2010 Lindenwood volleyball postseason media guide in .pdf format

NAIA Volleyball Championship Webpage

NAIA Volleyball National Championship
The Lindenwood volleyball team will wrap up one of the top seasons in school history this upcoming week when it competes in the 31st annual NAIA Volleyball National Championship presented by Siouxland Sports Medicine Foundation. The tournament will be held in Sioux City, Iowa on Nov. 30-Dec. 4.

The Lady Lions have been assigned to Pool F with No. 6 California Baptist, No. 7 Biola, and No. 21 Bellevue. The team will start pool play with a 3:15 p.m. match against Biola on Tuesday, and will then play California Baptist on Wednesday at 1 p.m. Lindenwood concludes pool play on Thursday with a 1 p.m. match against Bellevue.

The top two teams from each pool will advance to the single elimination bracket starting Friday Dec. 3. The championship match will take place at 8 p.m. on Dec. 4.

Lindenwood 2010 Season Snapshot
The No. 20 Lindenwood volleyball team used a disappointing finish to the 2009 season as motivation to return to the national tournament in 2010.

The Lady Lions have played 46 matches in all on the season, and 16 of those matches have come against opponents who are either currently ranked or were ranked at the time of the match in the NAIA top 25.

Some of the top moments from the non-conference slate include finishing third at the Graceland/Pizza Shack Invitational, and a posting a 3-1 record at the Olivet Nazarene tournament.

Lindenwood finished 8-2 in the Heart of America Athletic Conference, and had its 33 conference match winning streak snapped on Sept. 14 against Evangel. It was the first conference loss since 2006. A second conference loss to Benedictine was the turning point on the season. Since that defeat, the Lady Lions have won 17 of their last 18 matches.

Lindenwood won the HAAC Tournament Championship for the fourth time in the last five years by defeating a red-hot MidAmerica Nazarene squad in four sets in the title match.

In the opening round of the NAIA Volleyball National Championship, the Lady Lions swept Freed-Hardeman to return to the national tournament for the third time in school history.

Quick Glance at Pool Opponents
California Baptist enters the tournament with 29-5 overall record. The Lancers are one of the top hitting teams in the nation, ranking in the top 20 in hitting percentage and kills per set.

Biola stands at 25-8 on the season, and ranks in the top 20 in both assists and kills per set.

Bellevue brings a record of 34-11 into the tournament, and ranks in the top 20 in total blocks, kills, assists, and kills and assists per set.

Lindenwood Hitters
The Lindenwood offense is averaging 12.80 kills and 11.93 assists per set, and have a .241 hitting percentage.

Ellen Fandry has led the team offensively this season with 3.22 kills per game, and she is hitting .201. She ranks 19th in the NAIA in total kills with 515. Fandry has led the team in kills in 29 matches, and has double-digit putaways in 30 matches.

Krista Yoder ranks in the top 50 in the nation with a .341 hitting percentage, and is averaging 2.70 kills per set.

Kristy Dreisewerd averages 2.08 kills per set on .296 hitting. Her 17 kills in the HAAC tournament championship match was a career high.

Other top hitters for the Lady Lions are Kelsey Kennedy (2.08 kps), Erin Anselman (1.70 kps), Katie Weber (1.55 kps), and Megan Dillon (1.19 kps).

Lindenwood Specialists
The Lindenwood offense is quarterbacked by setters Lexie Malam and Kelsey Biggs. Malam is averaging 5.49 assists per set, and Biggs is averaging 5.48. Combined, the duo leads the HAAC in assists per game. Malam has posted 10 assist/dig double-doubles, and Biggs has six.

Alyssa Showers is a four-year starter at libero for Lindenwood. She leads the team with 4.33 digs a game and has a .926 pass receive percentage. She has led the team in digs in 31 matches, has 43 double-figures dig matches, and nine matches with 20 or more digs.

Pasty Erb is another defensive specialist who is averaging 3.09 digs a game, and has a .934 pass receive percentage.


