Friday, January 18
Fort Wayne, Ind.
7 PM
Purdue Fort Wayne
vs
Cal State Northridge
Photo by: Jim Whitcraft
No. 10 CSUN and No. 12 UCSB Visit No. 13 Mastodons This Weekend
1/17/2019 11:04:00 AM | Men's Volleyball
FORT WAYNE, Ind. - No. 13 Purdue Fort Wayne men's volleyball welcomes No. 10 Cal State Northridge and No. 12 UC Santa Barbara to Arnie Ball Court this weekend.
Gameday Information vs Cal State Northridge
WHEN: Friday, January 18 | 7 p.m.
WHERE: Fort Wayne, Ind. | Arnie Ball Court
LIVE STATS: Live Stats
LIVE VIDEO: Live Video
LIVE AUDIO: Live Audio
Play-by-Play: Mike Maahs
SERIES HISTORY: CSUN leads 10-2
LAST MEETING: L, 3-1 (25-11, 20-25, 30-28, 29-27) | January 7, 2017 | Santa Barbara, Calif.
Gameday Information vs UC Santa Barbara
WHEN: Saturday, January 19 | 7 p.m.
WHERE: Fort Wayne, Ind. | Arnie Ball Court
LIVE STATS: Live Stats
LIVE VIDEO: Live Video
LIVE AUDIO: Live Audio
Play-by-Play: Mike Maahs
SERIES HISTORY: UCSB leads 18-3
LAST MEETING: L, 3-0 (27-25, 33-31, 25-13) | March 9, 2019 | Santa Barbara, Calif.
Scouting Cal State Northridge
Cal State Northridge is 4-1 and ranked No. 10 in the AVCA Top 15 Coaches Poll. The Matadors have a signature win under their belt, as they took down No. 2 UCLA in straight sets. CSUN has also beaten then-ranked No. 12 Concordia Irvine, but fell to then-ranked No. 14 Grand Canyon. The Matadors' match with Purdue Fort Wayne will be their first true road match of the year, with three neutral contests and two home matches having already been played.
Scouting UC Santa Barbara
UC Santa Barbara comes to Indiana on a three-match losing streak, having dropped two against Pepperdine and one at UCLA on Wednesday. The Gauchos do have wins over Harvard, Grand Canyon and Concordia Irvine. UCSB leads a balanced attack, with eight players averaging between 2.00 and 3.00 kills per set this season. The Gauchos are sixth in the country in blocks per set thanks to Jack Truman and Keenan Sanders who are fourth and ninth in the Big West respectively.
Where We Stand...
The Mastodons are 4-0, and are one of 11 programs in the country to remain undefeated after two weeks of play. Purdue Fort Wayne is one of only two MIVA teams that are undefeated at this point in the season, with Quincy at 1-0 being the only other.
Kills For Pelegrin
Pelegrin Vargas leads the Mastodons in kills per set (3.64) and points per set (4.41). He is second in the MIVA in both of those categories, trailing only Jake Hanes of Ohio State. Last season, Vargas led the conference in kills per set through the conclusion of the regular season.
Richie Can Serve!
With .700 aces per set this season, junior Richie Diedrich ranks second in the MIVA in that category, behind only Matt Yoshimoto of Lewis, who leads the country. Before this season, Diedrich had 14 aces total in his career. This year, he already has seven.
Richie Can Block Too!
In the Mastodons' win at Queens, Richie Diedrich had a career night. He tied his previous career-high eight blocks in three sets, a number he previously set when the 'Dons hosted No. 12 George Mason in 2017. His eight blocks at Queens is the most in the NCAA so far this season in a three-set match, and tied for the most overall by a MIVA member.
Defense Wins Players of the Week
The Mastodons have earned the MIVA Defensive Player of the Week for both of the first two weeks of the season. In week two, Richie Diedrich earned his first MIVA Defensive Player of the Week after averaging 2.25 blocks per set. He had eight blocks in the 'Dons 3-0 win at Queens and one block in one set of action at Lees-McRae. In week one, Kolbie Knorr was selected after a 16-dig weekend (2.67 per set) in the Mastodons' wins over NJIT and (RV) Princeton. This was his first player of the week honor since becoming a Mastodon.
