Following a 27-8 season in which they finished first in the GLIAC and reached a national championship appearance, the Ferris State Bulldog Volleyball team has started the new season 4-0.
Hosting the Ferris State Invitational, the Bulldogs won a combined 12-0 sets over their four matches and won a set by only three points twice. Ferris State beat MSU Denver on Thursday, August 27, then followed that up with two wins on Friday against Illinois-Springfield and Emporia State in Kansas. On Saturday, the Bulldogs beat Minnesota State to sweep the invite. After the four matches, Ferris State is averaging 13.58 kills per set, a .377 hitting percentage, 11.33 assists per set, 1.67 blocks per set, and 12.83 digs per set.
Redshirt freshman setter Breanna David talks about how this early success is the best motivation for the team.
“These early matches are really important for us, but the most important and hardest thing to come back from is success,” David said. “We worked really hard throughout the spring and summer to get to where we are now, so starting 4-0 is exciting, but it also challenges us to keep pushing. It’s about how we bounce back from these wins and continue to improve instead of becoming comfortable. We’re striving to be even better every day, and these early matches give us a great opportunity to build momentum and keep growing together as a team.”
The Bulldogs followed up losing four players from the year prior by bringing in seven new players, with four of them being transfers and two from other schools in the GLIAC.
One of those two transfers is former Wisconsin Parkside Ranger graduate outside hitter Ava Irwin. Last year for the Rangers, Irwin started all 28 games she played in and totaled 339 kills for 3.23 kills per set, which was second on the team, as well as 30 serving aces. Through the first four matches with the Bulldogs, she has 14 kills and 15 digs.
Irwin talked about the transfer from Parkside to Ferris State.
“At first I wasn’t sure where I would end up transferring, but as soon as I came on my visit here at Ferris, I knew right away that it was everything I wanted for my last year playing,” Irwin said. “The team has been so welcoming, which has made it so easy to get acclimated to being on a new team in a new city.”
Another one of the new players and one of the three freshmen is libero Hailey Flanders from Huxley, Iowa. Flanders has played in three of the four matches so far, and has logged four serving aces and seven digs. Flanders currently leads the team with 0.67 serving aces per set.
Even with that change, the returning Bulldogs have picked up right where they’ve left off. Junior outside hitter Gabby Piazza leads the team with 45 kills on the year for an average of 3.75 kills per set following a season where she totaled 466 total kills.
Junior setter Hayley Wegener has already logged 114 assists for 9.50 assists per set, both of which leads the team, including two matches with 30-plus assists. Junior middle hitter Lindsey Urick leads the team with a .574 hitting percentage and 0.75 blocks per set. Sophomore libero Hope Davies leads Ferris State with 41 digs on the year and 3.42 digs per set.
Following the Ferris State Invitational, the Bulldogs will head to Denver, Colorado for the Colorado Premier Invitational where they’ll play four matches in two days. On Friday, September 4, Ferris State will play Anderson South Carolina at 12 p.m. and then West Texas A&M at 8 p.m. The opponents and times for the Bulldogs’ two matches on Saturday, September 5 have yet to be determined.
GLIAC play will begin on Tuesday, September 8, when they head across Lake Michigan to play at the Roosevelt Lakers at 7 p.m.