Complete PDF Notes

Upcoming in Gray Wolves Volleyball: Lourdes returns home to wrap up the 2013 regular season beginning with a pair of matches this weekend which will be played at Springfield High School.  The Gray Wolves will face Saint Xavier on Friday evening before entertaining Clarke on Saturday afternoon.  

Head Coach Greg Reitz: In his second season both on the Lourdes bench, and overall coaching men's volleyball, Greg Reitz has a 28-19 (.596) record at the helm of the Gray Wolves.  He was named to the MAMVIC East Coach of the Year in 2012.  Reitz is the only head coach in Lourdes program's history.

Series Notes: Lourdes is 4-0 all-time against Saint Xavier after posting a victory earlier this season against the Cougars in four sets.  The Gray Wolves won  all three meetings against Saint Xavier last season, including a five-set victory in the MAMVIC East tournament, and defeated the Cougars in four sets in the lone match at Tam-o-Shanter.  The Gray Wolves are 1-2 all-time against Clarke after sweeping the Crusaders in straight sets back on Feb. 16 in Dubuque, Iowa.  This is Clarke's first appearance against Lourdes in the state of Ohio after the two schools met for a pair of matches in Iowa last season.

Wrapping Up Recent Action: Lourdes went 2-1 last week on its swing through the Carolinas before returning to MAMVIC East action on Tuesday night with a win over Siena Heights.  The Gray Wolves fell in three sets at Lees-McRae before bouncing back with a 3-1 victory at Erskine.  Lourdes then downed Limestone in four sets before doing the same in the win at Siena Heights.

Scouting Saint Xavier: The Cougars enter the week having dropped two matches last Saturday at Missouri Valley.  Saint Xavier had won three straight prior to Saturday though, and will host Warner on Thursday night before traveling to Lourdes.  Justin Cousin leads Saint Xavier with 215 kills on the season while Sam Kull is hitting .395 while also leading the team with 81 blocks.  Dan French has handed out 574 assists for the Cougars while Nick Piccirillo has recorded 132 digs.  

Scouting Clarke: The Crusaders enter the match ranked fourth in the nation but have dropped two of their last three matches.  Clarke travels to Siena Heights on Friday before facing Lourdes on Saturday afternoon.  Tyler Willis has a team-leading 270 kills and has registered 23 service aces on the season.  Joe Kosciw has handed out 598 assists while Kevin Murphy leads the team with 195 digs.  Justin Mullady has been the team's top blocker with 74 rejections on the year.

Quite a Road Trip: Lourdes wrapped up its trip of 14 straight matches away from home on Tuesday evening, posting a 9-5 record during the stretch.  Of the five losses, four came at the hands of teams ranked in the top-eight of the NAIA national poll.

Home Away From Home: Due to the unavailability of Tam-o-Shanter this weekend, the Gray Wolves have to play this weekend's two “home” matches at Springfield High School.  

A Nice Stretch of Wins: Lourdes won four straight matches from Feb. 16-23, its second longest winning streak in program history.  The Gray Wolves set a school mark last year winning six consecutive contests from Feb. 18-26.

Facing Yet Another Ranked Foe: Lourdes will battle its eighth top-10 opponent this season, but is still looking first its first victory of the year against a ranked foe.  All-time the Gray Wolves are 3-16 against nationally-ranked foes, with the last victory coming on March 3, 2012, a 3-0 sweep against Graceland.

Digging Them Up: Brad Miller has registered 248 digs for Lourdes thus far this season, leading all players in the country.  The sophomore is averaging 3.2 digs per set, a mark that also ranks tops among all NAIA players this season.

Killing Them: Nick DiMarco ranks third in the nation with 291 total kills this season.   The senior's 4.1 kills per set also ranks third in all of NAIA.

Swinging Well Equates to Victories: Lourdes hit .327 as a team in the victory over Siena Heights, the team's fifth best hitting night of the season.  The Gray Wolves have now hit better than .300 six times this season, with all six matches resulting in victories.

Captains Named: Senior Nick DiMarco and junior Trevor Lund have been named team captains for the 2013 season.  DiMarco led the Gray Wolves with 342 kills one season ago and will be a two-time team captain.  Lund will be in his first season at Lourdes after transferring in from Irvine Valley College.

This and That: Brad Miller is the lone Gray Wolf to play in all 78 sets this season ... the win against Siena Heights was Lourdes fifth all-time against the Saints, the most against any team in program history ... Lourdes has clinched a top-four finish in the MAMVIC East with three conference matches still remaining on the schedule.