The University of Akron Athletics
Zips Prepare for MAC Play at Home Versus Buffalo and Toledo
September 28 | Women's Volleyball
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Akron (5-9, 0-2) vs. Buffalo (1-11. 0-2)
Thursday, Sept. 29
James A. Rhodes Arena
Akron, Ohio • 7:00 p.m.
Live Stats: Click Here
Live Video: Click Here
Akron (5-9, 0-2) vs. Toledo (8-6, 1-1)
Saturday, Oct. 1
James A. Rhodes Arena
Akron, Ohio • 5:00 p.m.
Live Stats: Click Here
Live Video: Click Here
AKRON, Ohio – The University of Akron volleyball team returns to James A. Rhodes Arena this weekend to open Mid-American Conference action on its home floor. The Zips will play host to Buffalo on Thursday, Sept. 29 at 7 p.m., followed by a clash with Toledo on Saturday, Oct. 1 at 5 p.m.
MATCH INFORMATION
Dates: Sept. 29-Oct. 1
Location: Akron, Ohio
Site: James A. Rhodes Arena (5,500)
The Series: Akron leads Buffalo, 26-13; Akron trails Toledo, 24-26
Head Coaches: Tom Hanna (152-164 overall, 13-30 at UA); Blair Brown Lipsitz (8-36 overall and at Buffalo); Greg Smith (163-231 overall, 82-137 at Toledo)
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 152-164 (.481) overall record and a 13-30 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 130 and 113 kills, respectively. Bedell also leads the team with 2.77 kills per set while Brown leads the Zips in points (136.0). Brown and junior Jessica Kloehn sit atop the Zips' roster with 31 total blocks apiece.
• Senior Karley Kusan has been running Akron's offense, as the setter has dished out 9.35 assists per set on the season thus far. Kusan has totaled 458 assists in 49 sets and leads the team with six double-doubles on the season.
• Defensively, Brenna Mack and Kusan have paced the Zips with 179 and 131 digs, respectively. Mack has only committed six receiving errors in 163 total attempts for a .963 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
• The University of Akron volleyball team fell to Ohio University by a score of 3-0 in its Mid-American Conference opener on Friday night at the Convocation Center.
• On Saturday, UA gave up a 3-1 (23-25, 25-21, 16-25, 20-25) road decision to crosstown rival Kent State.
• UA will stay home next weekend, playing host to Bowling Green on Friday, Oct. 7 and Miami (Ohio) on Saturday, Oct. 8. Both matches are schedule for 7 p.m. The homestand against the Redhawks has been designated as the Alumni Match for Zips Volleyball, and there will be an alumni reception following the contest.
SCOUTING BUFFALO
• The Bulls were picked to finish fourth in East Division MAC play this season by the conference's head coaches. Buffalo went 7-22 overall and 6-10 in the conference in 2015.
• Buffalo enters Friday's match with a 1-14 overall record and a 0-2 mark in the conference. The Bulls began its 2015 season with a 12-game losing streak before defeating Bucknell (3-2) at the Bucknell Bison Tournament on Sept. 17. UB then dropped matches in three straight sets to Kent State and Ohio the following weekend.
• UB is led by Blair Brown Lipsitz who is in her second year at the helm of the program. Valisha Watkins leads the Bulls with 119 kills (2.25 k/s) while Hannah Watson contributes a team-high 219 digs (3.98 d/s). Scout McLerran controls the offense with 436 assists (7.93 a/s) on the season thus far.
SCOUTING TOLEDO
• Toledo was projected to finish sixth in the West Division in the MAC preseason poll after compiling a 6-23 overall record and a 3-13 conference mark in 2015.
• Toledo enters its Thursday match at Ball State with an 8-6 overall record and 1-1 mark in the MAC. Last weekend, Toledo fell to Eastern Michigan in five sets and defeated Central Michigan in three sets.
• UT is led by eighth-year head Greg Smith who holds a 82-137 mark at Toledo and is 163-231 overall in his career as a head coach.
• Saige Thomas and Gracey Tuifua are Toledo's primary offensive threats, putting up 3.00 and 2.69 kills per set, respectively. Carly Townsend runs the offense with 10.71 assists per set. Maurissa Leonard heads up the defense for the Rockets, averaging 4.91 digs per set.
