The East Central University volleyball team will prepare for two road matches before coming home to play two games over Homecoming Week at the Kerr Activities Center.  The Tigers will first battle with Ouachita Baptist, Friday, Oct. 17 at 6 p.m. and then Henderson State, Saturday, Oct. 18 at 2 p.m., before coming home to face Southwestern Oklahoma State, Tuesday, Oct. 21 at 7 p.m.

Match Notes

The Coverage
Fans who can't be at the game can find links to live stats and live video on ECUTigers.com.  Go to the volleyball schedule page.  

Pink Out
The match against Southwestern Oklahoma State, Tuesday, Oct. 21 is the annual Pink Out game for the Tigers.  Zeta Tau Alpha will be at the game to help raise awareness about breast cancer.  There will be pink ribbons available and fans are encouraged to wear pink in support.

Scouting Ouachita Baptist
The other Tigers from the Great American Conference are 11-6 overall and 4-5 in the GAC after defeating Southern Arkansas Tuesday.

OBU is hitting .176 and allowing a .157 mark and has a 1.8 to 1.5 lead in blocks, but trails its opponents in the other statistical categories this season.

Ouachita has four players that have over 100 kills this season, with Abby Pickett, Kelley Ballard and Kori Bullard leading the team in kills and blocks.  Pickett has 130 kills, a .217 (130k-53e-355ta) hitting percentage and 38 (7-31) blocks.  Ballard adds 122 kills, 10 service aces and 51 (21-30) blocks, while Bullard has 110 kills and 35 (5-30) blocks.

Against the Tigers
Last year the two Tiger teams met just once, with ECU earning the win at home in five sets.  ECU earned a .246 team hitting percentage and held OBU to a .170 mark.

Junior Hayley Gerken is the only returner to see action against OBU, with nine kills and four digs.

Kelley Ballard and Abby Pickett are the key returners for OBU, with 11 kills for Ballard and eight from Pickett.

The Series
The battle of the Tigers is a close series, with ECU holding a 3-2 advantage, but he series tied at two when playing in the GAC.  However, OBU holds a clear 0-2 advantage when playing in Arkadelphia.  The last meeting on the road was Nov. 21, 2013, with ECU falling 1-3.

Scouting Henderson State
The Reddies are 3-17 overall and 0-9 in the GAC and will face Southeastern Oct. 17 and Alabama-Huntsville the morning of Oct. 18 before hosting the Tigers.

HSU trails in all of the statistical categories in the season box score, with its biggest differentials coming in hitting percentage (.119/.239) and blocks (1.6/2.0).

Jessica Moss and Nayeli Colunga led the offensive for the Reddies.  Moss has a .243 (237k-103e-551ta) hitting percentage and adds 14 service aces and 51 (16-35) blocks.  Colunga has 147 kills, 14 service aces, 134 digs and 11 (1-10) blocks.

Against the Reddies
In 2013, the Reddies and ECU met once, with the Tigers claiming a 3-0 win.

Junior Hayley Gerken leads the returners with 11 kills, a .400 attack percentage, three service aces and two digs.  Junior Sarah Simpson added eight kills, four digs and two aces, while sophomore Madison Seiler garnered 14 assists.

Jessica Moss is the key returner for the Reddies with a .286 (3k-1e-7ta) hitting percentage and five block assists.

The Series
The all-time series with HSU stands 6-1 in favor of the Tigers, including a 4-0 mark when the match has counted in the GAC standings.  ECU is also 2-0 when playing on the road, with the last meeting away coming Oct. 26, 2013 (W, 3-0).

Scouting Southwestern
The Bulldogs are 6-10 overall and 4-5 in the GAC after defeating Southeastern Tuesday.  SWOSU will play just one match over the weekend before traveling to face ECU, as they face Arkansas Tech, Friday, Oct. 17.

The Bulldogs are hitting .129 for the season, but are allowing a .164 mark by the opposition.  They trail their opponents in all categories except blocks, where they have a slight 1.9 to 1.7 lead.

Carly Zack and Joey Collins are the key hitters for SWOSU.  Zack has 174 kills, three service aces, 83 digs and 22 (4-18) blocks.  Collins adds 157 kills, six aces and 102 digs.

Against the Bulldogs
Earlier this season, the Tigers fell to the Bulldogs 2-3 on the road, with blocks being a key.  SWOSU out-blocked the Tigers 2-16.

Junior Hayley Gerken was the leader for ECU with 18 kills, a .268 (18k-7e-41ta) hitting percentage and five digs.  Junior Sarah Simpson added a double-double with 11 kills and 15 digs.

Carly Zak was the offensive key for the Bulldogs, with 22 kills a .328 (22k-3e-58ta) attack percentage, nine digs and four block assists.  Kiley Brennfoerder led the charge at the net with 12 (2-10) blocks.

The Series
The Tigers currently hold a small 6-4 lead in the all-time series, with all the matches counting as GAC matches.  ECU is also undefeated against the Bulldogs when playing in Ada, having won all four of the previous meetings.  The last meeting at home was Sept. 24, 2013 when the Tigers won 3-0.

Mackenzie Making a Move
Freshman Mackenzie Davis had a strong week for the Tigers (Sept. 23-27).  Davis tallied 25 kills and a team-high .364 (25k-5e-55ta) hitting percentage.  She also added a team-best eight (1-7) blocks and three service aces in three matches.

Gerken's Golden Moment
Junior Hayley Gerken has a standout performance for ECU in the 3-2 win over St. Gregory's (9/20/14).  Gerken hit .812 (13k-0e-16ta), which would have been a school record for hitting percentage in a match had she gotten four more attempts.  She also added a dig and four (1-3) blocks.

That's a Kill for Gill
Freshman Madyson Gill has become a strong force for ECU early in the season, with three double-doubles at the South Central Classic.  She totaled 63 kills, five service aces, 62 digs and eight (3-5) blocks in the six matches.  She now has a total of six double-doubles on the season.

Up Next
The Tigers will wrap up Homecoming week with a home match against Northwestern Oklahoma State, Friday, Oct. 24 at 7 p.m. in the Kerr Activities Center.