PREVIEW: No. 20 Huskies travel to Grand Valley State

THIS WEEKEND'S MATCHES
• No. 20 Michigan Tech wraps up a four-match road trip at Grand Valley State on Friday and Saturday.
• The Huskies and Lakers meet at 7 p.m. Friday and 4 p.m. Saturday at GVSU Fieldhouse Arena.
• Tech is riding a five-match winning streak and is 7-1 overall.

GLIAC NORTH PLAYER OF THE WEEK
• Olivia Ghormley is the GLIAC North Division Player of the Week for the second straight week.
• She led Tech to a pair of 3-0 sweeps at Saginaw Valley State. She hit .432 in the two matches and totaled 23 kills, averaging 3.83 per set. She had a match-high 15 kills Friday and tallied eight kills on only 13 attempts Saturday.
• Ghormley ranks second in the GLIAC with 4.07 kills per set and is seventh with a .313 hitting percentage.
• She recently moved into fourth place on Michigan Tech's all-time kills list with 1,388 for her four-year career.

IN THE AVCA POLL
• Tech is ranked No. 20 in this week's AVCA Division II Coaches' Poll.
• The Huskies were ranked No. 20 last week, No. 23 on February 25, and received votes in the preseason poll.
• Tech was ranked in the Top 25 in eight polls in 2019 and climbed as high as No. 20 on November 5.

LAST TIME OUT
• Tech earned a pair of 3-0 sweeps last weekend at Saginaw Valley State.
• The Huskies won 25-13, 25-17, and 25-20 Friday and 25-17, 25-20, and 25-11 Saturday to push the winning streak to five.

NATIONAL STATISTICAL RANKINGS
• Tech leads NCAA Division II in assists per set (14.47)
• The Huskies rank second in kills per set (15.2)
• Tech is fourth in hitting percentage (.288)
• Laura De Marchi is second nationally in assists per set (12.40)
• Janie Grindland is ninth nationally in blocks per set (1.37)

GLIAC STATISTICAL RANKINGS
• Laura De Marchi leads the GLIAC in assists per set (12.40)
• Janie Grindland leads the GLIAC in blocks per set (1.37)
• Olivia Ghormley is second in the GLIAC in kills per set (4.07)
• Morgan Radtke is third in the GLIAC in hitting percentage (.366)
• Anna Jonynas is third in the GLIAC in kills per set (3.80)
• Megan Utlak is fourth in the GLIAC in digs per set (4.93)
• Janie Grindland is fourth in the GLIAC in hitting percentage (.333)

PRESEASON GLIAC POLL
• In the 2021 Preseason Coaches' Poll, the Huskies led the North Division with 60 points. Ferris State was eight points back while also taking a pair of first-place votes. Northern Michigan (38), Saginaw Valley State (34), Northwood (20), and Lake Superior State (12) rounded out the North.
• Ashland was the top choice in the South Division with 56 points and eight first-place votes. Grand Valley State was six points back. Wayne State (43) was third followed by Davenport (34), Parkside (21), and Purdue Northwest (12).

SCOUTING THE LAKERS
• Grand Valley State is 8-2 overall and 5-0 on its home court.
• The Lakers had a pair of sweeps against Ashland last weekend and have won six of their last seven.
• GVSU was picked second in the South Division in the GLIAC Coaches' Poll.
• Ali Thompson (2.65 k/s) and Jaelianna Primus (2.51 k/s) lead the offense. Rachel Jacquay leads the team with 10.05 assists per set and Abby Graham holds down the defense with 4.24 digs per set.
• Deanne Scanlon is in her 26th season as head coach of the Lakers.

LAST MEETINGS
• Tech defeated GVSU twice last season, sweeping the Lakers in Allendale in September and winning 3-1 in November to begin the GLIAC Playoffs.
• The Huskies have won four straight over GVSU.

MILESTONES MARKS
• Laura De Marchi – 3,960 assists (3rd in program history)
• Olivia Ghormley – 1,388 kills (4th in program history)
• Megan Utlak – 1,444 digs (5th in program history)
• Anna Jonynas – 1,219 digs (8th in program history)

COACH JENNINGS
• Head coach Matt Jennings is in his ninth season and has won 142 matches overall.
• Under Jennings, the Huskies have gone from last place in the conference to nationally ranked and consistently in the NCAA Tournament.
• Jennings has coached the Huskies to three straight NCAA tournament appearances and the program's first NCAA win since 1995.
• He was named the GLIAC Coach of the Year in 2019 and 2017 and led the team to a program-record of 10 straight wins to start the 2016 season.

LAST SEASON
The Huskies finished last season with a 24-8 overall record, winning the most matches since 1996. They went to the NCAA Tournament for the third straight season and advanced with the first NCAA win since 1995.

RETURNING ALL-AMERICANS
• Laura De Marchi and Olivia Ghormley were named American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) NCAA Division II Honorable Mention All-Americans in 2019. Both were honored by the organization for the second year in a row. Ghormley also added All-America Honorable Mention honors from the Division II Conference Commissioner's Association (D2CCA).
• De Marchi led the GLIAC in assists per set at 11.59 to rank seventh in the nation and sixth in program history. She also tallied 260 digs, 81 kills, 40 blocks, and 20 service aces.
• Ghormley finished third in the GLIAC in kills per set (4.03) and points per set (4.4). She tallied double-digit kills 25 times in 2019, including seven matches with 20 kills.

ALL-GLIAC RETURNEES
• Laura De Marchi – 3-time GLIAC Setter of the Year, 3-time All-GLIAC First Team
• Olivia Ghormley – 2-time GLIAC Attacker of the Year, 2-time All-GLIAC First Team
• Megan Utlak – 2-time All-GLIAC Honorable Mention

REST OF THE SCHEDULE
• April 2 vs. Northern Michigan
• April 3 at Northern Michigan