The University of Akron Athletics
Zips Set to Open MAC Play at Ohio and Kent State
September 22 | Women's Volleyball
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Akron (5-7) at Ohio (4-8)
Friday, Sept. 23
Convocation Center
Athens, Ohio • 7:00 p.m.
Live Stats: Click Here
Akron (5-7) at Kent State (7-6)
Saturday, Sept. 24
M.A.C. Center
Kent, Ohio • 6:00 p.m.
Live Stats: Click Here
Live Video: Click Here
AKRON, Ohio – The University of Akron volleyball team (5-7) will open up Mid-American Conference play on the road this weekend (Sept. 23-24) traveling to Ohio (4-8) and Kent State (7-6). The Zips will take on OU at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept 23 before challenging crosstown rival Kent on Saturday at 6 p.m.
MATCH INFORMATION
Dates: Sept. 23-24
Location: Athens, Ohio; Kent, Ohio
Site: Convocation Center (13, 080); M.A.C Center (6,327)
The Series: Akron trails Ohio, 24-37; Akron trails Kent State, 34-42
Head Coaches: Tom Hanna (152-162 overall, 13-28 at UA); Deane Webb (422-238 overall, 50-20 at Ohio); Don Gromala (56-48 overall and at Kent)
Akron Assistant Coaches: Kacie Ehinger (Second Season); Jordan Armstrong (First Season)
ZIP LINES
• Akron is in its 43rd season of collegiate volleyball. Head coach Tom Hanna is in his second season at the helm and holds a 152-162 (.484) overall record and a 13-28 record leading the Zips.
• The Zips were projected to finish sixth in the Mid-American Conference East Division by the league's head coaches after finishing with an 8-21 overall mark in 2015.
• Akron returns 11 letterwinners including four starters from last season.
• Three newcomers join the Zips for the 2016 campaign: Elya Karsner (Frankfort, Ky.), Cara Park (Millersburg, Ohio) and Ashley Richardson (Doylestown, Ohio).
• Akron is led by senior Amanda Bedell and sophomore Patience Brown who have 112 and 101 kills, respectively. Bedell also leads the team with 2.80 kills per set while Brown leads the Zips in points (118.5). Junior Jessica Kloehn sits atop the Zips' roster with 27 total blocks (1.04 b/s).
• Senior Karley Kusan has been running Akron's offense, as the setter has dished out 9.57 assists per set on the season thus far. Kusan has totaled 402 assists in 42 sets and leads the team with five double-doubles on the season.
• Defensively, Brenna Mack and Kusan have paced the Zips with 140 and 117 digs, respectively. Mack has only committed five receiving errors in 133 total attempts for a .962 reception percentage.
• Assistant coach Kacie Ehinger, who worked with Hanna at Marist for three seasons, is in her second season at Akron and has more than 13 years of experience in collegiate volleyball. She joined the Zips after spending the 2014 season at Lamar University.
• Assistant coach Jordan Armstrong begins his first season on Akron's staff. A four-year letterwinner at IPFW, Armstrong most recently served as the Volunteer Assistant Coach for the Mastodons where he was responsible for technical coordination of video, data project software, scouting reports, and working with the team's setters and offense. He also operated as the point person for team travel and assisted with team administration.
WHAT IS A ZIP?
• One of the unique nicknames in collegiate athletics belongs to The University of Akron.
• Originally Zippers, athletic director Kenneth "Red" Cochrane officially shortened the nickname to the Zips in 1950. Twenty-five years earlier a campus-wide contest had been conducted to choose a nickname for the University's athletics teams.
• Suggestions submitted by students, faculty, and alumni included Golden Blue Devils, Tip Toppers, Rubbernecks, Hillbillies, Kangaroos, and Cheveliers.
• The winner, freshman Margaret Hamlin, received a prize of $10 for Zippers, a $6 pair of rubber overshoes and a brand name of the BF Goodrich Company.
• The evolution of Zippy, UA's mascot, began 40 years ago when the student council decided the University needed a mascot.
• "Zippy" the kangaroo was officially declared the school's mascot on May 1, 1953. The first known printed reference to the mascot as "Zippy" was a 1965 Zip football press brochure. The Buchtelite's first use of the name "Zippy" came Sept. 24, 1965, in an identification of a photo of the cheerleaders listing "Mascot - 'Zippy' - Charles Huettner."
• In 2007, Zippy was named the Capital One National Mascot of the Year.
LAST TIME OUT/UP NEXT
• A red-hot Akron team tripped up Dartmouth on Friday, Sept. 16, snapping the Big Green's three-game winning streak as the Zips captured a 3-1 (17-25, 25-20, 25-17, 25-19) victory on the opening day of the West Virginia Invitational at the WVU Coliseum.
• On the final day of the WVU Invitational, the Zips fell to the Mountaineers, 3-0, before UA toppled Winthrop in straight sets. Seniors Brenna Mack and Karley Kusan were named to the All-Tournament Team for their efforts over the three matches.
• Akron returns to the floor on Thursday, September 29, when it hosts its first MAC opponent of the season in Buffalo at 7 p.m.
SCOUTING OHIO
• The Bobcats were picked to finish third in East Division MAC play this season by the conference's head coaches. Ohio went 25-8 overall and 13-3 in the conference to claim their ninth MAC Tournament title in 2015.
• Ohio enters the weekend with a 4-8 overall record after defeating Wofford, Appalachian State, Lamar, and Virginia Tech.
• Ohio is led by third-year head coach Deane Webb who holds an overall 422-238 record as a collegiate head coach.
• Jaime Koslorek leads the team in kills with 134 (3.12 k/s) while Stephanie Olman has posted a team-high 291 assists (9.70). Brooke Coleman has 175 digs (4.07 d/s) on the season while Katie Nelson has dished out 31 total blocks (0.94).
SCOUTING KENT STATE
• Kent State was projected to finish second in the East Division in the MAC preseason poll after compiling a 20-10 overall record and a 13-3 conference mark in 2015.
• The Golden Flashes enter its Friday match with Buffalo holding a 7-6 overall record. Kent has gone 3-3 in their last six matches, falling to Dayton in straight sets before losing to Austin Peay and Evansville in five sets during non-conference action.
• KSU is led by fifth-year head coach Don Gromala, who holds a 56-48 record at the school and overall for his career.
• The Kent State offense is led by Kelsey Bittinger, who has tallied 152 kills (3.45 k/s) and 175 points. Katarina Kojic averages 9.30 assists per set overall, while Challen Geraghty guides the defense with 5.37 digs per set. Myla King also contributes 1.22 blocks per set with a total of 33 on the season.