Lindenwood Blocking
Lindenwood is one of the top blocking teams in the HAAC, collecting 2.3 blocks a game.

The blocking effort starts with Krista Yoder and Katie Weber. Both rank in the top 10 in the conference in blocks per set. Yoder is averaging a team-best 1.0 blocks a game and has 10 matches with five or more.

Weber has led the team in blocks in 19 matches this year, while collecting 0.85 blocks a game. She currently ranks in the top 40 in total blocks with 133.

Kelsey Jo Vogler has come off the bench to average one block a game, and is fourth on the squad in total blocks.

All-HAAC Performers
Seven members of the Lindenwood volleyball team were named to the all-conference squad.

Kristy Dreisewerd, Ellen Fandry, and Krista Yoder were first-team selections. For Yoder, it was the fourth straight season in which she received first-team honors.

Alyssa Showers was tabbed second-team, and Patsy Erb, Lexie Malam, and Katie Weber were honorable mention picks. Showers also was named to the all-conference squad for the fourth time in her career.

Head coach Ron Young was chosen as the Coach of the Year for the fifth time in his career after leading the Lady Lions to a postseason berth.

National Rankings
Lindenwood was not ranked in the preseason NAIA volleyball poll this season, but was ranked in the final seven regular season polls, and in the final national ranking.

The Lady Lions were ranked between 20th and 25th every time. Lindenwood was 20th in the final ranking of the season.

Tough Schedule
Lindenwood is 5-9 against opponents that were ranked in the NAIA top 25 at the time of the match. In all, Lindenwood has played 16 matches against teams that are currently ranked or have been ranked at some point this season.

The five wins over ranked teams is an improvement of four wins from last year, and twice this season, Lindenwood has lost in five sets to teams ranked in the top 10.

Double-Doubles
Ellen Fandry leads the Lady Lions with 23 kills/digs double-doubles. It is the second straight season in which she has led the team in that category.

Fandry has four double-doubles in her last five matches, and twice during that span has led the team in kills and digs.

Team Hitting Percentage Statistics
Lindenwood is 29-5 in matches where the team hits .201 or better, compared to 5-7 when the squad hits less than .200.

Catching Fire of Late
Lindenwood is one of the hottest teams entering the national tournament. The Lady Lions have won 17 of their last 18 matches.

During that span, Lindenwood is hitting .271 as a team and is averaging six service aces a match.

Lindenwood Vs. Championship Field
Lindenwood is 3-7 this year against other teams in the NAIA Volleyball Championship. The team is 1-1 against teams in its own pool.

California Baptist defeated the Lady Lions 25-19, 25-21, 25-16 at the Point Loma Nazarene tournament. The Lancers hit .216 as a team compared .046 for Lindenwood.

The Lady Lions defeated Bellevue 23-25, 25-19, 25-22, 25-21 at the Bruin/Premiere Volleyball Classic. Lindenwood limited the Bruins to a .190 hitting percentage, and held a nine to six advantage in blocks.

Lindenwood Volleyball History
The 2010 season is the 21st season of Lindenwood women's volleyball. The program won its first conference championship in 1999. Since then, it has won seven other HAAC titles, winning every year since 2002 with the exception of 2004 and 2010.

HAAC In The NAIA Championship
The 2010 Lindenwood team is just the seventh HAAC squad to make the NAIA Championship field.

The Lady Lions have represented the conference three of the last four years. Lindenwood's top showing came in 2007 when the team finished 2-1 in pool play, and advanced to the quarterfinals before falling to Concordia (Calif.)

Baker made the field in 1992 and went 0-4. Graceland made the field in 1986, 1993, and 2002. That program is 6-7 all-time at the NAIA Championship. Graceland's best showing was making it out of pool play in 1993 before falling in the quarterfinals.

NAIA Championship Information
This year's championship is the 31st annual NAIA Volleyball National Championship.

The national event is held at the Tyson Events Center/Gateway Arena in Sioux City, Iowa.

Up-to-date information on this year's championship can be found at www.naia.org.

Live video of the bracket play will be available for a fee at the above website.