Digging Up Elite Company
Kolbie Knorr is averaging 2.04 digs per set in his career as a Mastodon, which places him in ninth in program history in that category. Shaun Dryden (No. 8) and Jay Golsteyn (No. 7) both rank within 0.03 digs per set higher than Knorr.
He Knows When to Attack
Michael Keegan currently holds a 1.000 hitting percentage for the season. He is 7-0-7, and is the only Mastodon to have played all four matches and have a perfect hitting rate.
You Get a Dig, You Get a Dig, You Get...
Purdue Fort Wayne has the top two performances in the country in team digs in three-set matches. The Mastodons had 37 digs against NJIT and at Queens, which both mark the highest in a single three-set match in the country. The Mastodons rank second in the MIVA in digs per set thanks to these matches.
Sweeping Start... Again
The Mastodons have started the season with four straight sweeps, which ties the program record for most 3-0 wins to start a season. The record was set just last season. The 'Dons' longest streak of 3-0 victories is six, which came in 2007, including three victories in the MIVA Tournament.
Moving Up the Rankings
Michael Keegan has 2,719 career assists, putting him in sixth place in program history after passing Colin Lundeen last weekend. Omar Rivera is next on the list in fifth; he had 2959 assists from 2012-15.
Ranked Again
This week, the Mastodons are ranked 13th in the AVCA Top 15 Coaches Poll. This is the 293rd week that the 'Dons are ranked in the poll since its inception in 1986.
Elite Mastodons
The Mastodons have not fallen to an unranked opponent since April 1, 2017. The 'Dons are 20-0 against unranked teams since that date.
Last Time Out
The Mastodons took down Conference Carolina foe Lees-McRae 3-0 and Independent opponent Queens 3-0 on the road last weekend. Their trip resulted in moving their overall record to 4-0 on the young season.
Next Time Up
Purdue Fort Wayne is set for a pair of matches at No. 9 Stanford next weekend. The 'Dons play the Cardinal on Friday and Saturday (Jan. 25-26) at 10 p.m. EST.
Gameday Information vs Cal State Northridge
WHEN: Friday, January 18 | 7 p.m.
WHERE: Fort Wayne, Ind. | Arnie Ball Court
LIVE STATS: Live Stats
LIVE VIDEO: Live Video
LIVE AUDIO: Live Audio
Play-by-Play: Mike Maahs
SERIES HISTORY: CSUN leads 10-2
LAST MEETING: L, 3-1 (25-11, 20-25, 30-28, 29-27) | January 7, 2017 | Santa Barbara, Calif.
Gameday Information vs UC Santa Barbara
WHEN: Saturday, January 19 | 7 p.m.
WHERE: Fort Wayne, Ind. | Arnie Ball Court
LIVE STATS: Live Stats
LIVE VIDEO: Live Video
LIVE AUDIO: Live Audio
Play-by-Play: Mike Maahs
SERIES HISTORY: UCSB leads 18-3
LAST MEETING: L, 3-0 (27-25, 33-31, 25-13) | March 9, 2019 | Santa Barbara, Calif.
Scouting Cal State Northridge
Cal State Northridge is 4-1 and ranked No. 10 in the AVCA Top 15 Coaches Poll. The Matadors have a signature win under their belt, as they took down No. 2 UCLA in straight sets. CSUN has also beaten then-ranked No. 12 Concordia Irvine, but fell to then-ranked No. 14 Grand Canyon. The Matadors' match with Purdue Fort Wayne will be their first true road match of the year, with three neutral contests and two home matches having already been played.
Scouting UC Santa Barbara
UC Santa Barbara comes to Indiana on a three-match losing streak, having dropped two against Pepperdine and one at UCLA on Wednesday. The Gauchos do have wins over Harvard, Grand Canyon and Concordia Irvine. UCSB leads a balanced attack, with eight players averaging between 2.00 and 3.00 kills per set this season. The Gauchos are sixth in the country in blocks per set thanks to Jack Truman and Keenan Sanders who are fourth and ninth in the Big West respectively.
