The East Central University volleyball team will open the Great American Conference portion of their season this week, with two league matches.  The Lady Tigers, who are the final team to start GAC play, will first face Southwestern Oklahoma State, Tuesday, Sept. 24 at the Kerr Activities Center at 7 p.m.  ECU will then travel to face Southeastern Oklahoma State in Durant, Okla., Friday, Sept. 27 at 7 p.m.

Match Notes
 
Scouting Southwestern
The Bulldogs are 4-8 overall and 1-0 in league action after defeating Northwestern last week.  Southwestern played two matches last Saturday, falling to both Texas A&M-Kingsivlle and West Texas A&M.  The teams have one common opponent so far this season in Oklahoma City, with the Bulldogs earning a 3-0 win.
 
SWOSU is close, but trails, its opponents in most statistical categories.  The one area where they have a slight advantage is blocks, where they lead 2.0 to 1.8 blocks per set.  Overall hitting percentages have been low for both teams, with the Bulldogs hitting .153 to a .180 mark by the opposition.
 
SWOSU has three main hitters in Joey Collins, Carly Zak and Alison Cole.  Collins leads the team with 117 kills, while adding a .153 (117k-53e-419ta) hitting percentage, 101 digs and 15 block assists.  Zak has a .165 (109k-56e-332ta) hitting percentage and 18 (2-16) total blocks.  Cole is a key threat with a .242 (107k-41e-273ta) attack percentage and 52 (10-42) total blocks.
 
Against the Bulldogs
Last season the Lady Tigers earned wins in both meetings with SWOSU, by earning a .241 to .180 hitting percentage advantage and out-blocking the Bulldogs 2.1 to 1.1 per set.
 
The top returner for ECU is senior Noelle Cope, with a .318 (18k-4e-44ta) hitting percentage and 13 digs.  Sophomore Hayley Gerken was also strong for the Lady Tigers, with 17 kills, four service aces and five blocks.
 
Joey Collins and Alison Cole are the top returners for the Bulldogs.  Collins tallied a .367 (24k-6e-49ta) hitting percentage, while Cole added 12 kills and 10 (3-7) blocks.
 
The Series
Tuesday's match will be the seventh meeting in the all-time series, with ECU holding a 4-2 overall advantage.  The Lady Tigers also own a 3-0 mark when playing in the Kerr Activities Center.
 
Scouting Southeastern
The Savage Storm are 6-4 and 1-1 in league play after falling to Southern Nazarene and defeating Northwestern in four last week.  Southeastern will be idle until they meet the Lady Tigers in Friday's match.
 
The Savage Storms and their opponents are close in most statistical categories.  Southeastern holds a 1.8 to 1.3 service aces per set advantage, but trails 16.6 to 18.4 in digs.
 
There are two key hitters for the Savage Storm in Emily Gentle and Megan Kunkel.  Gentle has a .257 (128k-41e-338ta) hitting percentage, while adding six service aces, 85 digs and 17 (1-16) total blocks.  Kunkel has 117 kills, 13 service aces, 123 digs and 10 block assists.
 
Against the Savage Storm
A year ago the teams both earned wins on their home courts.  Both struggled to get strong offenses going, with ECU hitting .177 and Southeastern .123.  The Lady Tigers earned a 2.2 to 1.3 service aces per set advantage, but gave up a 1.4 to 2.3 blocks per set mark.
 
Senior Noelle Cope is the top returner for ECU against the Savage Storm.  Cope hit .234 (18k-7e-47ta) and added 23 digs.  Senior Danielle Essix added 17 kills, seven service aces and 33 digs.
 
Emily Gentle and Megan Kunkel are the only two players from Southeastern to tally more than 10 kills in the 2012 series.  Gentle earned 17 and Kunkel 14.
 
The Series
Friday's meeting is the 11th in the all-time series, which Southeastern holds an 8-2 advantage.  The series has been contested in Durant on five previous occasions, with the Savage Storm earning wins in each meeting.
 
Blocking Party
The Lady Tigers are already on pace to have one of the best blocking seasons after their opening two matches of the season.  The most blocks in a season by ECU is 245.0 from the 2011 season, which averaged out to 1.93 blocks per set.  The Lady Tigers already have 73 blocks, or 2.0 per set.
 
Tracking the Record Books
While the ECU volleyball program has only been around since 2008, there are several members of the 2013 squad that are at the top or close to the top of several career record categories.
 
Taylor Brown     - 4th Assists (702)
Noelle Cope      - 1st Kills (892)
                        - 1st Attempts (2,583)
                        - 1st Points (1038.0)
                        - 4th Block Assists (112)
                        - 4th Block Solos (25)
                        - 4th Total Blocks (138)
                        - 4th Matches Played (95)
                        - 5th Sets Played (332)
Danielle Essix   - 3rd Attempts (2,390)
                        - 3rd Matches Played (101)
                        - 3rd Kills (754)
                        - 3rd Points (884.0)
                        - 4th Sets Played (345)
                        - 4th Service Aces (75)
                        - 4th Digs (709)
Hayley Gerken   - 3rd Total Blocks (145)
                        - 3rd Block Assists (124)
Sarah Nelson    - 2nd Total Blocks (244)
                        - 1st Block Assists (213)
                        - 3rd Block Solos (31)
Jessica Wilkinson          - 3rd Assists (973)
 
Picked to Finish Sixth
The Lady Tigers were picked to finish sixth in the GAC Pre-Season Coaches Poll.  ECU earned 56 points in the poll, with Harding earning the top spot with 97 points and seven first-place votes.  Arkansas Tech was second (93 points/four first-place votes), Southwestern third (78), Southern Nazarene fourth (69), Southern Arkansas fifth (65), Ouachita Baptist seventh (49), Southeastern eighth (35), Arkansas-Monticello ninth (31), and Henderson State and Northwestern tied for 10th (16).
 
Up Next
The Lady Tigers will continue their GAC slate, with three matches next week.  ECU starts out at home, Tuesday, Oct. 1 against Northwestern Oklahoma State and will then travel to face Harding (Oct. 4) and Arkansas Tech (Oct. 5).