Complete Notes
Upcoming in Gray Wolves Volleyball: After last weekend's matches were cancelled, Lourdes will again try to open the 2022 men's volleyball season this week.  The Gray Wolves begin Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference play on Thursday at Mount Vernon Nazarene before entertaining Lawrence Tech on Saturday in Lourdes' home opener.

Head Coach Greg Reitz: In his 11th season both on the Lourdes bench, and overall coaching men's volleyball, Greg Reitz has a 192-71 (.730) 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: Lourdes is 2-0 all-time against Mount Vernon Nazarene in a series that began Jan. 26, 2021.  The Gray Wolves swept both meetings against the Cougars last season, including their lone trip to Mount Vernon, Ohio.  The Gray Wolves are 13-0 all-time against Lawrence Tech dating back to Jan. 20, 2016.  Lourdes has swept all but one meeting in the series.  The two schools have not met since a 3-0 Gray Wolf victory on Feb. 26, 2020.  Lourdes is 5-0 against the Blue Devils in the Ebeid Rec Center.

Wrapping Up 2021: The Gray Wolves finished the 2021 campaign with a 15-3 record overall, and a 10-2 mark in the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference, sharing the league's regular season title before winning the conference tournament crown.  Lourdes earned a berth to the NAIA National Championships, posting a 1-1 record in pool play.  

Scouting Mount Vernon Nazarene: The Cougars are still looking for their first victory of the season after falling to Limestone and Campbellsville last weekend.  Spencer Stanley registered 23 kills on opening weekend while Jaysen Matsumoto handed out 53 assists.  Matsumoto also had a team-high 14 digs.

Scouting Lawrence Tech: The Blue Devils enter the week having won three straight matches following wins over Olivet Nazarene and Cumberland (Tenn.) last Saturday.  Lawrence Tech hosts Trine on Wednesday before visiting the Gray Wolves.  Jeffry Fuhrmann leads Lawrence Tech with 44 kills and is hitting .359 on the season while Simon Phillip has handed out 119 assists.  Collin Holt has registered 47 digs and Connor Cooper has 18 blocks.

Lourdes in Season Openers: The Gray Wolves are 8-2 all-time in their season openers and have won three straight.  Lourdes opened the 2021 season with a 3-2 victory over Queens (N.C.).  Lourdes is 4-0 in season openers that were true road matches, most recently defeating Goshen to begin the 2019 campaign.

Gray Wolves in Home Openers: Lourdes is 8-2 in home openers during the first 10 seasons of the program's existence.  Last year the Gray Wolves began the home slate with a five-set win over Queens (N.C.) for the team's third straight home-opening win.

Beginning WHAC Play: The Gray Wolves are 2-0 in Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference openers after downing Mount Vernon Nazarene to begin league play in 2021.  Thursday's match at Mount Vernon Nazarene will marke the first time Lourdes began WHAC play on the road. 

All-American Returns: Jeff Lam became a three-time NAIA All-American after earning First Team honors for the second time in his career in 2021.  The fifth-year senior this season led the Gray Wolves with 279 kills (4.81/set) while hitting .318.  He also had 48 service aces and 144 digs (2.48/set).

More Returning Award Winners: Jeff Lam also garnered Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference Player of the Year accolades in addition to First Team All-WHAC honors one year ago.  Guga Heidrich and Harrison McBean represented the Gray Wolves as Second Team All-WHAC honorees.

Nearing the School Record: Jeff Lam enters the season second in program history with 1,025 career kills.  He is just 154 kills shy of the school record holder, Evan Gebert (2017-2020), who tallied 1,179 during his four years at Lourdes.

Lam Holds Aces Mark: Jeff Lam enters 2022 already the school record-holder with 124 career aces.  The fifth-year senior has 37 more than Evan Gebert (2017-2020), who ranks second on the Gray Wolves' all-time list.

Learning a New Position: Sawyer Schafer takes over as the Gray Wolves' setter entering 2022.  An outside hitter the previous two years, he has just seven career assists in a Lourdes uniform.

New Faces: Lourdes has added seven new players to its roster for the upcoming season.  Elijah Fleming, Max Baumann, George Tsogtbaatar, and Gabriel Vianna are all freshmen while Mitch Hoffman and Eduardo Ayala are transfers.  Darius Passley-Bennett has joined the Gray Wolf volleyball program after playing soccer for the Gray Wolves the past three seasons.

This and That: Lourdes has posted winning records in all 10 previous seasons, recording at least 15 victories per year ... the Gray Wolves enter 2021 having won 14 consecutive home matches inside the Ebeid Rec Center ... Lourdes is 47-6 all-time on its home floor ... the Gray Wolves are 66-24 all-time in true road matches and 46-32 on neutral floors.