Complete Notes
Upcoming in Gray Wolves Volleyball: Lourdes will try for a second time to open the home portion of its 2022 schedule with a pair of matches on Friday.  In the afternoon, the Gray Wolves are set to battle Cornerstone in Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference action before hosting Rio Grande in a non-league tilt that evening.

Head Coach Greg Reitz: In his 11th season both on the Lourdes bench, and overall coaching men's volleyball, Greg Reitz has a 193-71 (.731) 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 Cornerstone in a series that began Jan. 29, 2021.  The Gray Wolves won the initial meeting in Grand Rapids, Mich. in four sets last year before downing the Golden Eagles in straight sets on Feb. 26 inside the Ebeid Rec Center.  Lourdes and Rio Grande will be meeting on the court in men's volleyball for the first time ever on Friday.

Wrapping Up Last Week: The Gray Wolves opened the 2022 campaign last Thursday (Jan. 20) with a 25-19, 25-11, 25-21 sweep at Mount Vernon Nazarene.  Eduardo Ayala put down 15 kills, hit .538, and recorded four aces while Sawyer Schafer handed out 31 assists.  Defensively, Guga Heidrich paced the Gray Wolves with 10 digs while Harrison McBean recorded four blocks.

Scouting Cornerstone: The Golden Eagles have dropped five straight matches after falling at Siena Heights in straight sets on Wednesday (Jan. 26) evening.  David Galanes leads Cornerstone with 102 kills while Max Hernandez is hitting at a .250 clip.  Patrick Voloch has handed out 181 assists while Galanes leads the team with 15 service aces.  Defensively, Alex Hekman has tallied a team-high 69 digs while Joshua Beaumont has been involved in 24 blocks.

Scouting Rio Grande: The Red Storm are beginning their first season of sponsoring a men's volleyball program.  Rio Grande opens its season on Thursday night at Mount Vernon Nazarene and will face Cornerstone in a neutral site match on Friday at 4 p.m. prior to battling Lourdes.

A Match to Make Up: The Gray Wolves' original home opener against Lawrence Tech was postponed on Jan. 22 due to COVID-19 protocols.  Lourdes will work with the Blue Devils and the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference for a date to reschedule.

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.

Looking to Continue Success at Home: The Gray Wolves enter the 2022 home season riding a 14-match home court win streak inside the Russell J. Ebeid Recreation Center.  All-time Lourdes is 47-6 on its home floor since the building opened in September of 2016, with the Gray Wolves' last setback coming Feb. 12, 2020, a five-set loss to Goshen.

A Strong Opening Match: Guga Heidrich, who has handed the libero role for the Gray Wolves since his freshman season opened the year with 10 digs against Mount Vernon Nazarene.  He is averaging 3.50 digs per set over the course of his career and ranks eighth on the program's career list with 487 total digs as a junior.

Quite a Lourdes Debut: Eduardo Ayala made quite an impact for the Gray Wolves in his first match wearing terra cotta and black.  The sophomore transfer led Lourdes with 15 kills and hit .538 at Mount Vernon Nazarene, committing just one attack error on 26 swings.  He also racked up a team-high four service aces and added nine digs defensively, second most on the squad. 

Making Their Debuts: In addition to Eduardo Ayala making his first appearance in a Lourdes uniform, Gabriel Vianna, Elijah Fleming, and Mitch Hoffman all made their collegiate debuts against the Cougars last Thursday.

Solid in a New Role: Sawyer Schafer served as the Lourdes setter for the first time in his collegiate career at Mount Vernon Nazarene.  The junior dished out 31 assists while leading an offense that hit at a .225 clip in the sweep.  Schafer entered the match with just seven career assists over his first two seasons of competition combined.

Nearing the School Record: Jeff Lam ranks second in program history with 1,033 career kills.  He is just 146 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 set the school record for career aces last season and continues to add to his total.  He enters the week with 126 career aces.  The fifth-year senior has 39 more than Evan Gebert (2017-2020), who ranks second on the Gray Wolves' all-time list.

This and That: Lourdes has posted winning records in all 10 previous seasons, recording at least 15 victories per year ... the Gray Wolves enter 2022 having won 14 consecutive home matches inside the Ebeid Rec Center ... with the win over Mount Vernon Nazarene, the Gray Wolves are now 9-2 in season openers and 3-0 all-time in WHAC openers.