Wednesday before battling second-seeded Benedictine Mesa on Thursday.  The semifinals are set for Friday with the championship taking place on Saturday.

Head Coach Greg Reitz: In his 10th season both on the Lourdes bench, and overall coaching men's volleyball, Greg Reitz has a 191-70 (.732) record at the helm of the Gray Wolves.  He has earned six conference Coach of the Year honors during his first nine seasons at Lourdes, including the WHAC Coach of the Year in 2018.  He is the only head coach in program history.

Series Notes: Missouri Baptist is 9-0 all-time against Lourdes in a series that began March 2, 2013.  The Spartans won the last meeting in three sets on Feb. 8, 2020 at the Judson Early Bird Classic.  The two schools met in the 2018 NAIA National Invitational, a four-set win by Missouri Baptist in pool play.  This will be the fifth neutral site meeting between the two schools.  Lourdes and Benedictine Mesa have split four previous meetings dating back to Feb. 4, 2017.  The Redhawks have won the last two meetings, including a five-set contest in pool play at the 2019 NAIA National Championships.  Benedictine Mesa won a four-set match in the semifinals of the 2018 NAIA National Invitational.

Wrapping Up the WHAC Tournament: Hosting the WHAC tournament, Lourdes swept Goshen 25-22, 25-17, 25-17 in the semifinals on April 2.  Jeff Lam led the Gray Wolves with 19 kills and hit .405 while Ricardo Gehrke added 10 kills.  Guga Heidrich registered 18 digs.  In the championship, Lourdes downed Indiana Tech 19-25, 25-22, 31-29, 25-16 to claim the title.  Lam had 19 kills and 14 digs while Gehrke added 15 kills.  Heidrich tallied 16 digs.

Scouting Missouri Baptist: The Spartans enter the tournament having fallen in straight sets to Grand View in the semifinals of the Heart of America Athletic Conference tournament on March 31.  Milijan Kastratovic leads Missouri Baptist with 307 kills this season while hitting .277.  Jason Harman has handed out 794 assists while Kastratovic leads the team with 39 service aces.  Defensively, Stephen Menzel has a team-high 210 digs while Gabe Norsigian has registered 51 blocks.  The Spartans face Benedictine Mesa on Tuesday before facing Lourdes.

Scouting Benedictine Mesa: The Redhawks enter the national tournament undefeated after defeating UC Merced in straight sets on April 7 in the Cal Pac Jamboree.  Benedictine Mesa has dropped just five sets this season.  Landon Fuller leads the Redhawks with 157 kills this season while hitting .387.  Bromley Udall has dished out 365 assists and Bobby Henige has registered 32 service aces.  Defensively, Grant DeGrasse leads the team with 150 digs while Henige has 45 blocks, including 10 of the solo variety.  The Redhawks face Missouri Baptist on Tuesday to begin the tournament before facing Lourdes.

Lourdes in Postseason: Lourdes is 5-10 all-time in NAIA National Invitational/Championship play, making five previous appearances.  The Gray Wolves advanced to the semifinals in 2018 before falling to Benedictine Mesa in four sets.  At the 2019 NAIA National Championships, Lourdes defeated Saint Andrews before falling to Aquinas and Benedictine Mesa and was eliminated following pool play.

Lam Named WHAC Player of the Year: Jeff Lam was named the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference Player of the Year for his performance.  He leads the Gray Wolves hitting .322 with 247 kills (4.75/set) and 47 service aces (0.90/set).  In addition, he is second on the squad with 131 digs (2.52/set) and has 24 blocks (0.46/set).  

More WHAC Honors: Jeff Lam was also named First Team All-WHAC while Ricardo Gehrke, Guga Heidrich, and Harrison McBean were selected to the All-WHAC Second Team.  

Getting Defensive: Lourdes leads all of NAIA averaging 12.62 digs per set.  Guga Heidrich is third nationally as an individual tallying 3.84 digs per stanza, and has 223 total on the year.

Leading the NAIA in Record-Setting Fashion: Jeff Lam leads all NAIA player averaging 0.90 service aces per set this season.  He has set a new program single season record with 47 this year.  He currently has 123 career aces, most in program history.

On the Assist Charts: Henrique Gehrke has set the school's career assist mark with 2,604 helpers over his four years.  Gehrke has 322 assists more than current assistant coach Ryan Ferkel (2014-2017), who is second on the list.  

Nearing 1,000 and a Record Watch: Jeff Lam and Ricardo Gehrke rank third and fourth respectively in career kills.  Lam currently has 993 career kills , needing just seven more for 1,000 all-time, while Gehrke has 829 kills during his stay at Lourdes.  Gehrke just surpassed Nick DiMarco's (2012-2013) total of 804.  Lam is nine kills behind second place Frank Craig (2012-2015), who graduated with 1,002 kills.  

This and That: Lourdes has won 14 straight matches at home in the Ebeid Rec Center and is 36-8 all-time on its home court, including 10-0 this season ... the WHAC championship against Indiana Tech marked the first time this season the Gray Wolves have had fewer kills than their opponents.