Where We Stand...
The Mastodons are 4-0, and are one of 11 programs in the country to remain undefeated after two weeks of play. Purdue Fort Wayne is one of only two MIVA teams that are undefeated at this point in the season, with Quincy at 1-0 being the only other.
Kills For Pelegrin
Pelegrin Vargas leads the Mastodons in kills per set (3.64) and points per set (4.41). He is second in the MIVA in both of those categories, trailing only Jake Hanes of Ohio State. Last season, Vargas led the conference in kills per set through the conclusion of the regular season.
Richie Can Serve!
With .700 aces per set this season, junior Richie Diedrich ranks second in the MIVA in that category, behind only Matt Yoshimoto of Lewis, who leads the country. Before this season, Diedrich had 14 aces total in his career. This year, he already has seven.
Richie Can Block Too!
In the Mastodons' win at Queens, Richie Diedrich had a career night. He tied his previous career-high eight blocks in three sets, a number he previously set when the 'Dons hosted No. 12 George Mason in 2017. His eight blocks at Queens is the most in the NCAA so far this season in a three-set match, and tied for the most overall by a MIVA member.
Defense Wins Players of the Week
The Mastodons have earned the MIVA Defensive Player of the Week for both of the first two weeks of the season. In week two, Richie Diedrich earned his first MIVA Defensive Player of the Week after averaging 2.25 blocks per set. He had eight blocks in the 'Dons 3-0 win at Queens and one block in one set of action at Lees-McRae. In week one, Kolbie Knorr was selected after a 16-dig weekend (2.67 per set) in the Mastodons' wins over NJIT and (RV) Princeton. This was his first player of the week honor since becoming a Mastodon.
Digging Up Elite Company
Kolbie Knorr is averaging 2.04 digs per set in his career as a Mastodon, which places him in ninth in program history in that category. Shaun Dryden (No. 8) and Jay Golsteyn (No. 7) both rank within 0.03 digs per set higher than Knorr.
He Knows When to Attack
Michael Keegan currently holds a 1.000 hitting percentage for the season. He is 7-0-7, and is the only Mastodon to have played all four matches and have a perfect hitting rate.
You Get a Dig, You Get a Dig, You Get...
Purdue Fort Wayne has the top two performances in the country in team digs in three-set matches. The Mastodons had 37 digs against NJIT and at Queens, which both mark the highest in a single three-set match in the country. The Mastodons rank second in the MIVA in digs per set thanks to these matches.
Sweeping Start... Again
The Mastodons have started the season with four straight sweeps, which ties the program record for most 3-0 wins to start a season. The record was set just last season. The 'Dons' longest streak of 3-0 victories is six, which came in 2007, including three victories in the MIVA Tournament.
Moving Up the Rankings
Michael Keegan has 2,719 career assists, putting him in sixth place in program history after passing Colin Lundeen last weekend. Omar Rivera is next on the list in fifth; he had 2959 assists from 2012-15.
Ranked Again
This week, the Mastodons are ranked 13th in the AVCA Top 15 Coaches Poll. This is the 293rd week that the 'Dons are ranked in the poll since its inception in 1986.
Elite Mastodons
The Mastodons have not fallen to an unranked opponent since April 1, 2017. The 'Dons are 20-0 against unranked teams since that date.
Last Time Out
The Mastodons took down Conference Carolina foe Lees-McRae 3-0 and Independent opponent Queens 3-0 on the road last weekend. Their trip resulted in moving their overall record to 4-0 on the young season.
Next Time Up
Purdue Fort Wayne is set for a pair of matches at No. 9 Stanford next weekend. The 'Dons play the Cardinal on Friday and Saturday (Jan. 25-26) at 10 p.m. EST.
~ Feel the Rumble ~
Players Mentioned
MB
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