Women's Volleyball | 10/19/2021 4:08:00 PM

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – A massive week in store for Cornerstone women's volleyball as they will host three WHAC opponents as part of Cornerstone University Homecoming and Family Weekend. The week opens with a rivalry match vs. Aquinas on Wednesday at 7 p.m. and will be followed with Homecoming/Alumni match on Friday vs. Siena Heights at 7 p.m. and vs. Lourdes on Saturday at 1 p.m. All three contests have tickets available for sale now HERE, with live video and stat links that can be found HERE.
 
FSI BOGO Night
Friendship Sports international is partnering with Cornerstone athletics for Friday's women's volleyball match for a BOGO Night. Cornerstone and Siena Heights will be wearing special gear to promote the event, while all fans in attendance are welcome to purchase shirts, socks, or hats. For every purchase of one of these items the same item will be donated to a local Grand Rapids homeless shelter to help provide hope for the homeless. Every CU team will be hosting an FSI BOGO Night throughout the year as CU will have two this week with women's soccer's taking place on Wednesday, October 20.
 
Western Wednesday 
Cornerstone will host Aquinas on Wednesday for Western Night. All fans are encouraged to come dressed in their best western gear as the two rivals will go at it at 7 p.m. on October 20. 
 
Friday Night Festivities 
On Friday night, Cornerstone will be hosting an alumni event vs. Siena Heights at 7 p.m. CU will be honoring the 2004 Cornerstone women's volleyball team, the first ever CU team to qualify for the NAIA National Tournament, in between sets and will be hosting an alumni tailgate at 5:30 p.m. prior to the match. The current team will also be signing posters that night after the match for fans to take home. 
 
Last Week Recap
Cornerstone played just two matches last week and it started with a tough road loss to UNOH who earned their first WHAC win against the Golden Eagles, and was followed up with a bounce back road win over receiving votes Indiana Tech in five sets who was leading the conference at the time. The WHAC is wide open, with six teams within three games of one another as Madonna is currently on top with an 11-2 conference record. 
 
Morris' Quest for the Top 10
Junior Patsy Morris continues to dominate defensively, as she recorded 15 digs and 21 digs in last week's two matches. Morris now has 1565 digs in her career, putting her 91 away from the top 10 in program history. Morris would knock Kayla Wilson (2006-09) out of the top 10 once she hits the mark of 1656 career digs. 
 
Olivia Keelean Career High 
Junior Olivia Keelean has been on a tear of late, with a career high 18 kills at UNOH last week. She followed that with a career second best 17 kills at Indiana Tech to bring her total for the season to 299. Keelean is hitting .207 for the year, and already has more kills than she had in her freshman and sophomore seasons. 
 
Scouting Aquinas
Cornerstone has shined against the rival Saints under Head Coach Megan Lenhart, going 5-1 since she took over as the Golden Eagles Head Coach. Earlier this season, CU swept the Saints on the road to open WHAC play and begin a four-match sweep streak. Aquinas has been up and down this season, but has been solid of late, winning their last three matches including a four-set victory over receiving votes Indiana Tech. The AQ offense is potent with an NAIA eighth best 1260 kills as a team. Aquinas is led by a pair of senior outside hitters in Jackie Rozell with 251 kills and Meredith Kraus with 249 kills. A big flaw for the Saints this season has been the service line as they rank ninth in the NAIA with 236 service errors, while they only have 175 aces. 
 
Scouting Siena Heights
Siena Heights is one of the three teams that CU lost to in conference play this season, as they were not at full strength when they played in Adrian. Siena Heights has only played 17 games this year, but they have hung around the top of the WHAC as they are tied with CU for second in conference play with an 8-3 record. Defense is the Saints strength as libero Payton Osborne is having an outstanding year averaging 5.28 digs per set to lead the WHAC. Most of the Siena Heights production comes from a young core, with seven of their top nine kill getters at freshmen or sophomore status. 
 
Scouting Lourdes
Lourdes has had one of the most unique 2021 seasons in the WHAC upsetting some top teams to stay in contention with a. 9-12, 5-7 WHAC record. The Gray Wolves are another one of the three teams that defeated Cornerstone this season, as they did so in Sylvania, Ohio when CU was not at full strength. LU is very young with just four seniors on the roster. The team is also led offensively by a freshman in Abby Gentile who has 162 kills for 2.19 a set. Defensively, multiple players have proven they can dig the ball with four athletes over 150 digs in 2021. Lourdes has not been good on the road this season however, going just 2-8 in those contests. 
 
 
Volleyball Contact: Jesse Campbell 
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