The University of Akron Athletics
Thursday, September 14
Youngstown, OH
11 AM
University of Akron
at
Youngstown State University
Volleyball Prepares for Final Two Non-Conference Matches of the Season
September 13 | Women's Volleyball
AKRON, Ohio – The University of Akron volleyball team has their final two non-conference matches this week as they travel to Youngstown State (Sept 14) and host Cleveland State (Sept 15). It will be the first time the Zips will play the Penguins this season, but it will be the second time they face the Vikings this season, after falling 1-3 at Cleveland State's Woodling Gym last week.
GAME INFO
Thursday will feature the Zips and the Penguins at the Beeghly Center on the Youngstown State campus. First serve is at 11 a.m. On Friday night, Akron will close out the non-conference portion of their schedule as they host the Cleveland State Vikings in James A. Rhodes Arena at 6 p.m.
Zips fans can follow the action via live stats on the Akron Athletics App or GoZips.com. Thursday's match will be on ESPN+.
ABOUT THE ZIPS
Last Friday, the Zips had their home opener with two competitive matches that both went to five sets. Akron was able to mount a victory against Harvard after dropping the first two sets, but the opposite happened in the evening match, with Bucknell winning after the Zips had a 2-0 lead in the match. On the day, Vanessa Del Real had a team high 4.9 digs per set and Ellen Kinnaird had 11 total blocks. Eliska Vytiskova had 107 assists and 10 aces while Faith Johnson had 39 kills, 27 of which were against Harvard. Both matches featured 4 Zips players reaching double digit kills: Kinnaird (18), Emanouela Christodoulou (19), Karleighana Jones (21), Lauren Baker (22), and Johnson (39) making the contributions.
SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
The Youngstown State Penguins are coming off a 1-2 showing at the Owls Paradise Classic. They won 3-1 against Bethune-Cookman to open their weekend, but then fell to both host Florida Atlantic (0-3) and Incarnate Word (1-3). In the match against Bethune-Cookman, the Penguins posted their best attack percentage of the year and hit better than .280 in three of the four sets. Josi Borum almost notched her third triple-double of the season in the second match of the weekend with 15 assists, 10 kills, and 8 digs. Overall on the season, Youngstown State is 4-5.
As a part of the CSU Invitational, the Vikings beat Akron (3-1) but then lost both matches to Harvard (0-3) and Bucknell (2-3) last weekend. They are 5-4 overall headed into this weekend, which will see them host Kent State on Thursday night before traveling south to face the Zips on Friday. In the five-set affair with Bucknell, Cleveland State posted 24.0 total team blocks, including nine from JeriLynn Koehler, eight from Nia Hall and seven from Karly Klaer. The trio of Nia Hall (13 kills), Laken Voss (12) and Liberty Torres (11) paced the Viking offense, while Klaer recorded 44 assists on the match. They also had four players with double-digit digs.
UP NEXT
The Zips will open MAC play with a weekend series against Ohio University. Akron will make the trip to Athens, OH to take on the Bobcats Friday, September 22 at 7 p.m. and Saturday, the 23rd at 4 p.m.
GAME INFO
Thursday will feature the Zips and the Penguins at the Beeghly Center on the Youngstown State campus. First serve is at 11 a.m. On Friday night, Akron will close out the non-conference portion of their schedule as they host the Cleveland State Vikings in James A. Rhodes Arena at 6 p.m.
Zips fans can follow the action via live stats on the Akron Athletics App or GoZips.com. Thursday's match will be on ESPN+.
| Match | Live Stats | Video |
| Akron at Youngstown State (9/14 | 11 AM) | Live Stats | ESPN+ |
| Akron vs. Cleveland State (9/15 | 6 PM) | Live Stats |
ABOUT THE ZIPS
Last Friday, the Zips had their home opener with two competitive matches that both went to five sets. Akron was able to mount a victory against Harvard after dropping the first two sets, but the opposite happened in the evening match, with Bucknell winning after the Zips had a 2-0 lead in the match. On the day, Vanessa Del Real had a team high 4.9 digs per set and Ellen Kinnaird had 11 total blocks. Eliska Vytiskova had 107 assists and 10 aces while Faith Johnson had 39 kills, 27 of which were against Harvard. Both matches featured 4 Zips players reaching double digit kills: Kinnaird (18), Emanouela Christodoulou (19), Karleighana Jones (21), Lauren Baker (22), and Johnson (39) making the contributions.
SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
The Youngstown State Penguins are coming off a 1-2 showing at the Owls Paradise Classic. They won 3-1 against Bethune-Cookman to open their weekend, but then fell to both host Florida Atlantic (0-3) and Incarnate Word (1-3). In the match against Bethune-Cookman, the Penguins posted their best attack percentage of the year and hit better than .280 in three of the four sets. Josi Borum almost notched her third triple-double of the season in the second match of the weekend with 15 assists, 10 kills, and 8 digs. Overall on the season, Youngstown State is 4-5.
As a part of the CSU Invitational, the Vikings beat Akron (3-1) but then lost both matches to Harvard (0-3) and Bucknell (2-3) last weekend. They are 5-4 overall headed into this weekend, which will see them host Kent State on Thursday night before traveling south to face the Zips on Friday. In the five-set affair with Bucknell, Cleveland State posted 24.0 total team blocks, including nine from JeriLynn Koehler, eight from Nia Hall and seven from Karly Klaer. The trio of Nia Hall (13 kills), Laken Voss (12) and Liberty Torres (11) paced the Viking offense, while Klaer recorded 44 assists on the match. They also had four players with double-digit digs.
UP NEXT
The Zips will open MAC play with a weekend series against Ohio University. Akron will make the trip to Athens, OH to take on the Bobcats Friday, September 22 at 7 p.m. and Saturday, the 23rd at 4 p.m.
Players Mentioned
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/ Women's Volleyball
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/ Women's Volleyball
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/ Women's Volleyball
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/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
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